By Funsho Arogundade
Araba Oluwafemi Sanni is a man of quiet yet profound influence. He wears many hats as a civil engineer, management professional and media entrepreneur. Sanni’s transition from civil engineering background to becoming one of the country’s top business moguls reflects a life shaped by resilience, calculated risk-taking, and strong leadership.
The Chairman of Stefolga Group —a multi-functional holding company with interests in oil and gas, engineering and real estate— has an inquisitive mind with a deep desire to build. His natural curiosity about how things work, how roads are built and how cities grow generally propelled him into civil engineering as his first gig. His desire to create value and solve problems inspired his journey from engineering into business and media.
Sanni has never been the loudest person in the room, but always believed in doing the work —quietly but diligently. With a remarkable 38-year career as an established engineer and 15 years of leading Stefolga as a thriving conglomerate, life kept opening new doors for him and he kept walking through them albeit with a plan and the God factor.
Sanni’s legacy extends beyond his career accomplishments. His leadership has inspired countless individuals, and his contributions have made a lasting impact on the world and his enduring influence on future generations. To him, young Nigerians are full of energy, ideas, and creativity. He believes so much in them as he sees the Nigerian youth as being bold, creative, and resilient. Thus they need mentorship, structure, and opportunities. Riding on this reality boom, Sanni has always made sure that in everything he builds —in construction, telecoms or media—there’s space for young minds to grow and shine. His recent project was the new urban radio station, FlowFM 92.7 Ilorin, where he has created a culture that allows the youths to thrive and take initiative, nurture their talents, and allow ideas flow freely —literally and figuratively.
He has also established a football club that is also grooming young talents in the country for world exposure. His team known as Araba Football Club—a team playing in the Nigerian Nationwide League One— have had breakthroughs for some talents who played for the club with some European scouts picking some of his players for tryouts in Europe.