Alakija Folorunso-Nigerian Businesswoman Billionaire

Nigerian Businesswoman Billionaire –Folorunso Alakija, Nigeria’s billionaire businesswoman (born 15 July 1951). She is a member of this group and is responsible for the sectors of fashion, oil, real estate, and printing.

She also has a controlling interest in the DaySpring Property Development company. Alakija is listed as the richest woman in Nigeria with an estimated $1 billion net worth. As of 2015, she was the second most powerful woman in Africa and the 87th most powerful woman in the world, after Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

Alakija Folorunso – Biography

Early life and learning

Alakija Folorunso – Folorunsho was born on 15 July 1951 to the family of Chief L. A. Ogbara in Ikorodu, Lagos State. She attended her nursery training at Our Ladies of Apostles, Lagos, from 1955-1958. At the age of seven, she traveled to the United Kingdom to begin her primary education in Llangernyw, Wales, at the Dinorben School for Girls in Hafodunos Hall between 1959-1963. Upon completion of her primary education, she attended ‘Muslim High School’ in Sagamu, Ogun State, Nigeria. She then returned to England for her secretarial studies to attend Pitman’s Central College, London.

Career

Alakija Folorunso – Alakija started her career as an executive assistant in 1974 at Sijuade Enterprises, Lagos, Nigeria. She moved to the former First National Bank of Chicago, which later became FinBank, now owned by FCMB (First City Monument Bank), where she worked for many years before starting a tailoring company, Supreme Stitches. Within a few years, it became a household name, like the Rose of Sharon House of Fashion. As the national president and lifelong trustee of the Nigerian Fashion Designers Association (FADAN), she left an indelible mark, cultivating Nigerian culture through fashion and style.

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Alakija applied in May 1993 for an oil prospecting license to be issued (OPL). A license to explore for oil was granted to Alakija’s business, Famfa Limited, on a 617,000-acre block, now referred to as OPL 216. The block in the central Niger Delta’s Agbami Region is about 350 kilometers (220 miles) southeast of Lagos and 110 kilometers (70 miles) offshore of Nigeria. In September 1996, she entered into a joint venture agreement with Star Deep Water Petroleum Limited (a wholly-owned Texaco subsidiary) and designated the company as a licensing technical advisor to pass 40 percent of its 100 percent stake to Star Deep.

Alakija Folorunso – When reports came out that they had hit oil, the Nigerian government grabbed a 40 percent share. Later on, they took an additional 10 percent. For twelve years, she has been fighting the government in court. The government’s argument was that they would make $10 million a day if Alakija and his family were allowed to preserve their bloc. Yet, she continued, and in the end, she won.

Appreciation

She is listed as the world’s 96th most powerful woman as of 2014 by Forbes. Two Nigerian women, Finance Ministers Ngozi okonjo-Iweala and Alakija, were named among the world’s 100 most influential women in May 2015, according to Forbes. Alakija was 86th in the rankings.

Philanthropism

Folorunsho has a fund that supports widows and orphans through scholarships and business grants, called the Rose of Sharon Foundation. Alakija has donated a skills acquisition center to Yaba College of Technology, a higher education institution located in Lagos.

Personal Life

In November 1976, Folorunsho married a lawyer from the Adeyemo Alakija tribe, Modupe Alakija, who lived in Lagos, Nigeria, with her four sons and grandchildren. At a Blenheim Palace wedding in England in June 2017, Folorunso’s uncle, Folarin Alakija, married the Iranian model Nazanin Jafarian Ghaissarifar. Media reports reported the event was one of the world’s most extravagant weddings. Alakija Folorunso

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