Celebrating 50 inspiring Nigerian women

50 inspiring Nigerian women

Warri Kingdom’s Queen Consort

Olori Atuwatse III, Queen Consort of the Warri Kingdom, Olori Aiyivieruewinoya ‘Ivie’ Emiko-Atuwatse, is a visionary with a heart for humanity, social enterprise, education, and capacity building for women and children.

She was admitted to the Nigerian bar in 2010 as a qualified lawyer with an LLB from the London School of Economics. She is a member of CIARB Nigeria and holds certifications from the Nigerian Chambers of Commerce and Maritime.

She has a strong entrepreneurial drive and has established several businesses in a variety of industries. Color Couture, a fashion label she co-founded with a friend while at university, to Breakfast in Bed, a first-of-its-kind breakfast delivery company in Lagos, Nigeria, which she founded after graduation. She serves on the boards of the Wells Property Development Company, the Wells Carlton, and the Wells Bakehouse, and is always looking for new ways to add value through business.

She is the founder of Abba’s Jewels, a community of over 60 women who raise funds to impact the community through outreaches, food drives, hospital visits, and prison visits. She also started The Love Drive, a free yard sale in Lagos, Nigeria. As the

Onakomaiya, Abimbola

Peakthrust Insurance Brokers Ltd’s MD/CEO

Abimbola Onakomaiya is a consummate insurance professional with experience in underwriting, claims administration, business development, risk management, and reinsurance.

Abimbola began her career as an Associate at Hill Samuel Life Investment Services in Wales, United Kingdom (1983), before moving to Nigeria and joining NICON Insurance, Nigeria’s largest insurance company, in 1987, and becoming the company’s first female fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute London (FCII). She set the standard for ten years of service at Nicon Insurance, honing her underwriting skills in the special risks, marine, oil, energy, and reinsurance classes of insurance.

Anderson Consulting (1997) tapped her versatility, brilliance, and in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian insurance market, with the unenviable responsibility of opening the consulting world to the insurance industry and vice versa, thus enhancing partnerships that have now spanned decades.

Abimbola’s exit from the consulting ecosystem landed her a position as the Assistant General Manager (Operations) of Unic Insurance Plc (1998), a publicly traded insurance company listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, with a role that required her to formulate and execute strategic business plans to improve statutory regulations and compliance.

Another feather was added to her cap when she was appointed AGM (Oil & Energy), a position she held until December 2002 before becoming the pioneer Managing Director.

TIJANI, TAIRAT

Sterling Bank Plc

Tairat Tijani earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, and economics from Lancaster University. She also graduated from the University of Birmingham with a Distinction in MBA, International Business. She is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and the Nigerian Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators.

Tijani has extensive experience as a capital market operator, having participated in several landmark transactions that have contributed significantly to the development of the Nigerian capital market. She was previously the Head, Capital Markets Division of FBN Capital (a subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc – formerly First Bank of Nigeria Plc), where she was in charge of deal origination and execution. Tijani serves on the boards of Sterling Bank Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, and Rite Foods Limited as a non-executive director.

She has participated in numerous trainings (both domestic and international) with a focus on leadership, corporate governance, team building, capital structure and products, and anti-money laundering and counterfeit terrorism financing.

FUNMI ADEWA

Mobihealth International’s founder and CEO

Funmi Adewara is a British-Nigerian physician and Cambridge-trained bioscience entrepreneur, as well as an internationally known telehealth specialist with a background in medicine, pharmaceuticals, and business development.

Mobihealth International is a multi-award-winning provider of telemedicine and digital health services that is changing the way patients receive care.

Funmi is committed to changing the negative perception of healthcare in underserved communities, and she has led a multidisciplinary team in the development of a comprehensive telehealth programme that addresses multiple challenges such as a shortage of doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals, long distance travel, and high treatment costs.

Adewara contributes to healthcare policy formulation for Africa, particularly telehealth programmes, at both the local and regional levels, as an external reviewer for the Africa Development Bank, a contributor to the United Nations, World Health Summit, and the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, MDCN.

Funmi led the Union Bank of Nigeria’s strategic partnership agreement with Mobihealth to expand services to its 6 million customer base and to establish walk-in telehealth clinics across 300 branches nationwide.

