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Gadebo Rhodes-Vivour, governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Lagos State, has proposed the delivery of 100,000 housing units within four years and a privately financed expansion of the state’s rail network as part of his plans to reshape Lagos if elected.

Rhodes-Vivour, who spoke at The Platform Millennial and Gen Z Town Meeting with Lagos governorship candidates on Thursday, said his administration would focus on improving the quality of life of residents rather than measuring government performance primarily through internally generated revenue (IGR).

The architect and entrepreneur said an ideology had emerged from more than two decades of one political group governing Lagos, which, according to him, prioritised revenue generation over the welfare of residents.

He contrasted this with what he called the ‘Alhaji Lateef Jakande ideology’, which he said should focus on providing affordable housing, quality education and infrastructure for residents.

‘Usually, people believe that all politicians are the same. They believe that all political parties are the same,’ Rhodes-Vivour said.

‘But in Lagos State, there’s been a group of people that have run this state for over 20 years. So an ideology has emerged.’

He said his administration would seek to increase the capacity of young Lagosians through skills acquisition and create opportunities for them to use those skills at the ward and local government levels.

On security, Rhodes-Vivour proposed help desks across the state where young people could report alleged police harassment, with lawyers available to assist those who believe they had been treated unfairly.

He also linked insecurity and street-level thuggery to unemployment and lack of skills, saying his government would provide pathways for young people to acquire technical skills and participate in housing and other public projects.

The candidate said his administration would establish about 40 technical and vocational schools and use the programme to prepare young people for trades and occupations required by the economy.

On housing, Rhodes-Vivour said the proposed 100,000 units would be designed to accommodate residents as their incomes and family needs change.

He said the programme would allow residents to make monthly payments while building credit towards eventual home ownership.

‘We aim to do 100,000 in four years,’ he said.

Rhodes-Vivour also promised a ‘truly multimodal and affordable’ transportation system across Lagos, saying the state could complete all its rail lines within two years by opening procurement to private-sector participation.

‘The major challenge that Lagos State has had is that they’ve not been open to private sector-driven procurement process for our rail networks and our rail systems,’ he said.

‘We’re going to open that transparently to the private sector and partner with them to ensure that Lagos is better connected.’

On waste management, the ADC candidate proposed decentralising the system and giving local governments a greater role.

He said Lagos should develop waste-to-wealth value chains that would encourage the separation of waste at household level and generate value from organic waste, plastics and other materials.

‘There is no reason why organic waste should be going to the same landfill that plastic waste is going to,’ he said.

Rhodes-Vivour also alleged inefficiencies in the state’s waste management system, questioning the number of trucks available for waste collection and the cost of hiring them.

He proposed opening the sector to more private operators, arguing that residents should not need political connections to participate in waste collection.

On technology, the candidate said Lagos needed to move beyond concentrating technology activity in places such as Yaba and identify and develop talent across wards.

He proposed government-funded access to artificial intelligence tools and credits, arguing that technological advances had made education and coding more accessible outside traditional institutions.

Rhodes-Vivour also linked technology policy to a broader shift in education from producing consumers to developing problem-solvers.

He said his administration would invest in public-school infrastructure, improve teachers’ salaries and training, and introduce technology into the education system.

He criticised the growing dependence on private schools, saying it was an ‘indictment’ that private schools had become far more numerous than public schools.

‘We want a situation where people don’t have to travel long distances because they want to access public education,’ he said.

He also proposed drawing from international education models while developing a system that gives Lagos children stronger knowledge of their history, culture and practical problem-solving skills.

On flooding, Rhodes-Vivour said Lagos needed to protect wetlands and prevent developments that reduce the city’s capacity to absorb excess water.

He proposed giving wetlands alternative uses, including leisure parks, solar parks and aquatic centres, to prevent them from being subsequently sand-filled.

He also called for regular clearing of canals and gutters, arguing that poor maintenance worsened flooding during the rainy season.

On the civil service, Rhodes-Vivour promised significantly higher salaries and better benefits for workers, arguing that an effective government could not be built without a motivated and properly rewarded workforce.

He said Lagos should recruit high-performing graduates into the civil service and reward intelligence, productivity and quality service.

Responding to a question on Yoruba language and culture, Rhodes-Vivour said Lagos was Yoruba land and that language was central to the preservation of its culture and heritage.

On maternal mortality, Rhodes-Vivour proposed establishing emergency stabilisation centres in every ward, with the aim of reducing the time between a medical emergency at home and access to initial treatment.

He said the centres would stabilise patients and use data to direct them to hospitals equipped to provide the required care.

‘If people can get to a hospital in time, you have quality services, you have quality doctors, you have quality nurses, you have quality beds all set up for our mothers and at an affordable price,’ he said.

The Federal Government has inaugurated a 40-million-dose veterinary vaccine cold storage facility in Agege, Lagos, to strengthen the livestock sector, improve food security and expand economic opportunities in the South-West.

The solar-powered facility, delivered under the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES), will serve as a strategic regional hub for the storage and distribution of veterinary vaccines.

Inaugurating the facility, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, Minister of Livestock Development, said the project aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to improve livelihoods and promote economic prosperity.

‘We are commissioning much more than a physical structure. We are strengthening Nigeria’s animal health security architecture and investing in the protection of the livelihoods of millions of Nigerians who depend on livestock’, he said.

He noted that pests and diseases remain major challenges to livestock production, causing significant losses for farmers, reducing productivity and, in some cases, affecting the quality and safety of animal products.

Maiha said the facility would help the country shift from mainly responding to disease outbreaks to a more proactive system of prevention and that its solar-powered design would make operations more cost-effective and sustainable.

According to him, the investment forms part of the Federal Government’s broader livestock transformation agenda, implemented by the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development through L-PRES with support from the World Bank.

‘This state-of-the-art, solar-powered facility, with capacity for storing about forty million doses of veterinary vaccines, will serve as a strategic regional hub for the South-West.

‘It will preserve vaccine potency, reduce wastage, improve vaccine availability and accessibility, strengthen disease-control campaigns and ultimately contribute to healthier animals and more prosperous livestock farmers,’ he said.

Maiha noted that similar strategic vaccine storage facilities had been established in Abuja, Sokoto, Yola, Edo and Imo states, creating a growing national network for efficient vaccine storage and distribution.

He further said that the facilities had been complemented by a major upgrade of the National Veterinary Research Institute, Vom, which is expected to increase Nigeria’s vaccine production capacity from about 120 million doses to more than 850 million doses annually.

‘Our ambition is clear: Nigeria must progressively attain veterinary vaccinees self-sufficiency and position itself as a major vaccine production and supply hub for West Africa and the African continent,’he said.

‘This is what livestock transformation looks like ;stronger institutions, modern infrastructure, healthier animals, empowered producers, improved food security and increased economic opportunities’, he said.

