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The Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation is betting, again, that the fastest way to fix Africa's public sector is to invest in the people already inside it.
The Lagos-based philanthropic organization has opened applications for the sixth cohort of its AIG Public Leaders Programme, a free, six-month executive education initiative run in partnership with the University of Oxford's Blavatnik School of Government. The deadline to apply is April 12, 2026. The programme kicks off in October.
Since its launch in 2021, the programme has built a track record that is harder to dismiss than most government training schemes. Alumni have designed and implemented more than 230 reform projects across ministries, departments and agencies throughout Africa. An internal impact survey found that 62 percent of graduates were promoted or took on bigger leadership roles after completing the training.
Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede, executive vice-chair of the foundation, did not mince words when she described what the continent's public institutions actually need.
"Across Africa, the complexity of public sector challenges demands more than good intentions," she said. "It requires reformers who understand systems, can navigate institutional realities, and are equipped to implement sustainable change."
One example she cited has become something of a signature story for the programme. Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, executive secretary of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency and a graduate of the programme, built a secure self-reporting tool that lets survivors of domestic and sexual abuse document incidents on their own and preserve evidence safely. The platform is now in active use.
"Survivors are already accessing support, and the tool ensures that crucial proof is protected until justice can be sought," Aig-Imoukhuede said. "This is one of over 230 impactful reform projects being implemented across sectors as diverse as healthcare, finance, agriculture, and education."
The programme is structured around a blended learning format, with online modules running alongside an intensive residential week. All costs, including accommodation and meals during the residential period, are covered by the foundation. There is no tuition fee.
Participants study under faculty from Oxford and are trained to navigate problems that shadow every government institution on the continent: negotiating in the public interest, applying digital technology to governance, strengthening organisations from the inside and holding the line on integrity in public life.
The curriculum ends with a capstone project. Each participant picks a real problem inside their own institution and works through it. The design is deliberate. The foundation is not looking to produce policy papers. It wants officials who go back to their desks and actually change something.
"We are seeing proof every day that investing in the capacity and leadership potential of people delivers the kind of transformation that policy alone cannot achieve," Aig-Imoukhuede said.
The programme has also broadened its reach since its early years, when it focused primarily on Nigerian public servants. Applications are now open to qualified civil servants from all English-speaking African countries.
More than 250 senior public officials have completed the programme since 2021, according to the foundation. The Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation's wider partnership with Oxford's Blavatnik School stretches back to 2017, when it began funding scholarships for Nigerian students to pursue a Master of Public Policy at the university.
Applicants can visit the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation's website to review eligibility requirements and submit their applications before the April 12 deadline.