She is a well-known international speaker who has appeared on numerous platforms. She is an external peer reviewer of the Global Community of Practice (G-COP) Policy Documents on Policies for Inclusive Health in Post-COVID-19 Africa, as well as a speaker at the African Development Institute Policy Seminar on Building Resilient Health Systems; Policies for Inclusive Health in Post-COVID-19 Africa, which is sponsored by the African Development Bank, AfDB.

She has appeared on Forbes Africa and Philips’ Africa Future Health Summit by CNBC, as well as the United Nations Committee on Science, Technology, and Innovation and the African Development Bank, to name a few.

Adewara is regarded as one of the Most Influential African Americans. Mobihealth was recently awarded a $1 million grant by the United States Trade and Development Agency to expand telehealth services to other African countries under her leadership in October 2022.

Tumaka Lami

Blue Economy Coordinating Group Chairman

Lami Tumaka is a recent graduate of Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, where she studied English with a focus on Literature. She also has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the identical university and a Certificate in Basic Film Production with Distinction from TV College Jos. She holds a Diploma in Public Relations from London’s prestigious Holborn College. She has attended numerous management and professional programs both nationally and internationally.

Lami Tumaka has over 30 years of combined experience as a public relations professional, astute administrator, and public speaker. Her excellent public relations skills and people skills propelled her to the top of the Public Relations Department of Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) Limited in 1990 as the PR Manager at a young age.

ESQ. AMINA RUTH SIJUWADE

Former Kaduna state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice

She is a lawyer and experienced administrator with over 24 years of experience in both the public and private sectors; she is a goal-oriented individual, a natural leader, an effective team player, and possesses strong interpersonal skills.

As Kaduna state’s former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, she served as the state’s Chief Law Officer, advising the government on all legal matters affecting the state, its ministries, departments, and agencies, prosecuting all criminal cases in the state, defending all civil matters involving the state, drafting executive bills, contracts, and MOUs, and vetting the same, and protecting citizens’ rights from abuse or violation.

Among the accomplishments made while serving as Attorney-General was chairing the Committee of Attorneys General from the 19 northern states that reviewed Criminal Procedure Legislation and adopted the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. In 2017, the State House of Assembly passed this into law.

Among the accomplishments made while serving as Attorney-General was chairing the Committee of Attorneys General from the 19 northern states that reviewed Criminal Procedure Legislation and adopted the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. In 2017, the State House of Assembly passed this into law.

She improved case management in the Ministry by successfully establishing a computerised case management system to monitor and track all case files. This was accomplished with the assistance of the UK Department for International Development (DFID).

Monisola Adanijo, MD, is the co-founder and CEO of Naveen Healthcare and Naveen Technology Services.

Monisola is a medical doctor with over 13 years of post-fellowship cardiologist experience. Her extensive experience as a cardiologist has allowed her to witness firsthand the impact of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) on global health, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. As a result, it has been her mandate to push for preventive cardiology as a first-line response to this burden.

She is also a business leader, driven by a desire to see preventive cardiology flourish in Sub-Saharan Africa. She was the pioneer cardiologist for West Africa’s first Tele-Electrocardiogram project. She is also one of the co-founders of Naveen Healthcare, a fast-growing healthcare company that helps hospitals improve their workflow solutions to increase productivity, quality of healthcare delivery, and revenue through medical collaboration service projects.

Adanijo is a Fellow of the Nigerian National Postgraduate Medical College and an international associate of the American College of Cardiology. In 2021, she was named one of the 31 Rising Women in Africa who are making a difference. She is also a teacher and a CME lecturer.

Mokutima Ajileye is a Nigerian actress.

Procter & Gamble Nigeria’s Managing Director

Procter & Gamble Nigeria’s Managing Director is Mokutima Ajileye. She is the organization’s first female and first Nigerian leader in its history.

She is responsible for the entire Nigeria business as Managing Director, with cross-functional responsibilities that include delivering the operating TSR metrics of turnover, profit, cash, and market share, establishing and maintaining the right governance structure to ensure a sustainable business, leading productivity projects to meet cash targets, and supply chain optimisation.

Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien Ndidi N (PhD)

Growing Business Foundation’s Chairperson and Founder

Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien is an angel investor who has devoted much of her life to developing entrepreneurs and assisting thousands of Nigerians at the bottom of the economic pyramid (BOP) to live better lives.