Tasiu Olawale Raji, Cairman, House of Representatives’ Committee on Livestock Development, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for establishing the Ministry of Livestock Development and expressed optimism that the Ministry would continue to contribute to addressing the country’s economic challenges.

Sanusi Abubakar, National Project Coordinator of L-PRES, said the facility would help address longstanding challenges in the storage and distribution of veterinary vaccines.

He explained that it would serve the Federal Government, Lagos State Government and private-sector operators across the South-West.

Emmanuel Fatai Audu, Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems, appreciated the Federal Government for the intervention and appealed for more support for the State’s agricultural sector.

Nigeria celebrates its 66th Independence anniversary today with a question that deserves more attention than the usual celebration of flags, speeches and national achievements: what, beyond geography and history, gives Nigerians a shared stake in the country’s future? The question is particularly relevant as Nigeria again seeks a larger voice in the international system. At the 81st United Nations General Assembly, President Bola Tinubu, represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, renewed Nigeria’s demand for permanent African representation on the Security Council and called for reforms to international financing, debt sustainability and climate finance. Nigeria also pressed for greater international cooperation against terrorism and transnational crime.

These are legitimate diplomatic objectives, and Nigeria should continue to pursue them. But they also invite a more difficult domestic question: if Nigeria wants greater influence in institutions that shape the world, what is it doing to strengthen the institutions and sense of citizenship that hold Nigerians together at home? This is not an argument against Nigeria seeking a permanent seat on the Security Council or a fairer international financial system, nor should Nigeria’s domestic problems be used to deny it a legitimate place in global decision-making. The point is that international standing and domestic cohesion are not unrelated ambitions. A country’s influence is strengthened when its citizens have confidence in the institutions through which that country speaks.

The contrast with Israel is useful here, but only if treated carefully. Nigeria and Israel have profoundly different histories, political systems, security circumstances and national experiences, and no serious comparison should suggest otherwise. Yet Israeli leaders have repeatedly used the language of shared destiny when addressing their country’s internal divisions. In his September 2026 address to the UN General Assembly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of Israel as ‘one nation fighting for one future’, acknowledging differences between left and right, young and old, religious and secular before arguing that, at critical moments, shared history, values and courage could provide a basis for collective action.

‘A more durable national compact would begin with a few straightforward expectations: security that does not depend on location, public services that are not determined by political connections, equal application of the law, credible institutions, education that expands opportunity and an economy in which citizenship is not a disadvantage.’

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has used similar language, describing Israelis as partners in one home and warning against allowing disagreement to become destructive internal division. His broader argument has been that a diverse society can retain profound differences while recognising mutual responsibility and a shared national future. The lesson for Nigeria is not that the country should imitate Israel, whose circumstances are entirely different, but that national cohesion has to be constructed around something more durable than a common territory. Countries do not become cohesive simply because their citizens happen to occupy the same geographical space.

Nigeria has no shortage of identities. Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Ijaw, Kanuri and hundreds of other ethnic identities remain important sources of history and belonging, while Christianity, Islam and traditional belief systems shape the lives of millions. Region, language, class and political affiliation also influence how citizens experience the country. None of this is inherently a problem. Diversity becomes a national weakness when citizens begin to believe that access to security, justice, public resources or opportunity depends primarily on which group they belong to rather than on the rights and responsibilities attached to citizenship.

That is where Nigeria’s independence project remains unfinished. A Nigerian should not have to calculate whether the state will protect him or her based on ethnicity or location, while a young person should not have to conclude that political connections matter more than competence before pursuing a career. Communities should not have to rely on access to political power before expecting basic infrastructure, and public institutions should not inspire greater confidence among those with influence than among citizens without it. These are not abstract questions of national identity; they determine whether people regard the Nigerian state as something they collectively own or as a structure in which different groups compete for advantage.

The Federal Government’s own framing of this year’s independence anniversary provides an opportunity for such reflection. The 66th anniversary programme has been presented as a moment to consider the sacrifices of the country’s founders and Nigeria’s journey since October 1, 1960, while also reflecting on the challenges confronting the country. That reflection should go beyond remembering the past and ask what Nigerians owe one another in the present. A national compact cannot be sustained by historical memory alone; it has to be renewed through institutions and public policies that make citizenship meaningful in everyday life.

A more durable national compact would begin with a few straightforward expectations: security that does not depend on location, public services that are not determined by political connections, equal application of the law, credible institutions, education that expands opportunity and an economy in which citizenship is not a disadvantage. These are the practical foundations of national unity. People are more likely to identify with a common national project when they can see evidence that the state treats them as equal citizens and when public institutions provide a reasonable expectation of fairness.

This is also where Nigeria’s international ambitions meet its domestic responsibilities. The case for a greater African voice at the UN is partly a case for fairness: the world has changed since 1945 and its institutions should reflect contemporary realities. Nigeria made that argument explicitly at the 2026 UNGA. The same principle has a domestic application, however. Nigeria’s citizens should not have to wait for a more powerful country to recognise their worth before their own institutions do so. The credibility of a country seeking greater influence abroad is ultimately strengthened by the quality of the institutions it builds at home.

At 66, therefore, the question is not whether Nigerians have enough differences to keep them apart; they plainly do. The more important question is whether the country can build institutions and a national purpose strong enough to make those differences compatible with a common future. Independence gave Nigeria sovereignty, but the next stage of the national project is to make citizenship feel meaningful through security, justice, opportunity and institutions that command public confidence.

That will not be achieved by anniversary speeches alone. It will be measured in whether Nigerians can trust the law, access opportunity, expect basic security and believe that the country belongs to them regardless of where they come from or what they believe. A nation is not held together indefinitely by the fact that its borders were drawn on a map; it is held together when enough of its citizens believe that their futures are connected. That is the harder Independence Day question Nigeria should be asking at 66: not simply what we have survived together, but what we are prepared to build together.

Airtel Money has priced its planned London initial public offering (IPO) at £1.96 per share, valuing the African digital payments business at about £5.3 billion, significantly below the $8 billion to $9 billion valuation previously reported for the listing.

The pricing means Airtel Mobile Commerce N.V., the company behind Airtel Money, is targeting about £529 million from the sale of shares by existing investors as it prepares to list on the London Stock Exchange.

The lower valuation points to a more cautious pricing strategy as Airtel Money seeks to attract institutional investors to what is expected to be one of London’s largest IPOs in five years.

Existing shareholders, including Qatar Investment Authority and Mastercard, are expected to sell 270 million shares at the fixed offer price. A further 27 million shares could be made available through an over-allotment option.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has committed to purchase up to £67.2 million ($90 million) of shares at the IPO price under a cornerstone investment agreement, providing institutional backing ahead of the listing.

