The tradition of “The Platform” continues….
We were of the conviction that as Nigeria moved from a military era and became a democratic nation – with a free market economy as the real goal of the political change – there would have to be a deliberate effort sustaining the new socio-economic and political thrust. It was therefore necessary to renew the minds of the people and awaken them to the new possibilities that were emerging.
We firmly believed that nations, which were more advanced and developed, channelled this kind of re-awakening primarily through an educated populace. This form of education was a distinct type of knowledge that organized their people and had its origins in the Judeo/Christian culture.
This education went beyond the knowledge that was acquired through the formal sector (i.e. schools), even though formal learning was a part of it.
It was the kind of knowledge that empowered people to learn from history, to interpret what was going on in their environment and utilize the resources around them to enhance their well being. It showed them how to build systems and structures to make their society better, unleashing the entrepreneurial spirits of people that made the private sector the engine of growth.
Through this knowledge, individuals suddenly realized that they had the power to change things and surmount the challenges in their environment. They learned how to “capture thoughts” and turn these ideas into tangible corporations. They learned also, to build institutions that would preserve and protect their societies and ensure their leaders thought of themselves more as public servants, rather than lords. By this knowledge, an effective and efficient work ethic was developed and by the same token, a way of handling the wealth that the work had created.
The focus of the Platform is therefore educational and we intend from this edition to propel it to greater heights, creating additional channels to express our intent.
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| Prof. Yemi Osinbajo |
Professor Yemi Osinbajo is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Senior Partner in the Law firm of SimmonsCooper Partners. He is also the Ethics Adviser to the Advisory Board of the African Development Bank and is a non-executive Director of Citibank. Prof. Osinbajo is Co-founder & Board Member Convention on Business Integrity and the Justice Research Institute Ltd
Dr. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili is the former Vice President World
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| Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili |
Bank. She joined the World Bank Group from her most recent position as Minister of Education for the Nigerian Government since June 2006, where she led a comprehensive reform program within the education sector including, Restructuring and refocusing the ministry for the attainment of ‘Education for All’ (EFA) targets and Millennium Development Goals (MDG)
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| Simon Kolawole |
Jared Cohen is the director of Google Ideas, an Adjunct Senior
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| Jared Cohen |
Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the co-author (along with Google executive chairman and former CEO Eric Schmidt) of the New York Times best-selling The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business. He was named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People in 2013.
Mrs. Ibukun Awosika is the founder of The Chair Centre Ltd, a
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| Mrs Ibukun Awosika |
market leader in the office furniture and banking security systems industries. Mrs. Awosika is a fellow of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. She is also an alumna of the Chief Executive Programme of Lagos Business School as well as the Global Executive MBA Programme of the prestigious IESE Business School, Barcelona, Spain.
Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, a Pastor, an Accountant and a writer obtained a combined honours degree in Economics and Accounting in 1982 from the University of Hull,
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| Pastor Ituah Ighodalo |
England, and attended a Business Certification Course at Harvard Business School in 2011. Pastor Ituah sits on the board of several charitable organizations and NGOs and is the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of the TIMELESS Media Group.
Here is a sneak preview of what to expect….
