Gender stereotypes have existed in the workplace, especially those that are male dominated. However, there are women who have broken through those barriers and achieved great success in their respective fields. These women shattered gender stereotypes and have paved the way for future generations of women. In this piece, OGHENOVO EGODO-MICHAEL, takes a look at Eight women who belong to this prestigious group
Ibukun Awosika
Ibukun Awosika is a well-respected entrepreneur and banking guru. She became the first female chairman of First Bank of Nigeria in January 2016. She is also the chairman of the novel Nigeria Office for Philanthropy and Impact Investment.
With over 30 years of experience in business, she has been recognised for her contributions to entrepreneurship and leadership. Indeed, when it comes to leadership, she has passionately encouraged women to take up more leadership positions. She is also the founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Chair Centre Group, a furniture company.
Aside from being an entrepreneur and banker, Awosika is also a pastor, author, and motivational speaker.
A look at her career trajectory emphasises the point that she has defied many odds to get to the top of her career. Despite the fact that she studied Chemistry at the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State, she did not let it hinder her from pursuing a career in business.
Many years earlier, she had her elementary education at St. Paul’s African Church Primary School; and secondary education at Methodist Girls’ High School, Yaba (both in Lagos).
Relentless in her quest for knowledge, Awosika took some postgraduate courses at different business schools.
In 2004, she earned a certification in Business Administration and Management, from the IESE Business School.
With her pedigree and valuable business experience, it is not surprising that Awosika is also a member of different boards.
She is a member of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group; a member of the board of the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth Fund; a former Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Women in Management, Business and Public Service; and a member of IESE’s International Advisory Board. She also sits on the board of Digital Jewel Limited and Cadbury Nigeria Plc. She is a fellow of the African Leadership Initiative, and Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Following her remarkable achievements, Awosika has been conferred with different doctorates including in Business (Entrepreneurship and Human Capacity Development) from the Lagos State University, Ojo. She was also conferred a honourary doctorate of Business Administration from her alma mater, OAU; and another one from the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State.
A woman of many parts, Awosika hosts a TV programme called Business His Way. She also acted in the 2020 Kunle Afolayan movie titled, Citation. This is in addition to the books she has written, including, The Girl Entrepreneurs, and Business His Way.
Some of the awards she has won over the years include Forbes Woman Africa Chairperson Award 2020, the International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge Award 2008, and the International Women Society’s Golden Heart Award 2007.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is an economist, who is the first African and first woman to be appointed as the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation. She has also served as Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Okonjo-Iweala also served two tenures at the World Bank. During her first tenure, she served as a development economist, vice president, and corporate secretary of the World Bank Group from 1982 to 2003. She later served as managing director of operations between 2007 and 2011, where she was responsible for managing an $81bn operational portfolio in Africa, South Asia, Europe, and Central Asia.
The goal getter also sits on the board of numerous organizations, such as Standard Chartered Bank, Danone, Mandela Institute for Development Studies, Georgetown Institute for Women, and Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation. She previously sat on the Board of Directors of X (formerly Twitter) until her appointment at the World Trade Organisation.
Okonjo-Iweala serves Brookings Institution, USA, as a non-resident fellow with the Africa Growth Initiative in their Global Economy and Development Programme. She is a Commissioner Emeritus and Co-Chair of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate.
She was also the first Nigerian woman to serve two terms as the Minister of Finance. She initially served under President Olusegun Obasanjo from 2003 to 2006; and later, under President Goodluck Jonathan from 2011 to 2015. She subsequently served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from June to August 2006.
By virtue of her exemplary work, the respected Euromoney Magazine named her Global Finance Minister of the Year.
Okonjo-Iweala also participated in UNESCO’s International Commission on the Futures of Education in 2019. In 2021, she was appointed as co-chair of the G20 High-Level Independent Panel on Financing the Global Commons for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, alongside Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Lawrence Summers. She was also one of the founders of the COVAX Facility, designed to get affordable vaccines to low and middle-income countries. That same year, she joined the Multilateral Leaders Task Force on COVID-19 Vaccines, Therapeutics, and Diagnostics for Developing Countries. In January 2022, Okonjo-Iweala joined The Group of Thirty, an independent body of distinguished policymakers worldwide.
Born in Ogwashi-Ukwu, Delta State, her father, Professor Chukwuka Okonjo, was the Obi (king), from the Obahai royal family. She had her primary and secondary school education at Queen’s School, Enugu, Enugu State; and the International School Ibadan, Oyo State, respectively. She graduated with a degree in Economics from Harvard University, USA, in 1976. She went on to bag a Master’s degree in City Planning; and a PhD in Regional Economics and Development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
Okonjo-Iweala has won numerous awards for her illustrious strides. She has been listed as one of the 50 Greatest World Leaders (Fortune, 2015), the Top 100 Most Influential People in the World (TIME, 2014 and 2021), the Top 100 Global Thinkers (Foreign Policy, 2011 and 2012), the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in the World (Forbes, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2022), the 25 Most Influential Women in the World (Financial Times, 2021), the Top Three Most Powerful Women in Africa (Forbes, 2012), the Top 100 Women in the World (The Guardian, 2011), and many others.
