By Executive Commissioner (Stakeholder Management) of the Nigerian Communications Commission. Rimini Haraya Makama is a Forbes 20 Youngest Power Women Under 40 in Africa list
A native of Plateau State, Rimini Makama was nominated as an Executive Commissioner of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) by President Bola Tinubu, on the 23rd of February 2024, and confirmed by the Senate on the 21st of May 2024.
After earning her LLB from the University of Jos, Nigeria, Makama proceeded to the University of Reading, United Kingdom where she obtained her LLM in International Law and World Order. She was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2004. Makama also holds a Professional Diploma in Marketing from the CIM (UK)
Rimini Makama is an internationally experienced senior executive known for her talent in building trusted advisor relationships with governments. Throughout her career, she has earned a reputation as a commercially minded and politically astute leader.
Her significant contributions to transformational shifts in Africa were recognized in 2014 when she was named in the Forbes 20 Youngest Power Women Under 40 in Africa list. Her career spans multiple sectors, including law enforcement and technology.
Before her appointment by the President, Makama spent several years in various senior roles. Most notably, she served as the Government Affairs Director for Middle East and Africa – Emerging Markets. In this position, she played an instrumental role in creating a policy environment conducive to public sector adoption of public cloud technology across numerous markets in the MEA region.
Makama’s central role in defining a digital transformation framework for governments, placing Microsoft solutions at the forefront of public sector technology, stands out as a key achievement during her tenure. Her exceptional contributions were recognized with the coveted Be the Change Award.
Makama also served as Director of Xbox Global Expansion and Integration in Redmond, United States. She was part of the team tasked with driving the upward growth trajectory of Xbox globally and launched Xbox Cloud Gaming (Project xCloud) in 28 countries.
Makama also represented Microsoft’s interests on the Digital Economy Task Force of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the SMART Africa Alliance. She became a prominent voice on AI ethics, appearing as an AI policy expert speaker at the prestigious UNESCO Forum on Artificial Intelligence in 2018.
Preceding her career at Microsoft, Makama was the Communications Director for West Africa for Africa Practice, where she successfully translated the strategic communications, stakeholder and policy needs of major multinational corporations seeking to invest in Africa into effective solutions, collaborating closely with high-level government stakeholders. Her work in positioning Blackberry in Nigeria in this role is particularly noteworthy.
Prior to her tenure at Africa Practice she served as a Principal Legal Assistant, Office of Legal Affairs – International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) in Lyon, France.
Makama has authored numerous articles on technology, the future of work and AI themes for prominent media outlets such as The Guardian, Financial Times, etc.
from NCC Website
