Professor John Ifediora Bio

As the Chairman of UNIRANKS, I bring a wealth of experience and a profound commitment to enhancing higher education worldwide. With an unwavering dedication to academic quality assurance, I lead the strategic direction of UNIRANKS, a role that is pivotal in shaping the future of educational institutions globally.

Chairman, UNIRANKS
New York, NY — 2021-Present

• Overseeing the prestigious annual UNIRANKS University Ranking process, I am instrumental in providing universities worldwide with credible and comprehensive assessments.
• My vast experience in higher education and strategic leadership equips me to consult with administrators across the globe, fostering meaningful dialogues aimed at elevating educational quality.
• I am a vocal advocate for transparency and precision in academic ranking systems, ensuring that universities are accurately represented and recognized.
• Guiding a diverse team of academic researchers, statisticians, and education policy experts, I ensure that UNIRANKS remains at the forefront of accurate and impactful university assessments.

My role as Chairman of UNIRANKS reflects a lifelong dedication to the advancement of higher education, and my commitment to transparency, accuracy, and educational excellence drives my contributions in this crucial leadership position.

As the Chairman of UNIRANKS, I bring a wealth of experience and a profound commitment to enhancing higher education worldwide. With an unwavering dedication to academic quality assurance, I lead the strategic direction of UNIRANKS, a role that is pivotal in shaping the future of educational institutions globally.

Chairman, UNIRANKS
New York, NY — 2021-Present

• Overseeing the prestigious annual UNIRANKS University Ranking process, I am instrumental in providing universities worldwide with credible and comprehensive assessments.
• My vast experience in higher education and strategic leadership equips me to consult with administrators across the globe, fostering meaningful dialogues aimed at elevating educational quality.
• I am a vocal advocate for transparency and precision in academic ranking systems, ensuring that universities are accurately represented and recognized.
• Guiding a diverse team of academic researchers, statisticians, and education policy experts, I ensure that UNIRANKS remains at the forefront of accurate and impactful university assessments.

My role as Chairman of UNIRANKS reflects a lifelong dedication to the advancement of higher education, and my commitment to transparency, accuracy, and educational excellence drives my contributions in this crucial leadership position.

Expertise: Economic Development in emerging economies; Economic impact studies of projects at local, state and national levels; statistical and econometric analysis of public policy.

John Ifediora is President of the Council on African Security and Development. He previously held the position of Director and Editor-in-Chief at the council until July, 2020, and is currently on the faculty of New York University, Washington, DC, and Professor of Economics Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin. He is a practicing economist, and an International Human Rights lawyer with expertise on public policy analysis, law and economics, and development economics. In recent years he lectured widely in his fields of specialty at American University in Washington, DC, and various universities in the United States, Europe, and Africa; and has served as a consultant to governments in Africa, and to state governments in the United States. In 2019 he established and continues to direct two Dakota Wesleyan University offices in Nairobi and Abuja. In previous years he consulted for the World Bank on its Human Capital Project in Africa, advised the Wisconsin Department of Revenue on its Tax Incidence Study, served as a special consultant to the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and advised Illinois State Senate on the economic impact of the state lottery on the economy of Chicago. He was a member of the Board of Trustees of Dakota Wesleyan University until 2019.

Professor Ifediora has authored and co-authored six books, and published articles in economics, International law, and public policy, and is a frequent panelist and speaker at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), and Constituency for Africa (CFA), both in Washington, DC. He remains very active in development programs in Africa, and has been featured in national and international media such as the BBC, National Public Radio (NPR), Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Channels Television, The Guardian, The Tribune, and The Daily Sun Newspapers.