Funke Akindele
Funke Akindele is an award-winning filmmaker, actress and politician. She has no doubt set the standards high in Nollywood with her record-breaking movies.
Her movies have made over N500m twice at the box office. In 2021, her movie, Omo Ghetto the Saga set a record as the highest-grossing Nollywood movie after it maintained the number one spot for six weeks in a row. In 2023, she broke the record again when her movie, Battle on Buka Street, became the current highest-grossing movie of all time in Nigeria, after generating over N640m.
Akindele is also the most nominated actress/filmmaker at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards, and has currently bagged six of the prestigious awards, which make her the actress with the most wins.
In 2022, she was nominated by the People’s Democratic Party’s gubernatorial candidate, Abdul-Azeez Adediran, as his running mate for the 2023 Lagos State governorship election.
The filmmaker, who was born in August 1977, came into the limelight after starring in the popular United Nations Population Fund-sponsored sitcom, I Need to Know, which aired from 1998 to 2002. Funke Akindele played the role of Bisi, a curious and intelligent secondary school student. However, her big break came in 2008, when she produced and acted in the comedy movie, Jenifa.
She has also acted in and produced many blockbuster movies, including Chief Daddy, Far from Home, Isoken, Ladies Gang, and many others. She is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Funke Akindele Network.
Akindele’s notable awards include the 2017 AMVCA Awards for Best TV Series, and Best Actress in a Comedy Movie or TV Series; 2021 Net Honours Most Popular Actress, 2022 AMVCA’s Best Actress in a Comedy and Most Popular Actress, and many others.
Amina Mohammed
Amina Mohammed is a diplomat and politician. She is currently serving as the fifth Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations. Before then, she was Nigeria’s Minister of Environment from 2015 to 2016. She is also Chair of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group.
Mohammed was born in Liverpool, England, on June 27, 1961, but she had her primary education in Kaduna State and Maiduguri (Borno State). She also attended Henley Management College, UK, in 1989. On the completion of her studies, she returned to Nigeria.
Between 1981 and 1991, Mohammed worked with Archcon Nigeria, an architectural design firm in association with Norman and Dawbarn United Kingdom. She founded the Afri-Projects Consortium in 1991, and served as its Executive Director until 2001.
From 2002 to 2005, Mohammed coordinated the Task Force on Gender and Education for the United Nations Millennium Project.
She later acted as the Senior Special Assistant to the Nigerian President on Millennium Development Goals.
In addition to being a member of the UN Interagency Coordination Group on Antimicrobial Resistance, she is also a member of the High-Level Group of Personalities at the Africa Europe Foundation, a member of ActionAid’s Advisory Board, a member of the Global Development Program’s Advisory Board at Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a member of the Board of Governors at the International Development Research Centre, a member of the Advisory Board at the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China, and many other positions.
She has also been conferred several honorary doctorates and has served as an adjunct professor, lecturing on international development.
In 2006, she was honoured with the Order of the Federal Republic. In 2015, she was honoured with the Ford Family Notre Dame Award for International Development and Solidarity. In 2018, she was listed amongst BBC’s 100 Women for her work with the United Nations. In 2022, she received the national honour of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger.
In her honourThe Amina Mohammed Skills Acquisition Centre located in Gombe was constructed by the SDGs in partnership with the Government of Gombe in order to honour Mohammed’s contributions to social, political, and cultural boundaries.
Oyeyimika Adeboye
Oyeyimika Adeboye made history in April 2019, when she was appointed as Cadbury Nigeria Plc’s first female Managing Director. Indeed, her visionary leadership and game-changing approach to business have been nothing short of remarkable. Before she became the MD, she worked as the Finance Director of the company for over 10 years.
Prior to joining Cadbury, Adeboye worked with the Nigerian Bottling Company as Finance Director, from 1994 to 2007.
She studied Economics and Accountancy at Cardiff University, UK. She also studied Finance and Business Administration, and attended various other management and leadership courses at the prestigious IMD Business School.
Adeboye’s dedication and commitment to excellence are evident in her professional achievements. She was presented with the 2023 National Productivity Order of Merit Award, during a private ceremony arranged by the Director General of the National Productivity Centre, Raji Mustapha.
Adeboye was also recognised as one of 2023 Africa’s most Inspirational Women in Leadership by the House of Rose Professional.
