Rachid Benmessaoud, a Moroccan national, joined the Bank in 1990 as an Energy Planner in the then Europe, Middle East and North Africa Vice Presidency. Since then, he has held various positions in the Bank, with his most recent assignment as Country Director for Pakistan in the South Asia Region.

In this new position, Benmessaoud’s priorities will be to lead the World Bank Nigeria country team to continue to improve the impact of the Bank's large portfolio in Nigeria in supporting the government's development priorities including education, the power sector, and trade and regional integration, work with the Government of Nigeria to further consolidate macroeconomic gains by improving budget allocation as well as the quality of public spending, and lead and support staff in implementing the priorities of the new Africa Strategy while adjusting to corporate realities and opportunities.