Dr. Mohammed Bello Shehu, OFR, is a distinguished public administrator, policy strategist, and development expert with over four decades of experience spanning education, public service, international development, governance, and political engagement. Born on February 23, 1964, in Anguwan Kaura, Zaria City, he hails from a lineage deeply rooted in scholarship, leadership, and public service. His late father, Corporal Umaru Abubakar (popularly known as Gumin Kaura), was a grandson of Danglidiman Zazzau Umaru Dembo, while his mother, Hajiya Fatima Binta Bashir, descends from the noble lineage of Sheikh Jibril Ibn Umar—the revered teacher of Sheikh Usman Ibn Fodio.

EDUCATION

Dr. Shehu began his early education at L.E.A Kaura, Zaria (1969—1974), after which he proceeded to Barewa College, Zaria (1974—1979). He furthered his studies at KCAST Zaria from 1980 to 1981 before enrolling at Kaduna Polytechnic, where he graduated in 1987 with a Bachelor of Education (Technical), Second Class Upper Division.

He pursued and completed a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Science and Technology at Colorado State University—Pueblo, USA, and has undertaken advanced professional training at New York University, Columbia University, Hunter College, The New School for Social Research, Pace University, and Fordham University.

He holds a Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in International Relations and Strategic Studies from Igbinedion University, Okada, and is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the New School, New York.

CAREER & PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Dr. Shehu began as a primary school teacher before joining Government College Kaduna, where he became Head of the Technical Department.

After graduating from Colorado State University, he worked in New York as Assistant Manager and later Manager at Weithermers Departmental Stores.

He joined the City of New York as a Case Manager in the Division of AIDS Services, later becoming Assistant Director of Administration at the Faculty Tutoring Services, Greenevale.

From 2000 to 2013, he served as Vice President of B.S.I. Technology, USA, and from 2007 to 2020 as Director of Talon Inc., USA.

In March 2020, he was appointed Secretary to the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) before becoming its Chairman in the year 2022.

POLITICAL & VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES

His roles include Secretary General of Youth Solidarity on Southern Africa (1983), Deputy National President of the National Association of Technological Students, and Chairman of the Students’ Union Caretaker Committee.

He was a founding member of Zumunta Association, USA, and a member of the New York Disaster Emergency Team.He has participated in governance and democracy dialogues at CFR, Brookings Institute, and the United Nations.

PUBLICATIONS

• The Gathering Storm: Boko Haram, Which Way Northern Nigeria (2011)
• The United States Presidential Election 2020 — The Way Forward
• Towards the 2015 Election
• Internally Displaced Persons in Nigeria’s North East and Internationai Humanitarian Interventions: An Appraisal (2020)

Dr. Shehu is happily married with children