Ayobami Honestus Obadiora

Dr. Obadiora is the Acting Executive Director of Lift Above Poverty Organization (LAPO). He joined the organization in March 2004 as an Assistant Manager overseeing the organisation’s community-based health projects across Nigeria. He holds PhD, MA and B.A. (Educ.) degrees in Physical & Health Education from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Nigeria. He is Certified in Public Health (CPH) by the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE), USA and holds UK-qualifications in Project Management from Award for Training and Higher Education (ATHE, UK) and the Training Qualifications UK (TQUK). Also, he is Microsoft- certified in Managing Projects with Microsoft Project (MPMP). 

Dr Obadiora is IUHPE-Registered Health Promotion Practitioner and an inducted alumnus of the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON). He is a full member of several professional bodies including the Institute of Development Administration of Nigeria (IDAN), Nigerian Institute of Training and Development (NITAD), International Union for Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE) and International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH). He has authored well-researched papers in international peer-reviewed journals and has attended several accredited courses including Social and Behaviour Change (SBC); Social Work; Entrepreneurship; Counselling Strategies; Primary Health Care Management; Reproductive and Family Health; Water Supply and Sanitation Policy in Developing Countries; Development Policy & Analysis; Project Appraisal Techniques; Train the Trainer; Humanitarian Aid; Human Resource Management for USAID Implementing Partners; Foundation of Global Health Specialization Programme of Johns Hopkins University amongst others.

Omofomwan Florence

Omofomwan joined Lift Above Poverty Organization (LAPO) in July 2001 as a Client Support Officer and has worked in different capacities across the organisation including the LAPO Microfinance Bank. She currently heads the microfinance operations of LAPO Rural Development initiative (LARDI).

Omofomwan Florence holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Benin, Benin City. A certified banker by the Chartered Instituted of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), she is a Senior Member of the Charted Institute of Risk Management of Nigeria, Senior Member, Charted Institute of Public Management and an Associate Member of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria.

She has attended several capacity building programmes locally and internationally including training on Financial Service Officer (FSO) jointly organised by the Small Enterprise Development Agency and International Network of Alternative Institution in Arusha, Tanzania between April 11th and 19th, 2005, Microfinance Winter Academy held between November 18th and 23rd 2012 in Siem Reap, Cambodia

Philomena Irowa Elijah

Mrs. Philomena Irowa Elijah heads the Corporate Services department of Lift Above Poverty Organisation (LAPO). She holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Education from the Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Edo State and a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Secretarial Administration from the Federal Polytechnic, Auchi, Edo State.

Before she joined LAPO in year 2000 as a Programme Officer, she worked in various capacities at Okungbowa and Sons, Benin City, Elf Oil Nigeria Ltd and Abia State Sports Council, Umuahia, amongst other engagements. Mrs. Elijah who has vast experience in programme conception, design and implementation has attended several training on Programme Implementation, Gender Mainstreaming,  Enterprise and Skills Development in partnership with DFID, Illori (2004), Management of NGOs at the Centre for Management Development (CMD), Lagos (2007), Strategy to Execution at Phillip Business School West Africa (2009),  Capacity Building for Local Empowerment organized by the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives, Warri (2012), study visit on Social Empowerment and Enterprise Development to BRAC, Bangladesh in year 2012, Senior Management Training Programme in Lagos Business School in 2015 and many other numerous in-house training programmes.

Tessa Obiageli Anota-Aizebeokhai

Tessa Anota is the General Manager, Corporate Planning and Performance Management. She holds a Master’s degree in Public Health Education (MPHE) from the University of Benin (2011), B.Sc. (Ed.) in Physical/Health Education from the Lagos State University, Certificate in Health Social Sciences Implementation Research from the School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana (2005); Certificate in Monitoring and Evaluation of Donor-Funded projects (2011), Certificate in Research Design, Data Management and Statistical Analysis using SPSS from Nairobi, Kenya (2018), amongst many others.

To prepare her for development work, she was trained by the British Department for International Development (DFID) under the Capacity Building for Decentralised Development programme facilitated by the University of Reading, UK, with certificates in Organisational Development and Management, Information and Communications, Project management, People Management, Proposal Development and Financial management for non-financial managers. She equally holds certificates in training of trainers’ workshop for NGO’s on Managing HIV/AIDS in the workplace organised by Academy for Educational Development (AED) USA, as well as on NGO management organised by Development Resource Foundation, a Ford Foundation/British Council Initiative.

Before Joining LAPO in 2006 as Senior Manager, Monitoring and Evaluation, Anota worked with the Women’s Health and Action Research Centre (WHARC) as Programme Officer, Research and later Programme Officer, Media and Advocacy. She also worked with the Committee on Vital Environmental Resources (COVER) as Programme Coordinator as well as with the Development Communications Network (DEVCOMS), a Public Health Journalism NGO, as the Project Administrator with interest in conducting qualitative research. She is equally a seasoned trainer and has facilitated in many capacity building sessions in the area of Proposal development, Report writing, Logical framework, NGO development, Monitoring and Evaluation etc for NGOs/CBOs.

Anota is a certified Management Consultant and a Fellow of International Management Consulting.