Airtel Money expects its shares to begin trading on the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market on October 14, with conditional trading scheduled to start on October 9.

Lower valuation signals demand-focused pricing

The £5.3 billion valuation is considerably below the $8-$9 billion range previously associated with the planned IPO, suggesting that Airtel Money has prioritised market demand and a successful debut over maintaining a higher headline valuation.

The pricing also gives public investors exposure to one of Africa’s largest mobile money platforms at a valuation that reflects the company’s current market positioning rather than earlier expectations.

The transaction will be primarily targeted at institutional investors, with US qualified institutional buyers participating under Rule 144A and investors in the UK and elsewhere outside the US participating under Regulation S.

Eligible retail investors in the UK will also be able to participate, with a minimum application of £250.

Airtel Africa remains strategic shareholder

Airtel Africa is not expected to sell shares in the IPO apart from any shares that may be sold through the over-allotment option.

That means the telecoms group will remain a long-term strategic shareholder after Airtel Money becomes independently listed, giving the payments business access to public-market capital and a separate valuation while retaining its relationship with the wider Airtel Africa ecosystem.

About 16.5 percent of Airtel Money’s issued ordinary shares are expected to be in public hands after the IPO if the over-allotment option is not exercised. This could rise to approximately 17.5 percent if the additional shares are sold.

The expected free float could make Airtel Money eligible for inclusion in FTSE UK indices, potentially broadening its exposure to institutional investors following the listing.

Africa’s digital payments sector enters global market

The London listing represents a significant step in the evolution of Africa’s digital financial-services industry, as mobile money platforms increasingly operate beyond their traditional role of providing basic payment services.

For Airtel Money, the standalone listing provides a mechanism to establish a public-market valuation for its payments operations while separating the business from Airtel Africa’s broader telecommunications assets.

The company has agreed to 180-day lock-up arrangements for itself and existing shareholders following the listing, while directors will be subject to 365-day lock-ups, subject to specified exceptions.

Citigroup Global Markets is acting as sole sponsor, lead-left global coordinator and joint bookrunner. Barclays, Bank of America Securities, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are among the other banks working on the transaction.

If completed as planned, the October 14 admission will give Airtel Money an independently listed presence in London at a valuation that is substantially below earlier expectations, reflecting the company’s decision to price the deal at £1.96 a share to build investor demand.

Nigeria has moved to its next implementation stage for its carbon market framework by establishing specific criteria to determine which carbon projects the government will approve. The National Council on Climate Change (NCCC) held a National Stakeholder Review and Validation Workshop on the draft Host Country Approval Criteria for Nigeria’s Carbon Market Operations in Abuja. NCCC Director-General Omotenioye Majekodunmi told the workshop that Nigeria had secured approval for the carbon market framework. The task now facing stakeholders is establishing approval criteria that protect national interests while giving credible investors and project developers certainty, she added.

University of Nigeria, Nsukka Vice-Chancellor Simon Uchenna Ortuanya, represented by university Professor Nnaemeka Chukwuone, said the approval criteria would provide guidance on the eligibility, screening, and assessment of carbon market projects, describing their development as guided by sound research. The workshop marks a further step in a process that began nearly a year earlier, following President Bola Tinubu’s approval of the National Carbon Market Framework in late October 2025 ahead of COP30 in Belém, Brazil. Tinubu signed off on the framework’s full implementation in January 2026, with oversight resting with the NCCC, chaired by the President and supported by a dedicated carbon market office.

Financial projections and international compliance

The government has projected the framework could unlock between $2.5 billion and $3 billion annually in carbon finance over the next decade, positioning carbon trading as a significant driver of non-oil revenue. The framework spans forestry, energy, and agriculture, aligning Nigeria’s carbon market activities with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which governs international cooperation on emissions trading and carbon credits between countries.

The host country approval criteria under review are a practical mechanism to determine which offset or reduction projects the government will formally authorise to sell credits internationally. Getting this stage right is designed to prevent problems that have undermined voluntary carbon markets elsewhere, such as projects of questionable integrity, double-counting of credits, and weak enforcement that erodes investor confidence. Whether Nigeria’s final approval criteria succeed in attracting projected investment while avoiding international credibility pitfalls will determine how much of that projected $2.5 billion to $3 billion actually materialises.

At midnight on 1st October 1960, the Union Jack was lowered, and the Nigerian flag was hoisted into the Lagos night. Nigeria became independent after decades of colonial rule. Sixty-six years later, perhaps the most useful way to honour that moment is neither to romanticise it nor to lament everything that followed. It is to ask a harder question. What, precisely, became independent?

A nation? Certainly. A government? Undoubtedly. An economy? Increasingly. But a capable state? That question takes us closer to the heart of the Nigerian condition than much of the argument that has consumed us since independence.

We have spent 66 years debating leadership, ethnicity, federalism, constitutions, elections, revenue allocation, and the character of successive governments. These questions matter. But beneath them sits something more fundamental: Nigeria has repeatedly attempted to develop its economy, manage its governments and hold together its nation without completing the construction of the state capable of doing all three.

A nation, a government, an economy and a state are not the same thing.

A nation is a community of belonging. It answers the question: who are we? Nigeria’s continuing nation-building project concerns whether people of hundreds of ethnicities, numerous languages and different faiths can develop sufficient common purpose to regard one another’s futures as interconnected.

A government is something else. Governments are temporary custodians of public authority. They win elections or, in some periods of our history, seize power. They appoint ministers, prepare budgets, announce programmes, and eventually leave office.

An economy, also, is different. It is the vast human system through which people produce, exchange, invest, work, consume, innovate and create wealth. And here Nigeria presents one of its great paradoxes. Nigerian economic society frequently demonstrates capabilities that Nigerian public institutions struggle to reproduce.

There is no shortage of Nigerian capability. The state, however, is something deeper than all of these. The state is the permanent machinery through which a society converts collective decisions into collective outcomes.

It is the civil service that remembers after the minister has gone; the procurement system that works even when nobody important is watching. It is the school system that converts education budgets into children who can read. It is the health system that turns allocations into functioning clinics. It is the justice system that resolves disputes predictably. It is the electricity architecture that converts megawatts on paper into power at the socket. It is the budget process that connects appropriation to execution.

The state is, ultimately, the machinery that makes public outcomes less dependent upon specific individuals occupying public office.

And clearly, this is what we have not sufficiently built. Independence gave Nigeria sovereignty. It could not give Nigeria state capacity. Sovereignty can be transferred on a date. Capability cannot. A flag can be raised overnight. Institutions cannot.

A constitution can transfer authority. It cannot instantaneously create administrative competence, institutional memory, implementation discipline, reliable data, effective regulators, capable municipalities or functioning delivery systems. Those things have to be constructed, patiently and deliberately, across generations.

