Blessing Omakwu

Blessing Omakwu is a Deputy Director at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she leads the Goalkeepers initiative. Goalkeepers is a campaign, a community, and a catalyst for action on the Sustainable Development Goals. Goalkeepers is dedicated to accelerating progress using powerful stories, data, and partnerships to highlight progress achieved and energize a diverse group of leaders.

Prior to joining the Gates Foundation, Blessing worked with and advised a variety of international organizations and government agencies including the ONE Campaign, the Nigerian Federal House of Representatives and the United Nations Development Program. In 2020, Blessing served as the Co-Lead of Room 5 (for SDG 5) of the Rockefeller Foundation and Brooking’s Institutes 17 Rooms initiative.

Blessing earned her Juris Doctor degree from the George Washington University Law School. She is a recipient of the 2012 USA National Association of Women Lawyers Outstanding Law Graduate award, and a current member of the New York Bar.