Athena Centre Launches Governance Institute, Expands Leadership to Deepen Public Policy Research

By: Michael Mike

The Athena Centre for Policy and Leadership has launched the Alhaji Gidado Idris Institute of Governance and Public Policy, a new research platform aimed at strengthening public institutions and improving governance in Nigeria, while announcing four senior leadership appointments to drive its expanding policy agenda.

The institute, named after the late Alhaji Gidado Idris, one of Nigeria’s longest-serving senior civil servants who served as Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Permanent Secretary under successive military and civilian administrations, is expected to serve as the Centre’s flagship platform for governance research, policy innovation and institutional performance.

The announcement, made in Abuja on Tuesday, marks a significant expansion of the Centre’s work as Nigeria grapples with persistent governance challenges, weak public institutions and increasing calls for evidence-based policymaking.

Speaking on the initiative, Chancellor of the Athena Centre, Osita Chidoka, said Africa’s development challenge is fundamentally rooted in the quality of its institutions rather than the number of policies governments produce.

According to him, countries achieve sustainable transformation by building institutions capable of implementing policies with integrity, competence and accountability.

“The Alhaji Gidado Idris Institute is our contribution to that institutional future. It is a future in which government works more effectively for citizens, public trust is strengthened, and evidence consistently informs decision-making,” Chidoka said.

As part of the restructuring, the Centre appointed Dr. Christiantus I. Anyanwu as Director of the newly established Alhaji Gidado Idris Institute of Governance and Public Policy.

A political scientist and governance specialist, Anyanwu previously served as Senior Lecturer at Veritas University, Abuja, and Senior Research Fellow at the Athena Centre. He holds a doctorate in Public Policy Analysis from the University of Abuja and has published over 30 scholarly works on democratic governance, electoral integrity and institutional development.

He is expected to lead the institute’s research and policy engagement under its inaugural programme, “Making Government Work for Citizens at Every Level.”

The Centre also named Professor Temitayo Shenkoya as Director of the Arthur Nwankwo Institute for Education and Intellectual Freedom.

Professor Shenkoya, a governance and innovation scholar with more than two decades of international experience, currently serves as Professorial Researcher and Regional Director for Africa at Chungnam National University in South Korea. His career has included leadership roles at the Abuja Technology Village Foundation, UNICEF Nigeria and the Daejeon Metropolitan Government.

He will oversee the institute’s flagship programme, “Fixing Nigeria’s Schools: Accountability and Digital Transformation,” aimed at addressing governance deficits in the education sector.

Similarly, Dr. Danjuma Iyaji was appointed Director of the Olikoye Ransome-Kuti Institute for Health and Social Equity.

A health economist and monitoring, evaluation and research specialist, Iyaji has worked with the Society for Family Health, the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation and the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, while also teaching at several Nigerian universities.

His institute will focus on expanding access to affordable healthcare and nutrition through a 2026 programme designed to strengthen health equity across Nigeria.

The Athena Centre also appointed Sarah Eke as Head of the Athena Election Observatory, where she will supervise election audits, electoral data analytics and policy recommendations for electoral reforms.

A founding member of the organisation, Eke has coordinated election observation and post-election assessments across several Nigerian states, including Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi, Edo, Ondo and Anambra. She also previously worked on a presidential campaign, focusing on voter intelligence and electoral strategy.

Chidoka said the appointments demonstrate the Centre’s determination to combine academic excellence with practical policy expertise capable of influencing governance reforms.

“Our ambition is not simply to produce research. It is to produce ideas that influence policy, institutions that strengthen governance, and leaders who transform society. These appointments represent an investment in that mission,” he said.

The expansion comes at a time when governance experts have repeatedly called for stronger public institutions to address Nigeria’s development challenges. Analysts argue that despite numerous reform initiatives over the years, implementation gaps, institutional weaknesses and policy inconsistencies continue to undermine public service delivery.

Named after the late Alhaji Gidado Idris, who was widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most influential technocrats, the new institute seeks to uphold his legacy of professionalism, continuity and institutional memory in public administration.

The Athena Centre for Policy and Leadership is an independent, non-partisan think tank that promotes governance reforms, evidence-based public policy and ethical leadership across Africa through research, executive education and strategic policy dialogue.

Athena Centre Launches Governance Institute, Expands Leadership to Deepen Public Policy Research