Our independence generation accomplished its historic assignment. It won the right to govern Nigeria. The generations that followed inherited a different assignment: to build the machinery through which Nigeria could govern itself well. The first project had a date of completion. The second did not.

Perhaps this explains one of the strangest features of our national experience. Leaders change, yet certain problems display remarkable longevity. Administrations come and go. Oil prices rise and fall. But projects are still abandoned. Policies are still launched and forgotten. Agencies duplicate one another. Governments rediscover problems that previous governments studied exhaustively. The personalities change; but the pathology survives.

We have devoted enormous national energy to the question of who governs Nigeria. Who becomes president? Who becomes governor? Which party controls which legislature? These are legitimate questions; but beneath them lies another question that may matter even more: What machinery do they inherit with which to govern?

A brilliant minister placed inside a dysfunctional execution system will become frustrated. A reforming governor who leaves no institutional machinery behind may discover that his achievements deteriorate after his departure. Government is an occupant. The state is an inheritance.

Every Nigerian administration should inherit a more capable state than its predecessor inherited. That is how countries accumulate institutional strength. Instead, we too often accumulate programmes without accumulating equivalent institutional memory. Every administration therefore arrives promising a new beginning.

That should trouble us. A mature state should not need to be reborn every four years.

This is not an argument that Nigeria has stood still. It has not. Indeed, the Nigerian economy itself demolishes the fatalistic proposition that complex systems cannot work here. Telecommunications transformed everyday life. Financial innovation has been remarkable. Nigerian companies operate across borders. Creative industries have projected Nigerian culture across the world. Nigeria has become remarkably skilled at producing successful Nigerians without necessarily producing successful Nigerian systems.

Nor should we pretend that contemporary reforms have achieved nothing. The IMF’s 2026 assessment credits reforms undertaken over the past three years with stronger macroeconomic stability and resilience, rebuilt external buffers and improved foreign-exchange market functioning. It estimates that the economy grew by 4 per cent in 2025 and projects growth of 4.1 per cent in 2026. These are important achievements.

But the other side of the ledger is sobering. The IMF estimates poverty at 63 per cent under the national poverty line and says 27 million Nigerians faced food insecurity in 2025. There, compressed into one national paradox, lies the challenge before us.

Macroeconomic stabilisation matters enormously. But the journey must eventually be completed: from reform to institutions; from institutions to implementation; from implementation to services; from services to productivity; from productivity to better lives. The distance between policy intention and lived reality is where state capacity resides.

And incapacity is not an abstraction. When procurement delays equipment for a hospital, the consequence is not merely administrative. Someone waits for treatment. When a road remains unfinished, a farmer does not experience an ‘infrastructure deficit’; produce fails to reach market. When a child spends years in school without acquiring foundational skills, what has been lost is not merely a human-capital indicator. A portion of a life has been taken.

Ultimately, the greatest cost of an incapable state is measured not merely in naira. It is measured in human time. This is why the familiar language of Nigerian failure may itself have become inadequate. We speak easily of failed leadership, failed institutions, failed governments and failed generations. But failure describes an outcome more readily than it explains how that outcome was produced. Worse, it carries the suggestion of finality.

An unfinished state is different. Something unfinished can still be built. And Nigeria contains overwhelming evidence that its people possess the intelligence, enterprise, ingenuity and resilience required for the task. The question is whether these capabilities can finally be organised into institutions.

That changes the national conversation. From who ruined Nigeria? To what must we build? From personalities to systems. From government to statecraft. And perhaps it gives Independence Day a deeper meaning.

Independence was not merely the moment Britain departed. It was the moment responsibility arrived. Colonialism left profound political and institutional legacies. But sovereignty eventually demands agency. At some point, the responsibility for whether Nigerian children learn, whether electricity works and whether justice arrives, must belong to Nigerians themselves.

Finishing the Nigerian state does not mean constructing a larger government or writing another development plan. It means building the institutional ability to do ordinary things extraordinarily reliably: to coordinate, to implement, to learn, to correct failure and to continue working when political personalities change. That is also the deeper test of leadership.

The highest achievement of leadership is not to make a system work while you are there; it is to build institutions that continue working when you are gone.

At sixty-six, Nigeria is old enough to have accumulated regrets. But nations are not human beings. They are not given a fixed number of years. They can lose decades and recover momentum. They can inherit weak institutions and strengthen them. They can make terrible choices and later make better ones.

The question is not merely whether Nigeria has disappointed some of the hopes of 1960. The more important question is whether disappointment must become destiny. It need not.

Somewhere in Nigeria this Independence Day, a trader will open a shop. A doctor will begin a shift. An entrepreneur will risk capital. A civil servant will sit behind a government desk. A young Nigerian will open a laptop. They are not waiting for another independence. They are waiting for the consequences of independence.

They are waiting for a country in which effort connects more reliably with opportunity; in which public institutions make ordinary life easier rather than harder; in which government does not have to rediscover the state every four years.

Perhaps that is what we have misunderstood about the Nigerian story. Independence was never the completion of the Nigerian project. It was permission to begin it.

So, on this Independence Day, the question is not whether Nigeria has failed, or who failed Nigeria. The question is what remains to be built.

Because Nigeria is not a failed dream. Nigeria is an unfinished state. And the unfinished business of Nigerian independence is no longer freedom from Britain. It is freedom from incapacity.

Dr Hani Okoroafor is the Founder of The Capacity Institute and the originator of the Capacity State Framework, a body of work dedicated to advancing the study and practice of institutional execution capacity. He advises corporate boards and senior executives across Europe, Africa, North America and the Middle East, and serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of BusinessDay. Reactions welcome: dr.hani@the-capacity-institute.org

Transporters moving food produce across Southwest Nigeria pay dozens of levies before reaching markets. BusinessDay Investigations traced the network of local authorities, unions, market leaders, revenue arrangements, and political influence behind the collections and how the extra costs are passed on to consumers through higher food prices. SODIQ OJUROUNGBE writes

For David Adekoya, a 50-year-old interstate truck driver, the journey from Iwo in Osun State to Ishaga in Lagos is not just a trip across four states. Along the route, a chain of collection points adds levies and charges that increase the cost of moving food produce before it reaches its destination.

At the market in Iwo, Adekoya said the journey starts with two tickets costing about N2,000. From there, another N2,000 is demanded at Odo-Oba, followed by N1,500 at Lalupon. At Toll Gate Arin, the charge rises to about N3,500 before another N1,300 is paid around Berger.

He noted that the owners of the goods would pay an additional N4,000, while other union-related payments and money demanded by other roadside actors, including police, can add to the bill.

By the time the vehicle gets to its destination, Adekoya estimated that between N12,000 and N15,000 would have gone into the different payments aside the cost of rising fuel prices.

The route tells its own story, with a payment attached to several stops along the way. For Adekoya, the numbers are not merely figures on a receipt; they determine what he must charge the people whose food he transports.

