Economic Confidential

At 40, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, is unquestionably the youngest Director General in the entire federal public service in Nigeria.

Anohu-Amazu who hails from Anambra, that state that has produced some of the best brains in Nigeria for both the public and private sectors, is currently the Acting Director General of the National Pension Commission (PENCOM).

The appointment, according to the finding of the Economic Confidential, came following the expiration of the tenure of the chairman and executive members of agency in December 2012. A directive from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Pius Anyim Pius then ensured that as the most senior General Manager in the Commission, she should take over the affairs.

A key player in the pension reform, Mrs. Anohu-Amazu was part of the team of experts that midwifed the Contributory Pension Scheme in Nigeria. She served in the Fola Adeola Pension Reform Committee set up by President Olusegun Obasanjo, which work led to the enactment of the Pension Reform Act 2004 with an accompanying a presidential commendation for the quality of reform work done in the then troubled sector.

Before joining PenCom as the pioneer Commission Secretary/Legal Adviser at the age of 31, the Economic Confidential gathered that Mrs. Anohu-Amazu had consulted for many private sector initiatives as well as non-governmental organisations and public institutions. One of these included the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), a body charged with the privatisation of government owned enterprises. While at the BPE, she advised on the privatisation of NITEL, the pioneer national telecommunications outfit, and the Nigerian Ports Authority. She was also the transaction manager for the privatisation of Nicon Hilton Hotel, Nigeria's largest hotel and Afribank PLC, one of the nation’s leading banks.

Mrs. Anohu-Amazu holds an LL. B. in Law from the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus and is a member of the Nigerian Bar. She holds a Masters degree in Telecommunication & Information Technology Law from the London School of Economics in addition to being a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, London. The Amazon has attended the Executive Education programme at the Wharton Business School, Pennsylvania where she obtained certification in “Negotiations: Bargaining for Advantage”, the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, where she obtained a certificate in “Leaders in Development: Managing Economic and Political Change”; and the Graduate School of Business, Columbia University.

Anohu-Amazu has been a key player in the implementation of the reform which has seen the emergence of Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and Pension Fund Custodians (PFCs) in the country.