Dela Nai

Dela Nai is a social demographer and sociologist by training. Her work focuses on family planning, adolescent sexual and reproductive health, and engaging with decisionmakers to bring to scale successful programs and interventions. Since joining the Ghana office in September 2014, Dela has led the implementation of studies and interventions, including the introduction of a subcutaneous contraceptive injection (DMPA-SC), community and provider-driven social accountability in family planning, situational analysis of adolescent girls and young women, and ending child marriage. She has also served as principal investigator on studies assessing the feasibility of training private pharmacy staff to offer family planning services in Senegal and fertility-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors among 12–19 year olds in Burkina Faso.

Prior to joining the Population Council Ghana office, Dela was a Fred H. Bixby postdoctoral fellow for two years in the Council’s Zambia office where she supported the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP). Dela holds an MS and a PhD in development sociology and social demography from Cornell University, and a BA in sociology & anthropology from Agnes Scott College. She is a member of the Union for African Population Studies and serves as the treasurer on the 2015–2019 Council. Dela is fluent in French, proficient in Spanish, and has a good grasp of Ghanian languages including Twi, Ga, and Ewe.