‘All these ticket payments are part of what we consider when we charge our customers. We cannot bear the cost ourselves because it will affect what we make from the trip. So, we add the cost of the tickets to the transportation charge and share it among the owners of the goods we are carrying,’ Adekoya told BusinessDay.

Beyond the number of tickets, Adekoya said there are occasions when he pays for the same ticket twice at different locations on the same journey.

‘The Northway tickets, costing N2,000, are mostly paid twice, especially when you pass through the Berger side to Mile 12 or any other part of Lagos. There are boys in Berger who will not allow you to go until you pay them, and that will not stop the collectors at the market from giving you the same tickets,’ he said.

Other drivers interviewed by BusinessDay Investigations described the same experience, saying payment at one collection point does not exempt them from another demand for the same ticket or charge.

In some cases, truckers noted that the amount demanded also differs from what is printed on the ticket.

Saheed Olanrewaju, a trucker who transports food items mostly between Ogbomoso and Lagos, told BusinessDay Investigations that there is usually a disparity between the printed price on tickets and the amount paid.

BusinessDay obtained one of the tickets marked N200; however, Olanrewaju and other traders interviewed insisted that the actual payment is N2,000.

These additional costs come at a time when food prices remain high. The National Bureau of Statistics revealed that food inflation stood at 20.31 percent year-on-year in July 2026, up from 17.52 percent recorded in the previous month.

More than 20 food transporters interviewed across Lagos and Ogun, including those moving produce from Iseyin, Ibarapa, Ogbomoso, Abeokuta, Osun, and Ondo to Mile 12, Shasha, Oyingbo, and Bodija, described a system in which charges accumulate as goods move between production areas, transport corridors, and markets. In some cases, transporters pay more than 500 percent of the amount printed on the ticket.

Transporters also said the various tickets include some from the NURTW, local government gate, and RTEAN, and they still have to pay before offloading the food produce.

The differences between ticket values and amounts demanded, alongside repeated payments for the same charge, increase transporters’ costs.

For transporters like Adekoya and Olanrewaju, the cost of the tickets is factored into the charges passed to food traders, who in turn incorporate their costs into selling prices.

A trader, Bose Alade, who brings her goods from Shaki in Oyo State to Mile 12 Lagos Market, said the cost incurred on logistics is competing with the actual cost of food items.

‘If you don’t pay all of them, they will not let you leave; they will threaten or delay you, and our goods are perishable; we cannot afford any delay,’ she said.

Nigeria’s tax framework assigns particular taxes and levies to different levels of government and limits collection to the appropriate tax authority.

In January 2024, Taiwo Oyedele, then chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, said truckers moving produce, including food, could face more than 50 stickers and pay over N450,000 on a single trip.

He linked the burden of taxes and transportation costs to differences between food prices in rural and urban areas.

BusinessDay Investigations, however, found that the problem is not limited to the number of stickers but is also about the overlap of collection claims and the interests that control them.

A 2025 study of road taxes on vegetable transportation found that road taxes accounted for an average of 15 percent of transportation costs on the routes studied, rising to 19 percent on Lagos routes, 14 percent on Benin routes, 13 percent on Ogun routes, and 12 percent on Oyo routes.

Inside the collection network

Investigation by this paper found that the collection points encountered by food transporters do not operate in isolation.

It was discovered that behind some of the tickets and charges are arrangements involving local politicians, transport unions, market leadership, and individuals who secure access to revenue-generating activities around markets and transport corridors.

A ticket collector around the Mile 12 axis who spoke to BusinessDay Investigations said he does not obtain tickets independently.

According to him, a youth leader known as Jafar facilitates the arrangement, obtains tickets through NURTW, and assigns collectors to designated points.

He added that collectors account for their proceeds through the same structure and retain an agreed share.

‘The youth leader is the one in charge, and he gets the ticket at a certain amount from the NURTW, and we are expected to sell it at an agreed price so that at the end of the day, we can also make our own money,’ the collector said.

Another collector in Ojodu Berger described a similar arrangement, saying collectors operate at designated points under the supervision of those who control the collection structure.

He said the proceeds are shared according to an agreed percentage, with collectors remitting a portion of what they receive to the person or group that authorised the collection, while retaining the balance as their share.

At Mile 12, BusinessDay found another arrangement involving young men known as ‘Omo Ilu’.

According to a source who did not want to be named, the group approached the market leadership, led by chairman Alhaji Jubril Uthman, popularly known as Sampam, with a proposal to create a collection opportunity.

The source said the market leadership subsequently engaged stakeholders connected to the local government or NURTW.

Under the arrangement described to BusinessDay, 70 percent of proceeds goes to the ‘Omo Ilu’, while 30 percent is shared with the local government or NURTW, depending on the collection arrangement.

Sixty-six years ago today, our flag was raised, for the first time, over a free and sovereign nation. Since then, we have journeyed together as one nation, bound by our collective trust in the great promise of Nigeria: that a country of our size, our bountiful resources, our cultural diversity and, above all, our extraordinary people can build a giant in Africa; that in this blessed and fertile land we can build a united, strong and prosperous nation; a land of regional authority and global consequence.

Our journey has not always been easy. In truth, it has generally been too hard for too many. We have known moments of great hope and periods of profound disappointment. We have endured war, military rule, economic crises, insecurity and political upheaval. Yet through it all, Nigeria, with the indomitable spirit of its people, has endured.

It has endured through the efforts of the farmer who rises before dawn to work his land. The trader who opens her shop each morning, hopeful for a productive day. The teacher who believes in the children entrusted to her care and the young entrepreneur who refuses to surrender ambition to circumstance. We are grateful for the men and women of our Armed Forces and security services who place themselves in harm’s way so that the rest of us may live in peace.

Through every difficulty, generations of Nigerians have continued to believe in one thing: that this country of ours will be better.

This faith, which sustains us all, is the inheritance of independence. Our founding fathers did not struggle merely for a flag, an anthem or a place among the nations of the world. Independence carried a larger promise: that Nigerians would have the freedom to shape their own destiny and build a nation capable of providing opportunity, dignity and a better life for its people. Sixty-six years later, Almighty God has made it our responsibility to deliver that promise.

Today, as we celebrate our independence, we must speak honestly about the journey so far, the choices we made, and the country we are determined to build from here.

For too long, the promise of Nigeria was undermined by choices that postponed difficult decisions and allowed deep economic distortions to grow.

By 2023, poverty was rising, and hope was nearly gone. The country’s situation was darker than ever. We had no choice but to act.

Nigeria was like a sick patient who receives the terrible news that he has cancer. His doctor explains that the treatment will be difficult and painful, but that it offers a strong prospect of recovery. The patient has a choice. He can begin treatment, endure its discomfort and fight the disease. Or he can ask only for morphine, dull the pain and leave the cancer to spread.

