Nana Oumou Touré Sy is the Director of the Sahel and West Africa Club (SWAC) Secretariat at the OECD, where she leads efforts to strengthen regional co-operation, resilience, and sustainable growth across West Africa and the Sahel. With more than 25 years of international experience, she has built an extensive career in development policy, strategy, and programme management, focusing on inclusive and transformative growth in fragile contexts.
Before joining the OECD, Ms. Touré served as Regional Director for West and Central Africa at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), where she advanced climate, biodiversity, and development initiatives across the Sahel, the Gulf of Guinea, and the Congo Basin. She previously held senior leadership roles with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), where she successfully mobilised partnerships and resources to promote peace, stability, and socio-economic resilience.
A member of Chatham House and The Boardroom Africa, Ms. Touré brings a deep understanding of Africa’s regional dynamics and a proven record of policy innovation and diplomacy. She holds advanced degrees in Economics and International Affairs from the University of Paris I – Panthéon-Sorbonne and the University of Nantes.