She is the Founder and Chairperson of the Growing Businesses Foundation. The foundation fights poverty by fostering enterprise among Nigeria’s poorest citizens. They are a professional and trustworthy development intermediary, as well as a strong advocate for long-term economic development that benefits those at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Their vision is for socially responsible businesses and individuals to lead a sustainable economic development.

Growing Businesses Foundation (GBF) was founded almost two decades ago by her passion for economic, social, and business development in Africa. She has led the GBF team to impact thousands of people at the BOP through collaboration with the public and private sectors on multiple economic empowerment projects worth over N1 billion in Nigeria through hard work, successful partnerships, and teamwork.

Kelechi Okoro’s

Heal for Africa Initiative’s founder and executive director

Kelechi Okoro is a multi-talented, multi-award winning, and versatile medical doctor with a stellar record in civic and entrepreneurial endeavours. She is a supporter of the Sustainable Development Goals, with a particular emphasis on SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing, SDG 4: Quality Education, and SDG 5: Gender Equality.

She is the convener of the “Pay Attention to Her” (PATH) project, which focuses on menstrual, sexual, and reproductive health for women and girls, particularly those living in underserved communities.

PATH is a project of the Heal for Africa Initiative (HFAI), an NGO dedicated to transforming Africa one community at a time. HFAI’s other projects include a ‘SDGs Tutor’ to help people learn more about the Sustainable Development Goals.

The ‘PATH Rural Woman’ programme aims to empower rural women to improve their social, economic, and health status, thereby eradicating poverty, discrimination, illiteracy, and illness. This exercise includes reproductive health education (family planning and the prevention of female cancers, as well as menopause) and skill acquisition training.

Blessing Omakwu

Head of Goalkeepers, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Blessing Omakwu is a Nigerian-American feminist, strategist, and writer. She also founded The She Tank, a modern think tank dedicated to achieving equality for women of African descent. The British Council named Blessing one of the top 50 emerging global policy leaders in 2017.

Blessing co-curated Melinda Gate’s session on gender bias at Goalkeepers New York City in 2019. She is currently the Gates Foundation’s deputy director, where she leads Goalkeepers, an initiative to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Stella Kalanne Fubara

Regional Director of International Operations, Dubai Department of Economy & Tourism (DET)

BINTA MAX-GBINIJE

Chief Executive of BMG Seven Limited

Chienye Ogwo

Founder, Red Toolkit

Onyeche Tifase

Vice President, Grid Consulting, Siemens Energy

Diane Okoko

Chairman of MO Group of Companies

Solape Akinpelu

Co-Founder/CEO at HerVest

Aftie Braimoh

Hon. Commissioner, Ministry of Industry, Trade & Cooperatives, Edo state

Elile Olutimayin

MD/CEO CardinalStone Securities Ltd

Ronke Sokefun

Board Chairman of the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation

Halima Ibrahim Abba

Associate Vice President/SA to the CIO at the Africa Finance Corporation

Oluwatobi Boshoro

CEO/Partner, Strategy & Digital Transformation at Infintetiks Limited

Ada Nduka Oyom

Founder, She Code Africa

Nnenna Onyewuchi

Co-Founder/Chief Growth Officer, Halo Invest

Henrietta Bankole-Olusina

VP/Practice Lead of Economic Inclusion at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors

Lilian Ebuoma

Co-Founder, Lilly Women’s Health Breast Care Centre

Maureen Ogbonna

Founder/CEO of Vallore Nigeria Limited

Eloho Omame

Partner at TLcom Capital | Co-Founder & General Partner at FirstCheck Africa

DAMILOLA HASSAN

Managing Director, Meristem Trustees Ltd

Mercy Bello Abu

President/Global Convener, Entrepreneurs Platform Initiative

TEMITOPE YUSUFF

Director, Internal Audit & Risk Management, IHS Towers

Adeolu Adewumi-Zer

Immediate past MD/CEO for Allianz Nigeria Insurance Ltd

Chinwe Ajene-Sagna

Managing Partner at Catalyst Realty Solutions

Oluwayemisi Busari

Senior Adviser, Government Relations, Honeywell Group

Foluke Michael

Founder, The Green Entrepreneurs

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