The annual Forbes list of the The 20 Young Power Women In Africa 2014 has
been released and it features Nigerian amazons like Ada Osakwe and Toyosi
Akerele among others.
Written by Mfonobong Nsehe for
Forbes
Every year since 2011 have enlisted readers’ help to identify 20 young, extraordinary and
inspiring African women, aged 45 and under, who are making the most
dramatic impact in individual African countries in the world of
politics, business, technology, policy, diplomacy and media for the
annual tally of the 20 Youngest Power Women In Africa. Now in its 4th year, the list celebrates 20 influential female leaders, ground breakers & ceiling crashers who are transforming the continent from their communities.
Read about the Nigerians on the list after the cut...
Ada Osakwe (pictured right),
Nigerian,
Advisor to the Honorable Minister Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nigeria
Nigeria’s agricultural sector
has attracted more than $4 billion
in private sector investment commitments over the last year, and Ada
Osakwe is an integral reason why. Osakwe, 34, currently serves as the
Senior Investment Adviser to Nigerian Minister of Agriculture Akinwunmi
Adesina – arguably the best-performing member of President Goodluck
Jonathan’s kitchen cabinet. She works directly with the minister,
advising him on his policies regarding private sector investments into
the food and agriculture sector. Osakwe also interacts with current and
prospective agribusiness investors and champions innovative approaches
to channel sustainable private sector engagements in the sector.
Previously, she served as Vice President of Kuramo Capital, a New
York-based investment management firm. She also worked in various
capacities at the African Development Bank.
Amy Jadesimi, Nigerian, Managing Director, LADOL
The 39-year-old Nigerian businesswoman is the Managing Director of the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Base
(LADOL), Nigeria’s only indigenous-owned deep offshore logistics base.
Jadesimi earned a BA in physiological sciences at Oxford University, and
then went on to work for the investment banking division of Goldman
Sachs in London. She subsequently attended Stanford Business School,
where she earned her MBA, and returned to Nigeria to set up a financial
consultancy outfit before joining LADOL (a company founded by her
father) as Managing Director. Since it was founded in 2001, LADOL has
turned a former industrial wasteland into a $500 million industrial
village and specialized port facility, providing an environment in which
high value operations, such as oil and gas drilling and production
support, ship building and repairs, specialized manufacturing and
engineering can take place 24/7 in a secure Free Zone. The second phase
of the LADOL development is currently ongoing and it includes Nigeria’s
single largest local content development – a $300 million investment in
West Africa’s largest vessel fabrication and integration yards. LADOL
Free Zone was created to make Nigeria the hub for West African maritime
and oil and gas activities through long-term investment in world class
facilities and services. Jadesimi is spearheading this vision.
Rimini Makama,
Nigeria, Director, Africa Practice Rimini Makama, 34, is the Communications Director at Africa Practice,
Africa’s foremost strategy and communications consultancy. Over the
last half a decade, Makama has successfully introduced some of the
largest international institutions on the continent and beyond into the
Nigerian market, simultaneously helping to strategically positioning
them as key players in their industry and encouraging foreign investment
in the country. Some of her clients include BlackBerry, Union Bank,
Renaissance Capital, Bloomberg, Western Union, World Economic Forum
Africa, The Africa Union and Paypal. Rimini has a background in law and
after obtaining a BL from the Nigerian Law School and an LLM in
International Law and World Order. Prior to a career in communications,
she joined the Office of Legal Affairs at the International Criminal
Police Organization (INTERPOL) in Lyon, France where she worked as a
lawyer primarily reviewing notices and individual requests safeguarding
international security and safety across borders. She also drafted
cooperation agreements between the 190 member countries.
Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji, Nigerian, Social entrepreneur
Ogunsiji, 31, is the Founder of RISE NETWORKS,
a Nigeria-based private and public sector funded Youth Interest social
enterprise with a primary focus on wholesome youth and education
development. The organization focuses on creating intellectual
development and capacity building programs for young Nigerians
between 16
and 30 and receives generous support from several state governments and blue-chip companies. Ogunsiji is an alumnus of the United States Government’s International Visitor Leadership Program.
Adiat Disu, Nigerian, Founder, African Fashion Week
Adiat Disu, 27, is an international publicist and founder of Adirée, a
New York-based communications and brand strategy company. In 2009,
Adirée launched the annual Africa Fashion Week in New York,
one of the most popular international African-focused fashion events,
in an effort to place structure around Africa’s fashion industry and
promote international economic partnerships while promoting brands from
Africa on a global scale. It has been a resounding success. Disu and
Adirée are also working on hosting other international African Fashion
Weeks in other fashion capitals of the world including Paris, Milan,
London and Tokyo.
Posts
