Mr. Salifou Ousseini has worked for over twenty years in his country, Niger, in the Ministry of Hydraulics and Environment.

After holding several positions of responsibility, including Secretary General, respectively of the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Hydraulics and Environment, he served at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja, Nigeria, as Commissioner in charge of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources from February 2007 to February 2012. There, he led the development and part of the implementation of the first generation of the Regional Agricultural Investment Program (RAIP) and National Agricultural Investment Programs (NAIPs).

Since July 2013, he has been leading RAAF and its team in the implementation of the mission that the West African Heads of State have entrusted to the Agency, namely: to contribute to the implementation of the ECOWAS Agricultural Policy, ECOWAP, whose vision is focused on modern and sustainable agriculture, based on the efficiency and effectiveness of family farming and the promotion of agricultural enterprises, thanks to the involvement of the private sector.

With this vast experience on agricultural and development issues, Mr. Salifou supervises and works with about thirty professionals and support staff from various professional backgrounds.

His uttermost ambition is to make RAAF an organization that positions itself in Africa as a reference institution in the agricultural sector and especially, an organization that serves the West African populations.