Our Woman Crush Wednesday, Modupe (Mo) Olateju holds a prominent position as a fellow at the Center for Universal Education within the Global Economy and Development programme at the Brookings Institution. She is a highly regarded international development specialist, focusing her expertise on public-private partnerships in education, along with a keen interest in education innovation and foundational learning.
Notably, Modupe is the founder of The Education Partnership (TEP) Centre and has played a pivotal role in steering the organisation’s pioneering endeavours in applied education research throughout Nigeria and the broader African region for a decade. Through her work at the centre, she co-led the establishment of LEARNigeria, a citizen-led initiative in Nigeria that combines assessment, advocacy, and action to create an effective model of public-private collaboration in education. This groundbreaking programme has produced extensive evidence on the learning outcomes of thousands of children across Nigeria and has implemented an accelerated learning programme to address the learning gap on a large scale. Furthermore, she initiated the annual pan-African Education Innovation Summit (NEDIS), now in its eighth year, and the accompanying civil society network, the National Innovation Collaborative on Education.
In her role as a policy adviser, Modupe has provided invaluable support to policymakers, international think tanks, and corporations, leading various workstreams for education sector support initiatives funded by government agencies, multilateral organisations, and corporations. Her contributions include drafting a section of Nigeria’s 2011–2015 education strategy, participating in the development of Nigeria’s medium- and long-term strategic plans in 2020, and serving as a member of a three-member Policy Advisory Council in 2023, where she articulated education policy priorities for Nigeria’s newly inaugurated national government.
Modupe’s dedication as an applied research practitioner and representative of civil society has extended to various initiatives aimed at strengthening the evidence ecosystem. She served as a commissioner on the Global Commission on Evidence to Address Societal Challenges at McMaster University and was a member of the steering committee for the Enhancing Education Research in Africa (EERA) consultation. Her advisory roles have encompassed technical review and advisory committees convened by organisations such as the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report, the Independent Evaluation Office of UNDP, Education Cannot Wait, Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Global Schools Forum (GSF), Lego Foundation, Lever for Change, and several FCDO (UK government)-funded programmes, including Education Research in Conflict and Protracted Crisis (ERICC) and Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria (EDOREN). She has also provided technical advice on scaling education innovation to the Millions Learning project at Brookings. Moreover, she has conducted capacity development activities with stakeholders in African countries, including Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, and Uganda.
Beyond her professional endeavours, Modupe holds influential roles as the chair of the international board of the Malala Fund and as a trustee of Human Capital Africa and Slum2School. Her prior work experience in the private sector includes roles at organisations like Accenture, where she served as a management consultant, and Junior Achievement of Nigeria, where she held the position of regional vice president.
Modupe’s academic achievements are equally impressive, having been honoured as the IOE Centenary Scholar for Africa. She earned her doctorate in education and international development from University College London’s Institute of Education and previously attained a master’s degree with distinction from the same institution. Her educational background also includes a bachelor’s degree in educational administration from the University of Lagos, and she holds the distinction of being a fellow of the Asia Global Institute at the University of Hong Kong. With such a rich profile and remarkable achievement, Pride Magazine Nigeria celebrates Modupe Olateju as an exemplary Woman Crush Wednesday.