He was born on January 12, 1959 in the Gashua town of Yobe State.
Lawan completed his primary education at Sabon Gari Primary School, Gashua in 1974 and then attended Government Secondary School, Gashua where he got his O’Level in 1979.
He proceeded to the University of Maiduguri where he obtained a Bachelors degree in Geography, in 1984.
Lawan obtained a Master’s degree in Remote Sensing from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and a Doctorate degree in Remote Sensing/GIS from Cranfield University, UK, in 1990 and 1996 respectively.
Lawan had worked in the Yobe state civil service as an Education Officer in the Ministry of Education from 1985 to 1986. He then got a teaching job at the University of Maiduguri, where he lectured for 10 years from 1987 to 1997.
In 1999, Lawan was elected into the House of Representatives, where he chaired such committee as House Committees on Education and Agriculture.
In 2007, Ahmad Lawan was elected a Senator on the platform of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP).
In 2009, as chairman of the Senate committee on Public Accounts, he initiated and sponsored the Desertification Control Commission Bill.
In 2011, Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan won a second term as Senator representing Yobe North Senatorial District and was re-elected on the platform of the ANPP.
In the 2015 general elections, he won a third term in office under the All Progressives Congress (APC). He was Majority Leader till the 8th Senate was dissolved.
In 2019, Lawan won a fourth term also on the APC platform.
On Tuesday June 11 after the Senate Presidency election, Clerk to the National Assembly, Sani Omolori, declared Lawan as the winner.
He said: “107 cast their votes. Lawan polled 79 votes while Senator Ali Ndume (his main challenger) polled 28 votes of total 107 votes cast.
“On this strength, Lawan is hereby elected as Senate President.”
Lawan, a Muslim, is married with children and holds the traditional titles of Dan Masanin Bade and Garkuwan Daliban Gamui.
He is a recipient of the National Honour of the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).