Onitiri Tunde
MSES Adjunct Professor; Senior Advisor, Emerging Markets Investments
CO-TEACHES:
ISEN 412 Understanding Global Energy and Sustainability Markets
Tunde Onitiri is an Adjunct Professor for Northwestern's Master of Science in Energy and Sustainability (MSES) Program. Tunde is a seasoned global executive with extensive business development, project finance and direct investment experience in the infrastructure, telecoms and other sectors in Africa, Asia-Pacific, the Americas, and Europe. Since 2017, Tunde has been a Washington-based senior advisor to project developers, private equity fund managers, and governments on investments in the climate, and infrastructure sectors in emerging markets.
From 2021-2022, Tunde was a Special Advisor on Climate Investments to the CEO of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority. In this role he developed NSIA’s ESG Strategy, built NSIA relationships with other global investors in the climate finance sector and structured a groundbreaking joint venture vehicle with Vitol S.A. that will invest in de carbonization carbon projects in Nigeria.
From 2015-2017, Tunde was a Senior Manager in IFC’s Venture Investments Group based in Washington, DC where he led business development in Sub-Saharan Africa for VC/Fintech sectors.
As IFC’s Senior Country Head for Singapore and Malaysia and Co-Head of the World Bank Group Infrastructure Hub, based in Singapore, (2011-2015), Tunde developed and supervised over $500 million of investments in the East Asia/Pacific region. He also served on the Executive Committee of the IFC East Asia and Pacific Department (covering 20 countries).
From 2004-2011, as IFC’s Country Head for Mozambique and Angola based in Maputo, Tunde established and built IFC’s business in both countries while serving on the Executive Committee of the IFC sub-Saharan Africa Department, which oversees IFC’s operations in 44 countries.
Prior to joining IFC in 2004, Tunde was an Assistant Director at Emerging Markets Partnership, a private equity firm based in Washington DC, and a key member of the team that managed the $400 million AIG African Infrastructure Fund.. He also structured and executed complex infrastructure finance transactions in Latin America, the U.S. and Turkey with InterGen based in London and Miami, and MUFG Bank based in New York.
Tunde has served on the boards of the Aavishkaar Fund (India-focused VC fund), Lateral Capital (Africa-focused VC Fund), the International Baccalaureate (IB), and the United World Colleges International and is currently on the board of New Forests Africa Investments VCC (Africa forestry-focused PE Fund), the Advisory Board of Fiutur (Climate data analytics firm) and the Board of Trustees of Optimal Greening Foundation (environmental sustainability-focused NGO).
Tunde holds an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School, an MA in East Asian Studies (with a focus on Japan) from the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University, and a B.A. in Engineering Science and Economics from Oxford University. He also attended the International University of Japan in Niigata, Japan, as a Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholar, and completed the Immersion Program at the Middlebury College School of Japanese. He speaks Portuguese, French and Japanese.