For too long, Nigeria’s leaders chose morphine while praying for a miracle that never came.

They focused on symptoms while allowing the disease to take hold deep within the fabric of our society. We spent enormous sums sustaining inefficient arrangements that were never intended to last. We hid from difficult truths and passed the consequences from one generation to the next.

When this Administration assumed office, we resolved to do things differently. We chose to excise the cancer. The reforms that followed were difficult. The side effects were real. Yet, we must never confuse the medicine with the disease.

Our reforms did not create the weaknesses in our economy. They confronted them. Now, as certain influential but regressive voices would have us abandon the treatment and return ourselves to the abuse of addictive subsidies, we must resist their siren song. We must remember why we began this journey and how far we have already come.

Three and a half years later, the evidence that Nigeria’s economic outlook has improved is undeniable. Our economy has grown by over 4 per cent this year. Both oil and non-oil sectors have contributed to the renewed period of stable growth.

Oil theft is down. Inflation has fallen substantially from its peak. Our foreign reserves have been rebuilt, our foreign exchange market has stabilised, and in 2025 this country recorded its highest revenue from non-oil exports in its history, exceeding $6 billion. This is real money being made by real Nigerian businesses.

These are not idle claims. International observers, journalists, NGOs and multilateral institutions can see the change. Each has concluded that our reforms have strengthened Nigeria’s economic stability and resilience. The private sector has long since delivered its verdict, and foreign direct investment continues to rise each year.

My fellow Nigerians, we have reached a turning point.

The emergency treatment is over. The foundation has been repaired. The central economic task before us has changed. For three years, our overriding purpose was to correct our nation’s course.

Now, our purpose is simple: shared and widespread prosperity.

When I speak of prosperity, I do not speak merely of a larger economy, abstract numbers or better statistics. I mean something much more personal.

I mean a Nigeria in which the farmer can cultivate his land safely, produce more at lower cost, and earn a decent return for his labour. A Nigeria in which factories have reliable power, businesses can obtain credit, and young people can find productive work. A Nigeria in which food and transportation are affordable, education is within reach, and hard-working families can look towards the future with confidence.

This is the promise we must now fulfil.

Our priority is to bring down the cost of living. We will achieve this by lowering the cost of producing and moving the things Nigerians consume.

We have the land and people to feed ourselves. My government is therefore focused on expanding mechanised irrigation and dry-season farming, improving access to seeds and fertiliser, holistically increasing mechanisation, and investing in storage and transportation. We are building and completing the roads, railways and ports that connect farms and factories to markets.

Our logic is simple. When a farmer produces more cheaply, when fewer crops are lost between the farm and the market, when a manufacturer spends less on electricity, when a truck reaches its destination faster, and when the business environment fosters fair competition, all those savings will ultimately find their way into the price of goods in the market.

But prosperity requires more than cheaper goods. It requires productive work.

Nigeria is a young country. Millions of young Nigerians enter adulthood every year with talent, energy and ambition. Our responsibility is to ensure that this great demographic strength becomes an engine of production rather than a source of despair.

We are therefore placing jobs, enterprise, and industrial growth at the heart of our government’s policies.

We will use our gas to power new industries. We will support businesses that work to bring factories back to life in our great industrial centres. We will expand digital connectivity into communities that have waited too long to participate in the modern economy. We will invest in the skills employers demand and support Nigerian businesses with the infrastructure and finance they need to grow.

I want to see more Nigerians making things. I want to see more Nigerian farms feeding our cities and supplying our factories. I want to see Nigerian businesses selling Nigerian goods to the whole world. I want young Nigerians building unicorns and creating opportunities for others here at home.

We cannot erase in four years what accumulated over generations. But we can change its course. We can build an economy that steadily lifts people out of poverty while ensuring that those who remain vulnerable are not abandoned along the way.

That is why we are strengthening direct support for the poorest households and improving the National Social Register so that assistance reaches those who genuinely need it.

It is why the Nigerian Education Loan Fund is ensuring that the child of a low-income family need not surrender the dream of higher education simply because his parents cannot afford the fees.

It is why CREDICORP is giving working Nigerians access to consumer credit, allowing people to acquire vehicles, solar systems, digital devices and other essential assets without first having to accumulate years of savings.

That is why, working with our states and local governments, we will continue to strengthen primary healthcare, basic education, and the essential public services poorer Nigerians depend on most. Since 2023, we have paid salaries and pensions on time and in full. We have reformed the national pension program to benefit retirees and the vulnerable.

These programmes are not substitutes for prosperity. They are a bridge to aid our nation’s citizens on their path towards it. Our objective is not to manage poverty more efficiently.

We will defeat it.

It will take time. It will require discipline. It will require sustained growth year after year and the creation of millions of productive opportunities across our country.

But for the first time in decades, we embark on this task from a position of strength; with an economy whose fundamental direction has been corrected. We confronted the difficult choices we faced and have laid the foundations for lasting prosperity. Rather than fail the promise of a better future for our children, the time has come for us to build that future.

The age of reform has done its work. Now begins the age of prosperity. An age in which the promise of this great nation must finally become the lived experience of Nigerians from all walks of life.

We have travelled through difficult years together. We have made hard decisions together. And now, still together, we must build the country those decisions have made possible.

I believe deeply in what lies ahead.

I believe in the millions of ordinary men and women whose work, courage and determination have always been the true strength of our country. The road ahead will still demand much from us. But we travel it now with firm footing, a clear direction and renewed hope in our collective future.

Nigeria has corrected its course. We have passed through our own Red Sea. This is not the time to look back. Let us go forward together, with faith in ourselves, faith in our country, and faith that the sacrifices we have made will yield their reward.

The Promised Land before us is a Nigeria of abundance and opportunity; a nation where prosperity is broadly shared, where every child can dream beyond the circumstances of his birth, and where our country’s immense promise is finally reflected in the lives of our people.

Our destination is in sight. Our foundations are strong. Our direction is clear. So let us go forward. No looking back.

Happy Independence Day, my fellow Nigerians. God bless you all, and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR

President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

For many Nigerians, this is where healthcare begins, not in a consulting room, but in the uncertain hours or days between noticing that something is wrong and finally deciding to speak to a doctor. It is a gap that Dr Ikenna Asogwa, founder of Nigerian telemedicine platform IKEAHealth, believes technology can help close.

His proposition is straightforward: when something feels wrong, speaking to a qualified doctor should be one of the easiest options available.

The hidden period before healthcare begins

Much of the conversation about Nigeria’s healthcare challenges understandably focuses on hospitals, infrastructure, medical personnel and affordability. But there is another, less visible problem: what happens before a patient enters the healthcare system at all.

A headache persists. A child develops a fever. Someone wakes up feeling unusually weak. A medication produces an unexpected reaction.

