Simeon Ehui, a national of Cote d’Ivoire, has been the World Bank’s Regional Director for Sustainable Development for Africa since July 1, 2019 and, more recently, Regional Director for West and Central Africa July 1, 2020 - covering agriculture, environment, social, water, urban, and climate. His main responsibility, among other things, is to provide vision, coherence, and focus for sustainable development in West and Central Africa consistent with the regional/country strategies.
Before his current assignment, Simeon was Director of the World Bank’s Food and Agriculture Global Practice (2017-2019). Since joining the World Bank in 2003, Simeon has held several assignments. He was manager of the Food and Agriculture Global Practice for Africa (2015-2017) and South Asia (2009-2015). He also served as Lead Economist and Sector Leader for the Sustainable Development Network in Nigeria covering a variety of sectors such as agriculture, environment, transport, and energy.
Before joining the World Bank, Simeon worked for 15 years in the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). He managed multi-country agricultural research development programs in Africa and Asia for both the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).
Simeon holds a Masters (1983) and Ph.D. (1987). in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University, in Indiana, USA, and has published extensively in his field. He also holds a Masters (1981) and Bachelors (1980) in Economics from the National University of Cote d’Ivoire Simeon is an honorary fellow of the African Agricultural Economist Association, and a Distinguished Agricultural Alumnus of Purdue University.