Humanitarian Service Award
Armed with a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from the University of Lagos, Chief Habeeb Olalekan Okunola was determined to make a positive impact on society. He later moved to the United Kingdom, where he worked with Grovetex Consulting as a Business Development Officer, and rose through the ranks.
Upon his return to Nigeria, he began to showcase his entrepreneurial skills by establishing Habtob Global Ventures in 2009. With the courage of an ambitious young entrepreneur, he set up TILT Construction Company in 2012, which is now the flagship of TILT Group.
Over time, TILT Group and its subsidiaries have made giant strides in the private and public sectors of the construction industry, delivering critical assets, including the construction of 330 KVA transmission lines, the renovation and remodeling of Kaduna State House of Assembly, construction of state-of-the-art Visual Arts Centre in Ilorin, Kwara State, remediation of the hydrocarbon-impacted sites in Ogoniland, among other projects.
In philanthropy, Habeeb Okunola has done exceedingly well with a commitment to doing good for humanity. Through the Habeeb Okunola Foundation, which he founded, he has impacted the lives of Nigerians in their thousands.
He has given poor women in rural areas access to an extensive range of affordable financial opportunities to grow their businesses and earn a living. This empowers them to rise above the threshold of poverty and afford the basic needs of life.
In order to encourage school children whose parents cannot afford some basic needs, Habeeb Okunola Foundation equips no fewer than 3,000 students by donating school uniforms, bags, shoes and writing materials to different primary and secondary schools (JSS 1-3) in poor communities across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria every academic session. So far, no fewer than 10,000 books have been donated in 50 communities across seven states.
The Foundation provides free medical screening and treatment to IDP camps and communities that are affected by incessant flooding. This is in addition to the special care it renders for the wellbeing of the girl-child as well as women through the critical periods of pregnancy and childbirth.
Habeeb Okunola, a recipient of two national honours – Member of the Order of the Niger (MON) and Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR), is a winner of The Sun Humanitarian Service Award.