Onikepo Olufunmike Akande, (née Adisa, born 29 October 1944) is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

economist, accountant and industrialist who served as the President of the

Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry The Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry is a Lagos area non-profit that promotes, supports or opposes legislative or other measures affecting trade, industry, commerce and agriculture as well as representing the opinion of the Lagos business comm ...

and honorary life Vice-President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture.

Early life and education

A native of

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its me ...

Oyo State Oyo State is an inland state in southwestern Nigeria. Its capital is Ibadan, the third most populous city in the country and formerly the second most populous city in Africa. Oyo State is bordered to the north by Kwara State, to the east by Osun ...

, Nike was born in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

as the first of four children into a royal family. She had her secondary school education at Queen's School, Ede (now

Queen's School, Ibadan Queen's School, Ibadan is an all-girls secondary school located in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State, South-Western Nigeria. History Queen's School, Ibadan was founded on 16th February,1952 as Queen's School, Ede in honor of the Coronation of Quee ...

) after completing her basic education in Ibadan. She holds a B.Sc in Accountancy from the North-Western Polytechnic (now University of North London) after graduating in 1968. She is also an alumnus of the

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

and the International Institute for Management Development.

Career

Public service

Nike became Nigeria's first female Minister of Industry after she was appointed twice in December 1997 and August 1998 under the

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...

-led administration. She was also a delegate at the 2014 National Conference and member of Nigeria Vision 2010 and Vision 20:2020.

Private sector

Nike is an industrialist and economist who former President

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957)Lawson Heyford, ''The Source'' (Lagos), 11 December 2006. is a Nigerian politician who served as the President of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to fo ...

described as "an inspiration". She is a board member of

Union Bank of Nigeria Union Bank of Nigeria Plc is a commercial bank in Nigeria. It has been operating in Nigeria since 1917. Overview Union Bank is a large commercial bank, serving individuals, small and medium-sized companies, as well as large corporations and orga ...

and PZ Foundation. She also serves as the director of the National Insurance Corporation of Nigeria and the Nigeria Industrial Development Bank. On 8 December 2015, Nike was appointed Chairman of the NEPAD Business Group Nigeria succeeding Chris Ezeh. She currently serves as the President of the

, a position she holds since 5 December 2015.

Awards and recognition

At an event in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

in 1998, Nike was awarded the African Federation of Women Entrepreneur Award. In 2003, she was conferred as an

Officer of the Order of the Niger Nigeria became an independent country on 1 October 1960 and in 1963 became the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The republic instituted two orders of merit: the Order of the Niger and the Order of the Federal Republic. Award The two highest honour ...

(OON). Nike is also a recipient of the national honour of the

Commander of the Order of the Niger Nigeria became an independent country on 1 October 1960 and in 1963 became the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The republic instituted two orders of merit: the Order of the Niger and the Order of the Federal Republic. Award The two highest honour ...

(CON) since 2014.

Personal life

Nike holds the title of "Ekerin Iyalode of Ibadanland", a traditional chieftaincy position in her homeland. She is married to Chief Adebayo Akande, a business magnate and owner of Splash FM, Ibadan with whom she has children. On 1 November 2014, Nike celebrated her 70th birthday. The event was organized at the

Eko Hotels and Suites Eko Hotels and Suites is a five-star conference centre hotel in Lagos. 09161518010 History Established in 1977 as ''Èkó Holiday Inn'' and built on Victoria Island, it is the largest hotel in Nigeria. It was designed by architect Oluwole Olumu ...

with notable business moguls and politicians in attendance including former Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola and

Ogun State Ogun State is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. Ogun State borders Lagos State to the south, Oyo State and Osun State to the north, Ondo State to the east, and the Republic of Benin to the ...

Governor Ibikunle Amosun.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Akande, Nike 1944 births Living people Businesspeople from Lagos Harvard Business School alumni Alumni of the University of North London Queen's School, Ibadan alumni Nigerian economists Nigerian women economists Yoruba women in business Yoruba businesspeople Nigerian accountants Nigerian women business executives Nigerian expatriates in the United States Nigerian corporate directors Women corporate directors