Tosin Victoria Apiriola-Ajayi is a Nigerian gender, policy advocacy, and development expert with over 15 years of experience advancing democratic governance, women’s leadership, humanitarian action, and community resilience. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Women Environment and Youth Development Initiative (WOYODEV), a grassroots civil society organisation that empowers women, youth, and marginalized communities through inclusive leadership, civic engagement, environmental sustainability, and sustainable development.

Tosin contributes to policy development, advocacy, and data-driven programming across a broad range of thematic areas, including disaster risk reduction, early warning systems, health systems strengthening, community-based adaptation, and women’s political participation. She facilitates and coordinates civil society engagement to promote access, inclusion, equity, and social justice while strengthening partnerships among communities, governments, and development actors.

Throughout her career, Tosin has successfully led and managed programmes funded by international partners, including the European Union, UN Women, IFES, UNFPA, and The Girl Generation. She coordinated the European Union-funded Views from the Frontline (VfL) project across fifteen communities in Nigeria through WOYODEV in partnership with the Global Network of Civil Society Organisations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR). More recently, she has led initiatives to strengthen women’s political participation and democratic inclusion in Nigeria under the European Union-supported UN Women WYDE programme.

Beyond programme implementation, Tosin has contributed to regional policy processes, including the development of the ECOWAS Gender Strategy and Action Plan for Disaster Risk Reduction (GSAP-DRR) and the African Union’s First Africa Biennial Report on Disaster Risk Reduction. She is passionate about ensuring that grassroots realities shape national, regional, and global policy conversations, particularly on democracy, resilience, gender equality, and inclusive governance.