Abdullahi Umar Ganduje is a Nigerian politician and current Governor of Kano State since 2015. He previously served as deputy governor twice between 1999 to 2003 and 2011 to 2015 both under his former boss Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

NAME: Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, OFR

DATE OF BIRTH: December 25, 1949

PLACE OF BIRTH: Kano State 

EDUCATION: Ganduje started his early education in Qur’anic and Islamiyya school at his village Ganduje where he became trained in Islamic knowledge. He later moved to headquarters of his local government where he attended Dawakin Tofa Primary School from 1956 to 1963. Ganduje attended the Government Secondary School Birnin Kudu from 1964 to 1968.

CAREER AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES: Ganduje’s passion to serve his people took him into politics, he joined now-defunct National Party of Nigeria (npn) during the second Nigerian republic and served as Kano state assistant secretary from 1979 to 1980.He contested the house of representatives election in 1979 under the npn but lost the election.

He joined the people’s democratic party (PDP) and aspired to be the party’s gubernatorial candidate but lost the primaries to Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Tony Momoh chaired the committee that screened the candidates and conducted the primary election other members included Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila and senator Bala Tafidan Yauri. Ganduje was later picked as the deputy to governor Rabiu Kwankwaso between 1999 and 2003. In addition to the deputy governorship, he was also appointed as the hon. Commissioner for local government. From 2003 to 2007 he served as the special adviser (political) to the hon. Minister of defence, federal republic of Nigeria. Ganduje also served as member of the Nigerian civil aviation authority (NCAA).

He was a deputy governor of kano and and later became a governor of kano state

HONORS AND AWARDS: Ganduje Was Conferred The National Honour Of The Order Of The Federal Republic (Ofr) In September 2012 By Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan. He Was Also Conferred With The Honour Of Fellow National Association Of Educational Administration And Planning (Fnaeap) On 13 October 2016 In Bayero University, Kano.