MUHAMMAD SANI ABDULLAHI

Dr. Muhammad Sani Abdullahi is an economist and public policy expert with over two decades of leadership in economic policy, central banking, and international development. He currently serves as the Deputy Governor for Economic Policy at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), where he provides strategic oversight of macroeconomic management, monetary policy, and financial markets.

In this role, he leads the Economic Policy Directorate, sits on the Monetary Policy Committee, the Committee of Governors, and the CBN Board, and also chairs the Monetary Policy Technical Committee as well as NIRSAL Plc, Nigeria’s leading institution for de-risking agricultural finance and driving rural development.

Before joining the CBN, Dr Abdullahi served as Commissioner for Budget and Planning and as Chief of Staff in Kaduna State, championing reforms in fiscal transparency and open data governance. His global experience includes serving as a Policy Adviser at the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary General and as a member of the World Bank’s Advisory Council on Citizen Engagement.

He holds a BSc in Economics from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, an MSc in Development Economics and Policy from the University of Manchester, and a PhD from Henley Business School, University of Reading. He is also a member of the Dunning Africa Centre and author of Disruption: Rethinking Governance to Work for the Poor.

Driven by a commitment to inclusive economic growth and institution-building, Dr Drdullahi continues to shape policies that foster sustainable development in Nigeria and beyond.