Chinwe Iloghalu
Chinwe Iloghalu is a professional with over 15 years of leadership and senior management/general management-level experience at top Nigerian banks. She has been in the banking industry for over 25 years, and has grown by building strong networks, leveraging valuable connections, and creating sustainable value and maximum returns/profitability for key stakeholders.
She is currently an Executive Director at Polaris Bank. She is also a former General Manager/Regional Head at Fidelity Bank.
Iloghalu started her career in banking at the Equitorial Trust Bank, Dugbe, Ibadan, while observing the National Youth Service Corps scheme in 1996. She later joined Ecobank Nigeria Plc at the entry level. She then moved to Zenith Bank where she worked for 17 years at the Energy Group, Commercial Banking Group, Ikoyi Zone, and Akin Adesola Zone until her time at Fidelity Bank as General Manager.
Iloghalu studied Industrial Chemistry at the University of Benin, Edo State. She bagged a Master’s degree in Business Administration, and a Master of Science in Media and Communications from the Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos State. She has also taken a number of courses in leadership, negotiations, branding, and digital marketing in Lagos, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, including at Harvard Business School, London Business School, London School of Business and Finance, Colombia Business School, Lagos Business School, and TEXEM Business School.
She is married to Prince Ike Iloghalu, and they have three children.
Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe
Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe is a banker, and the first female Managing Director of Fidelity Bank Plc. She has over 30 years of experience in banking, and has held several leadership positions in the sector.
Onyeali-Ikpe has worked at different banks over the years, including Standard Chartered Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, and Citizens International Bank Limited, where she held several management positions in the legal, treasury, investment banking, retail/commercial banking, and corporate banking departments. She has been involved in the structuring of transactions in various sectors, including oil and gas, manufacturing, aviation, and real estate.
She holds Bachelor’s and Master of Law degrees from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and King’s College, London, respectively. She has attended executive training programmes at Harvard Business School, the Wharton School University of Pennsylvania, INSEAD School of Business, Chicago Booth School of Business, London Business School, and IMD, among others.
She is also an Honourary Senior Member of The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.
Born in Awka, Anambra State, Onyeali-Ikpe is passionate about women in leadership. During the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s 2022 International Women’s Day Celebration with the theme, Breaking the Ice, Onyeali-Ikpe encouraged women to constantly break boundaries in their careers.
Mosunmola Abudu
Mo Abudu is among the women who have distinguished herself and risen above gender stereotypes in the media industry.
She is a media mogul and former human resource management consultant.
She is the Chief Executive Officer of Ebony Life Tv and was recognised by Forbes Africa as the first African woman to own a Pan-Africa Tv channel. The Hollywood Reporter rated her as one of the “25 Most Powerful Women in Global Television.”
Born in Hammersmith, West London, Abudu moved to Nigeria when she was seven years old to live with her grandparents and returned to England at the age of 11.
She attended the Ridgeway School, MidKent College, and West Kent College, all in the United Kingdom. She has a Master’s degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Westminster in London.
In 1987, she started her career in human resources at the Atlas Recruitment Consultancy Firm, United Kingdom. She later returned to Nigeria where she managed the Human Resources and Administration division of ExxonMobil. Afterwards, she started her HR firm, Vic Lawrence & Associate in 2000.
Abudu began her media career with education entertainment on Inspire Africa where she had her talk show, Moments with Mo. In 2013, she went on to create her media platform, EbonyLife Tv.
EbonyLife has different franchises including a luxury entertainment resort, EbonyLife Place and the EbonyLife Creative Academy.
On DSTV, EbonyLife Tv is said to be the first global black entertainment and lifestyle network. In 2014, Abudu went into filmmaking. She produced several blockbusters including, ‘The Wedding Party’, ‘Chief Daddy’, ‘The Royal Hibiscus Hotel’ and ‘Your Excellency. She also collaboratively produced Òlòtūré, a feature film that premiered on Netflix as a Netflix Original in October
Her works have not gone unnoticed as she was honoured with a Doctor of Humane Letters from Babcock University in 2014. Also in 2018, she was honoured with another doctorate degree from the University of Westminster, London, for her contributions to the broadcasting industry in Nigeria.
Abudu has collaborated with other top international media companies such as Sony Pictures Television, AMC Networks, Netflix, BBC Studios, and others. She is currently a member of the British Psychological Society with qualifications in occupational and personality testing.
Among the place she has spoken at and shared her knowledge include the Wharton School of Business, Cambridge University Judge School of Business, Oxford University, and Harvard University.
Over the years, she has been a recipient of numerous awards and international recognition. She has been recognised by Forbes as Africa’s Most Successful Woman.
She was named on the Power List 2018, an annual list of the UK’s top 100 most influential people of African and Caribbean heritage, and she was awarded the MIPTV’s 2019 Médailles d’Honneur, in Cannes, France, making her the first African to be a recipient of the reputable award.
