Damilola Ogunbiyi

Damilola Ogunbiyi is the CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (UN SRSG) for Sustainable Energy for All, and Co-Chair of UN-Energy. She was recognized in the 2024 TIME100 Climate list as one of the 20 titans in climate; she is the recipient of the First Class Order of Zayed II from the UAE President in recognition of her contribution to the success of the climate conference, COP28; she also received the Global Female Leadership Impact (GFLI) Award in 2024 and the Energy Institute President’s Award for 2023, in recognition of her continued role in solving critical global issues. She has been recognized as a trailblazer in her field by Reuters’ Trailblazing Women in Climate and Reuters’ Trailblazing Women in Energy, among others.

With Mrs. Ogunbiyi at the helm, Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) has entered into working relationships with over 200 partners, supported over 90 countries globally, and secured commitments of more than $1.4 trillion in energy finance. This has been achieved through programmes such as Universal Energy Facility, Powering Healthcare, Women and Youth at the Forefront, Cooling for All, and Clean Cooking; and innovative initiatives such as UN Energy Compacts, Energy Transition Plans, Universal Integrated Energy Plans, the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI), and the Renewable Energy Manufacturing Initiative (REMI) among many others. Through her leadership, SEforALL has grown its global influence and country support providing clear pathways to accelerate progress towards universal energy access, ending energy poverty, and advancing the global just and equitable energy transition.

SEforALL collaborates closely with the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB), The Rockefeller Foundation and Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) on Mission 300, the ambitious initiative to electrify 300 million Africans by 2030. Mrs Ogunbiyi is the Co-Chair of the Mission 300 Joint Working Group (JWG), and SEforALL supports Mission 300's operational framework and strategy through this JWG, as well as collaborating with partner countries to mobilize local financing and improve energy access planning data, enhancing the overall initiative’s success.

Prior to joining SEforALL, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female Managing Director of the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency where she initiated the Nigerian Electrification Project, a $550 million facility which is a joint World Bank and African Development Bank programme that to date has provided energy access to over 8 million people across Nigeria. She also conceptualised the Energizing Economies Initiative, estimated to impact 1.2 million SMEs.

Before joining the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN), Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female General Manager of the Lagos State Electricity Board. Under her leadership, over 100 megawatts of decentralized energy projects supplying electricity to Lagos State hospitals, schools, and government facilities were completed.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi currently serves as a member of the World Bank’s Private Sector Investment Lab, a member of the European Investment Bank Climate and Environment Advisory Council, a member of the Global Leadership Council (GLC) of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), an Advisory Board member of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, a member of the Development Advisory Council of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), a member of the Clean Cooking Alliance Advisory Board, a member of the WHO High Level Coalition on Energy (HEPA), and an advisory council member of the Women in Sustainability, Environment and Renewable Energy Advisory Council (WISER). She was part of the COP28 Advisory Committee and was Co-Chair of the COP26 Energy Transition Council (ETC).

She is a global leader and advocate for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and is passionate about achieving SDG7, which calls for access to reliable, affordable, sustainable, and modern energy for all by 2030.