He is today
one of the most recognisable names on the African continent; sitting atop what
is arguably one of the continent’s largest business empires, comprising oil and
gas, telecoms, aviation, banking and real estate.
In each of
these sectors, Dr. Adenuga has moulded his companies into major players. In the
oil and gas sector, for instance, Conoil
Plc is known as one of the largest and most profitable oil marketing
companies in Nigeria. Conoil
Producing Limited, the upstream
arm of the conglomerate, made history by becoming the first Nigerian company to
strike oil and produce it in commercial quantity in 1991.
In banking, Equitorial Trust Bank (ETB) was one of
the few banks that effortlessly met the N25b capital requirement during the
2005 banking consolidation exercise without going to the stock market. It only
merged with Devcom Bank which was
also owned by Dr. Adenuga. Two years ago, ETB merged with Sterling Bank.
Direct
employment
Dr. Mike Adenuga
also has a multi-billion dollar investment in real estate. These companies
provide direct employment to thousands of workers and millions of others
indirectly.
In telecoms,
Globacom is known as one of the most
innovative networks in Africa and has operations in Nigeria, Ghana, Benin
Republic, Senegal, Gambia and Cote d’Ivoire. Dr. Adenuga made history in 2010
when his telecoms firm commissioned its international submarine cable, Glo 1.
The cable
has provided a solution to the long-standing problem of insufficient internet bandwidth
for Africa and has led to a much faster and robust connectivity for voice, data
and video.
He is
credited with the telecom revolution in Nigeria as Globacom flagged off
operations with Per Second Billing and crashing of SIM cost to as low as N100
when competitors had consistently told Nigerians it was impossible. This feat
led to the company being the second largest operator in the country today, in
terms of number of subscribers connected.The network also pioneered such
revolutionary products as Blackberry, mobile internet and mobile banking
services in Nigeria.
He was born
in 1953, in the ancient city of Ibadan, into the family of Chief Mike Adenuga
Snr. and Madam Oyindamola Adenuga, a successful trader and Yeyeoba of
Ijebuland. He attended the famous Ibadan
Grammar School, in Oyo State, Nigeria, for his secondary education and
studied Business Administration at Northwestern State University, Alva
Oklahoma, in the United States. He also earned a Masters’ degree at Pace University, New York, majoring in Business Administration with emphasis on
Marketing.
In
recognition of his business accomplishments and outstanding contributions to
the growth of the country, he was last year awarded the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON). He also holds an
honorary doctorate degree conferred on him by Ogun State University.
Biggest
supporter of football
During
Nigeria’ 50th anniversary celebration, Dr. Adenuga was one of the 50
pre-eminent Nigerians who were conferred with the Special Golden Jubilee
Independence Anniversary Awards by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
A
self-effacing philanthropist, Dr. Adenuga Jr., through his company, Globacom,
is the biggest supporter of football in Africa and has raised the profile of
football in Nigeria and Ghana with the sponsorship of the Premier Leagues and
national football teams of the two countries. The company has so far spent over
N9 billion in cash and kind on Nigerian football.
It has also
transformed the annual CAF Awards and made it the most glamorous sports event
on the continent. CAF has awarded Dr. Adenuga the Pillar of Football in Africa
for his strong support for African Football at both national and continental
levels.
Business
accomplishments
Dr.
Adenuga has won numerous other awards in recognition of his personal and
business accomplishments among which is the African Telecoms Entrepreneur of
the year for his courageous and rapid investment in the telecoms sector. In early
2010, he was voted Nigeria’s Most Outstanding Business Personality in the last
50 years.
In 2009, Dr.
Adenuga won the Silverbird Man of the Year Award, polling over 75% of the votes
cast to edge out other eminent personalities nominated for the award. Yet, in
spite of his towering achievements, Dr Mike Adenuga Jr, remains an epitome of
modesty. (Vanguard)
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