Effiong Essien

Effiong Essien is a leading Global Food and Agriculture Policy and Implementation Expert with more than 3 decades of cross continent field-based experience. He has successfully led several strategic development programmes and projects in food, agriculture and infrastructure in Africa, Europe and Asia.

Effiong is currently a member of the Standing Committee on Research and Development (R&D) for Nigerian Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) and member of Subgroup for R&D for Agriculture. He is also a member of the Technical Working Group (TWG) for the preparation of Medium-Term National Development Plan 2021-2025 and Nigeria Agenda 2050. Effiong is a TWG member for Agriculture, Food Security and Rural Development. Prior to this, he was appointed the Senior Special Assistant to Nigeria’s President on Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) Implementation, leading Agriculture and Infrastructure sectors from 2017-2019. At ERGP Implementation Unit, Effiong worked with various MDAs to successfully conduct agriculture and Infrastructure segment of Nigeria’s first Focus Labs, designed as an inter-stakeholder forum between senior government officials and private sector investors to resolve inter-agency issues and unlock investments.

Effiong recently functioned as a Global Agriculture Expert for UNIDO, leading a mission to North Korea. Most recently, he has also served as a Consultant in Agriculture and Food at the World Bank. Amongst other roles held in the European Union, Effiong was Head of EU Food Chain Sustainability and CSR, Eurogroup for Animals, Brussels, Belgium from 2009 to 2013. On that role, he served as a Senior Policy Adviser to the European Institutions (the European Commission and the Parliament) on cross sector programmes intersecting the commercial world and sustainable food supply chain across Europe. He was also Sherpa Member of the High-Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain, European Commission. Back in the UK, he served as a consultant at London Borough of Barking and Dagenham on Manufacturing Sustainable Communities project as well as Consultant in Greener Food Initiative for London at London Sustainable Exchange (LSx). Prior to public roles, Effiong had served at technical capacity with UK manufacturing companies such as Kolak Foods, Snowbird Foods (now Vion) and Joseph Robertson of Aberdeen from 1996 to 2007.

Effiong holds a PhD in Food Sustainability, from Greenwich University, Chatham, Kent, UK, a Masters degree in Food Animal Science, from the University of Bristol, UK, and a Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science, from the University of Uyo, Nigeria.