Buhari reappoints Patience Oniha as DG of Debt Management Office

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the reappointment of Patience Oniha as the Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO) for a second term of 5 years with effect from July 1, 2022.

The confirmation of the renewal of Oniha’s appointment was contained in a statement issued on Thursday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, where he stated that the reappointment was in accordance with Section IV (9-i) of the Debt Management Office (Establishment ETC) Act, 2003.

The statement from Shehu reads, ‘’President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the renewal of the appointment of Patience Oniha as the Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO) for a second term of 5 years in accordance to Section IV (9-i) of the Debt Management Office (Establishment ETC) Act, 2003.

‘’The renewal takes effect from July 1, 2022.

”Her appointment for a second term was based on the significant achievements recorded by the DMO in the last 5 years, under her leadership.

”Amongst the achievements are the introduction of Sukuk and Green Bonds to finance the development of infrastructure where there is a huge gap.

”Under her watch, as part of the initiatives to improve the sustainability of the public debt and opening up avenues for raising long-term funds for corporates, the DMO introduced long-term Bonds with tenors of 30 years in the domestic and international markets.

”This is aside from attracting diverse investors including retail investors to the FGN Bond Market.”

He also stated that, internally, Oniha introduced reforms to strengthen the DMO, as a critical agency in the public finance ecosystem of the country.

She was first appointed the new Director-General of DMO in July 2017, by the then-acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

Oniha took over from Abraham Nwankwo, former director-general, who retired after his ten-year tenure.

One of the longest-serving DGs of the office, Nwankwo had served for two terms before his retirement.

Oniha was said to have contributed “greatly” to the success of DMO in recent years.

She retired as a director in the agency and also served in the efficiency unit of the Ministry of Finance before she was appointed as DMO chief executive.