Then come the questions:

Should I wait until tomorrow? Is this serious? Can I take something? Do I really need to go to the hospital?

For many people, the immediate response is to search online, ask friends or relatives, reuse an old prescription, visit a nearby chemist, self-medicate or simply wait.

The problem is not necessarily a lack of concern. Seeking formal healthcare can mean transport costs, queues, time away from work and an uncertain bill at the end of the visit.

Yet delay has its own cost. A health concern that might have required a relatively simple consultation can become more complicated when professional advice is postponed.

That is the gap IKEAHealth is positioning itself to address.

Don’t replace the hospital. Make the doctor easier to reach

IKEAHealth is a Nigerian telemedicine platform that connects users with Nigerian-licensed doctors through real-time voice and video consultations, no AI responses.

‘People think our competition is the hospital. It isn’t. Our competition is the three days someone spends deciding whether they’re sick enough to go to hospital.’ Dr Asogwa

The idea is not to replace hospitals, emergency departments or physical examinations. It is to provide a more accessible first point of contact when someone is unsure what to do next.

That distinction matters.

A search engine can provide thousands of results. A WhatsApp group can provide dozens of opinions. Neither can conduct a medical consultation: asking relevant questions, considering a patient’s circumstances and helping determine the appropriate next step is what licensed doctors do.

Sometimes that next step will still be a hospital.

It may be further investigation, medication advice or follow-up care.

And sometimes what the patient needs most is clarity about whether the situation requires escalation at all.

For IKEAHealth, the value of telemedicine lies partly in shortening the distance between ‘something is wrong’ and ‘I have spoken to a doctor.’

A healthcare workforce under pressure

The proposition becomes more relevant against the backdrop of Nigeria’s strained healthcare workforce.

BusinessDay reported in January 2026 that the number of practising doctors in Nigeria fell from 66,241 in 2024 to about 55,000 in 2025 a decline of 16.9 percent in one year.

The challenge is not only the number of available doctors but also how efficiently patients can reach them.

Telemedicine cannot manufacture thousands of doctors overnight, nor can it solve every structural challenge in Nigeria’s health system. What it can potentially do is make existing medical expertise easier to access, particularly for consultations that can safely begin remotely.

That is the business case behind IKEAHealth: use technology not to replace healthcare infrastructure, but to extend the reach of qualified healthcare professionals.

A wave of executive appointments reshaped Nigeria’s corporate landscape in the second quarter of 2026, marked by 21 high-profile board and C-suite changes across financial services, energy, FMCG, manufacturing, and public enterprise sectors.

This strategic realignment reflects a concerted push by corporations and state agencies to strengthen institutional governance, accelerate digital and operational transformation, and drive sustainable growth amid shifting macroeconomic realities.

Below are the 21 executives appointed to key leadership roles:

Modupe Femi-Okunbanjo – Executive Director, Unilever Nigeria

Appointed effective June 30, 2026, following the resignation of Ibrahim Sodipe, Modupe Femi-Okunbanjo joins Unilever Nigeria’s board while continuing her role as financial controller for Nigeria and regional controls lead for West Africa.

A fellow of ICAN and member of CIMA, she brings over 17 years of experience in financial governance, enterprise risk management, and strategic growth across the FMCG and telecommunications sectors.

Ogochukwu Onyelucheya – Acting CEO, Ikeja Electric

Appointed Acting CEO on July 1, 2026, succeeding Folake Soetan, Onyelucheya brings over 20 years of banking and energy leadership to Nigeria’s largest electricity distribution firm.

A Harvard Business School alumna, she will focus on accelerating digitization, curbing operational revenue leaks, and improving customer service metrics across the network.

Dr. Muiz Adeyemi Banire, SAN, OON – Non-Executive Director, Julius Berger

Appointed to the board effective July 1, 2026, Dr. Muiz Adeyemi Banire brings extensive legal and regulatory expertise to the construction giant.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, principal partner at M. A. Banire and Associates, and former chairman of AMCON, he currently serves as pro-chancellor of the University of Uyo, strengthening Julius Berger’s corporate governance and strategic legal oversight.

Uyi Akpata – Non-Executive Director, Savannah Energy

Appointed effective July 1, 2026, Uyi Akpata joins the board of Savannah Energy and is slated to chair its audit and risk committee.

The former senior partner at PwC West Africa brings over 40 years of chartered accounting experience to the British energy firm. He currently serves as founder of Rusa Advisory, Chairman of emPLE Life Insurance, and Chairman of Unified Payments Limited.

Deji Olanrewaju – Chairman, Board of Directors, Zedvance

Appointed Board Chairman effective July 1, 2026, Prof. Olanrewaju brings over 40 years of banking, legal, and financial expertise to Zedvance.

The immediate past president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and professor of banking law at Babcock University, he will lead strategic oversight and corporate governance for the retail lender’s next expansion phase.

Ronke Sokefun – Chairman, Board of Directors, Comercio Partners

Appointed as Comercio Partners’ first female Board Chairman, Sokefun brings nearly 40 years of legal, corporate governance, and public sector experience to the investment firm.

A Templars partner and former group chief legal officer at Oando Plc, she previously served as a two-term Ogun State cabinet commissioner and was the first female Board Chairman of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).

Dr. Abdulrazaq Isa, OFR – Chairman of the Board, World Energy Council Nigeria

Following Nigeria’s formal admission as a national member committee of the World Energy Council in August 2026, Dr. Isa assumes the Chairmanship of the newly formed board.

The co-founder and Chairman of Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited will work alongside CEO Bala Wunti to drive regional energy security, expand power access, mobilize private investment, and amplify Africa’s voice in global energy transition policy.

Pastor Jerry Eze – Independent Non-Executive Director, Heirs Life Assurance

Appointed to the board effective August 10, 2026, Pastor Jerry Eze brings a unique combination of corporate communications, international development, and massive public engagement experience to Heirs Life Assurance.

Before founding faith-based, Streams of Joy International and the global NSPPD platform, he served as a communications specialist with the World Bank HIV/AIDS project and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

His appointment is strategically positioned to leverage his widespread grassroots trust and influence to drive retail insurance adoption and deepen financial inclusion across Nigeria.

Heather Ibrahim-Leathers – Non-Executive Director, Lekoil

Ibrahim-Leathers serves as a Non-Executive Director on the board of Lekoil Limited, an upstream oil and gas company focused on Nigeria. A veteran of global finance with over 30 years of experience in capital markets, corporate finance, and strategic transactions, she has held senior leadership roles at major institutions including J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse, and Merrill Lynch.

