Draft:Waziri Adio

Waziri Adio (born on June 14, 1968) is a Nigerian journalist, policy strategist, columnist at the newspaper This Day, former Editorial Page Editor and member of the This Day Editorial Board, and currently the Executive Director of Agora Policy, a Nigeria-based think tank.

Waziri was Director of Communications at Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) from May 2007 to June 2008. He also served as the former Executive Secretary of Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) from 2016 to 2021.

In July 2009, Waziri set up Think Tank Consult office in Abuja to offer policy communication services. As the lead consultant, he coordinated the provision of crisis communication support to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the reform of the banking sector in Nigeria in 2009 and led the development of an advocacy campaign for the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources on efforts to combat the menace of quelea birds in northern Nigeria. He also developed the policy document for the Youth Employment Programme of the Ministry of Youth and provided communication support for NYSC reforms.

Waziri served as Special Adviser, Research and Strategy to the Senate President, Adolphus Wabara (2003-2004). He wrote speeches for the Senate President on a range of national and global issues and later edited the speeches into a book titled “This is Where I Stand”. He was a communications specialist at UNDP Nigeria from 2004 to 2007.

At This Day, Waziri worked as assistant editor, political editor, New York bureau chief, editorial page editor, and columnist from November 1995 to August 2003. His contributions currently appear on the back page of the paper on Sundays.

Family life
Waziri Adio married Sandra from Edo State in 2001. They have three children.

Education
Waziri was educated at the University of Lagos, Columbia University, and Harvard University, where he earned a BSc in Mass Communication, an MS in Journalism, and an MPA in Public Administration, respectively. At different times, he was also a Fellow of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism and an Edward S. Mason Fellow in Public Policy and Management at Harvard University. Waziri is a Fellow of the fifth class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-West Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

Publisher/Author
In 2012, Waziri Adio launched the cultural magazine Metropole for the Abuja metropolis. In 2021, as the former Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), he chronicled his days in office, the challenges he faced while trying to stay true to his values, the ideas he tried to bring into his job, the innovations he brought to bear—especially in the policy arena—as well as the accomplishments he achieved, and the lessons he believes all who want to serve in public office need to imbibe in a book titled 'The Arc of the Possible'.