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By Adewale Sanyaolu and Faheem Lawal
Former Chairman of First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Mrs Ibukun Awosika, has urged entrepreneurs and professionals to embrace leadership built on humility, respect and financial discipline.
She stated this at the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Team of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Region 59 economic empowerment seminar at the church’s regional headquarters in Magodo, Shangisha, Lagos on Saturday.
She said the future people desire is shaped by the decisions, relationships and knowledge they cultivate today.
She added that true leadership is about influence rather than authority.
“The future you have for tomorrow, you build by the things you do today,” she said.
She stressed that respect should not be reserved for people in positions of authority but extended to everyone, regardless of their social or economic status.
“You must build the habit and culture of treating every human being like they matter because they do. From the house help to the driver and neighbours, from the lowest person around you to the highest,” she said.
According to her, many people fail to appreciate the value of relationships until those they once overlooked rise to influential positions.
“The people you ignore today may become the people you struggle to reach tomorrow,” she added.
She also criticised the culture of unquestioning obedience in many Nigerian workplaces, arguing that organisations need leaders rather than bosses.
“Our patriarchal culture has created a system of bosses, not leaders. Even when we know a superior is wrong, many people lack the courage to speak up,” she said.
On business management, she emphasised that financial literacy is indispensable for entrepreneurs, warning against confusing revenue with profit.
“You must know how to determine what your real profit is as opposed to your revenue. A lot of people see revenue and think they are making money,” she said.
Earlier, the seminar coordinator, Pastor Kunle Eyitemi, said the programme was designed to equip participants with knowledge capable of transforming their personal and professional lives.
“Information leads to revolution and revolution leads to the restoration of destiny,” he said.
He expressed confidence that the ideas shared during the seminar would rekindle hope among participants.
Also speaking, Dr. Bayo Olugbemi, an investment banker and assistant pastor in charge of RCCG Region 59, challenged conventional notions of wealth creation, noting that not every property qualifies as an asset.
“A car is not necessarily an asset; it is a wasting asset unless it generates income. Likewise, a house can become a liability if it is built purely for status,” he said.
He encouraged participants to pursue sustainable wealth through consistent growth rather than sudden windfalls.
Delivering a presentation on opportunities in agriculture, Mr. Afioluwa Mogaji, popularly known as African Farmer Mogaji and Chief Executive Officer of X-Ray Farms Consulting and AF Marketing, highlighted Nigeria’s huge import bill for agricultural commodities.
According to him, Nigeria spends billions of Naira importing products that could be produced locally, including rams during the Eid-el-Kabir season and palm oil.
He described maize as yellow gold, noting its extensive use in food production, pharmaceuticals, toiletries, diapers, crayons and biodegradable products.
He estimated Nigeria’s annual maize demand at 23 million tonnes against local production of 18 million tonnes, leaving a five-million-tonne deficit valued at about N17.5 trillion.
While acknowledging security challenges, he argued that the situation is often exaggerated.
“Insecurity is bad, but for some of us working in the field, we know it is over-amplified,” he said.
On opportunities in real estate, Mr. Chukwudi Ubosi, Managing Partner of Ubosi Eleh & Co, described the sector as one of the country’s most important investment destinations after food.
He cautioned investors against expecting quick returns.
“Real estate is not a fast-money business. It has a long gestation period,” he said.
Ubosi also pointed to the low level of land documentation in Nigeria, noting that less than 10 percent of land has legal title, creating opportunities for professionals involved in land documentation and certificate of occupancy processing.
Speaking on business finance, Managing Director of SeedVest Ltd, Dr. Kehinde Oyeleke advised entrepreneurs to reduce dependence on bank loans by negotiating supplier credit and customer deposits.
“A lot of free credit can be obtained simply by talking to your suppliers,” he said.
He also warned against using short-term loans to finance long-term projects, stressing that financing costs should never exceed profit margins.
Meanwhile, media entrepreneur and host of The Morayo Show, Dr. Morayo Afolabi-Brown, encouraged participants to build platforms they own rather than relying solely on opportunities created by others.
She said one of her biggest career lessons was realising that she could build something for herself instead of creating value exclusively for someone else’s platform.
Afolabi-Brown urged entrepreneurs to focus on three pillars—visibility, voice and value.
“You cannot grow what people cannot find. Your voice is about clarity, not your accent, while your value must be intentional and well communicated,” she said.
She also underscored the importance of content ownership, describing it as a long-term wealth creation strategy.
“Your content is your currency and every material you gather is your real estate,” she said.
She urged participants to consistently make themselves and their businesses visible to the market.