Beyond her corporate career, she leverages her financial background as the founder and Chairwoman of the Global Fund for Widows, an organization driving economic empowerment and financial inclusion. She holds a B.Sc. in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

‘Boye Olusanya – Board Chairman, Beta Glass

Olusanya assumed office as the Chairman of the board of directors at Beta Glass Plc on July 30, 2026, succeeding Dr. Vitus Ezinwa following an official announcement to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) on August 5, 2026. Currently serving as the group chief executive officer of Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN), he brings nearly three decades of executive leadership across manufacturing, FMCG, telecommunications, and agribusiness. His background includes senior positions at VMobile (Econet Wireless), 9mobile, Dangote Industries, and Helios Investment Partners.

Obeahon Ohiwerei – Managing Director/CEO, Coronation Merchant Bank

Ohiwerei was appointed as the managing director and chief executive officer of Coronation Merchant Bank following approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria, succeeding Paul Abiagam in July 2026. A veteran with over 30 years of experience across the Nigerian and African financial services sectors, his career includes leadership roles as group managing director/CEO of Keystone Bank, group executive director at Access Bank, and pioneer MD/CEO of UBA Ghana. In his new role, he will focus on driving institutional restructuring, digital transformation, and disciplined corporate growth.

Eyitope Kola-Oyeneyin – Board Chair, NIPC

Kola-Oyeneyin serves as the Board Chairperson of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), following her appointment by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in July 2026.

As founder and managing partner at Augmentum Advisory, she brings over 25 years of executive experience across management consulting, banking, digital transformation, and public policy. Her past leadership roles include partner at McKinsey and Company, Independent Non-Executive Director at MTN Nigeria, and senior positions at FirstBank Nigeria and Central Bank of Nigeria public sector initiatives.

She holds an Msc in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University and a Bsc in Industrial Engineering from the University of Central Florida.

Muhammad Hadi Mutallab – Board Chair, NEPZA

Mutallab serves as the Board Chairman of the Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), following his appointment by President Bola Tinubu on July 13, 2026.

A seasoned entrepreneur and founder of Dattaku Global Investment Limited and Farm to You Limited, he brings multi-sector expertise across maritime, logistics, real estate, finance, and agritech. His corporate governance record includes directorships at Jaiz Bank Plc and Equatorial Marine Oil and Gas. He holds a B.A. in Business Administration and Management and an MBA with Magna Cum Laude honors from the Canadian University Dubai.

Oreoluwa Atinmo – Managing Director, FanMilk Nigeria

Atinmo assumed the role of managing director at FanMilk Nigeria on April 1, 2026, as she succeeded Kayode Adebiyi. She brings extensive commercial and technical leadership to the role, having previously served as marketing director at GB Foods Nigeria, where she partnered with celebrity chef Hilda Baci to execute the Gino World Jollof Festival, driving double-digit revenue growth and securing Guinness World Records.

She began her career as the first female automation engineer at Nigerian Breweries (HEINEKEN). She holds degrees in electrical and electronic engineering from the University of Nottingham, a master’s in petroleum engineering from Imperial College London, and a Global Executive MBA from IE Business School.

Folake Soetan – Managing Director, Arahis

Folake Soetan assumed office as the managing director of Arahas Global Oilfield Services, a subsidiary of Sahara Group, effective July 1, 2026.

She brings over two decades of leadership experience across the power, oil and gas, midstream, downstream, and aviation industries. Prior to this role, she served as CEO of Ikeja Electric, where she spearheaded operational transformation, grew customer metering to 86 percent, and significantly reduced aggregate technical, commercial, and collection (ATC and C) losses.

In tandem with her executive post at Arahas, she serves as a non-executive director (distribution) at the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) and is an alumnus of Harvard Business School’s Executive Education program.

Malolan Sampath – Managing Director, Champion Breweries

Malolan Sampath formally assumed office as the managing director and chief executive officer of Champion Breweries Plc on September 1, 2026, following his appointment by the board in June and a brief interim transition led by executive director of finance Rasheed Adebiyi.

He brings over 26 years of global leadership experience across the beverage, FMCG, and manufacturing sectors. His executive career includes roles as managing director of Unique Beverages in Angola, sales and marketing director for a PepsiCo franchise, managing director and CMO at Indorama Eleme Fertilisers in Nigeria, and CEO of Global Industries Limited in Zambia. He holds a BBA from the University of Chennai and an MBA from the Symbiosis Centre for Management and HRD, Pune.

Fola Fagbule – Director and Head, AFC Nairobi Regional Office

Fagbule serves as the pioneer director and head of the Nairobi Regional Office for the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC). In this role, he leads AFC’s operations across East and Central Africa. Having joined AFC in 2009, he previously headed its financial advisory services from 2017, executing more than $12 billion in transactions across the power, transport, mining, and telecommunications sectors. He holds a BSc. in Physics and an MBA, supplemented by executive training from Harvard and Stanford.

Wolemi Esan, SAN – Non-Executive Director, NAHCO Plc

Esan was appointed as a non-executive director on the board of the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (NAHCO), effective July 1, 2026. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and commercial lawyer with over two decades of experience, he specializes in high-stakes litigation, commercial disputes, capital markets, and corporate governance. He brings deep expertise in energy, transport, and infrastructure transactions, including airport, port, and rail concessions, strengthening NAHCO’s board legal and regulatory oversight following recent leadership retirements.

Habila Malgwi – Head of West Africa, SFTY.AI

Malgwi serves as the Head of West Africa for SFTY.AI. In his role, he oversees the deployment of RegTech and SupTech solutions focused on anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CFT) compliance, and digital asset supervision for financial institutions and regulators.

An international investment banker and financial analyst, his past executive leadership includes roles as executive director for Nigeria and Kenya at MobiBank, head of Africa for the Global Citizen Forum, and regional director for East and West Africa at Arton Capital. He has been recognized on the Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) under 40 list.

Ifedayo Olaniyi Orimoloye – Executive Director, Risk Management, Access Bank Plc

Orimoloye assumed office as executive director, Risk Management at Access Bank Plc on September 21, 2026, following Central Bank of Nigeria approval. As former group chief risk officer at the African Development Bank (AfDB), he brings over 25 years of global risk management experience across Africa, Europe, and the U.S. His executive career spans major financial institutions including Wells Fargo, HSBC, Citigroup, Ecobank, and Sterling Bank. He holds dual bachelor’s degrees in economics and finance as well as an MBA in finance from California State University, Hayward.

Euphemia Annor Rwigema – General Counsel and Company Secretary, PZ Cussons

Rwigema was appointed group general counsel and company secretary of PZ Cussons, joining the company’s executive committee with effect from November 9, 2026. Prior to this role, she served as General Counsel for Northern Europe at The Kraft Heinz Company, where she led legal, compliance, and government affairs across the UK, Ireland, and the Nordics. With over 16 years of legal and corporate leadership experience spanning the UK, Europe, and Africa, her background also includes nearly eight years in senior global and regional legal positions at Reckitt.