According to Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president of Nigeria, his new Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute (OOLI) is more than just an institution; it is a movement with the goal of reclaiming Africa’s leadership story.
At the official inauguration of the Governing Board at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) in Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State, Obasanjo made this statement.
His Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, made the former president’s statement available to newsmen on Wednesday. In it, he urged the board members to stay true to the belief that the people of Africa are the continent’s most valuable resource, and that with the correct leadership and teamwork, anything is possible.
Obasanjo, who has spent the better part of seven decades studying leadership development, recalled that the Institute was born out of his research and praised the contributions of President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim of Mauritius, President John Mahama of Ghana, Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa, and Macky Sall of Senegal for their work in fostering leadership development across Africa.
He made the point that the institute would help leaders become more capable of handling the challenges of the future, even though a lack of leadership has frequently been the deciding factor in whether societies advance or remain stuck in a state of conflict.
“Today marks the inauguration of the Governing Board of the Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute (OOLI), but it also officially launches the operational phase of a vision—a vision that has been shaped by my experiences and convictions spanning over seven decades,” the statement adds.
I have been a part of Africa’s developmental journey’s intricate web for over seventy years. Africa has a lot of natural and human resources, but we haven’t been able to harness them to our full potential in terms of sustainable development, peace, and prosperity. This is mostly due to leadership gaps at different levels.
“One gap has persisted through all the ups and downs: the lack of leadership that is effective, ethical, transformative, inspiring, and visionary. The difference between peace and conflict, prosperity and poverty, and development and stagnation has often been this leadership divide.
One of my sincere reactions to this issue was to establish the Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute (OOLI). The idea behind OOLI came from a desire to create a space where future leaders can be developed and nurtured so that they can face the challenges of the present with confidence and competence.
“Our mission is clear: to equip leaders at all levels with the skills, capability, understanding, technology, values, orientation and vision necessary to transform our nations individually and our continent collectively.
“The OOLI will be a hybrid, though initially headed by a former Military General, it will not be a military organisation but borrow what is good from the military. It is blessed by NUC as an affiliate of Bellstech, but not an entirely academic university. It will copy the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in some ways but not entirely like NIPSS. It will be unique in every way” the statement added.