replaced Isabel dos Santos as the richest woman of Africa,
and also is the richest black woman in the world. [2] She is
a business tycoon involved in the fashion, [3] oil and printing
industries. She is the group managing director of The Rose
of Sharon Group which consists of The Rose of Sharon
Prints & Promotions Limited and Digital Reality Prints
Limited and the executive vice-chairman of Famfa Oil
Limited. [4] Alakija is ranked by Forbes as the richest
woman in Nigeria with an estimated net worth of $2.5
billion [1] As of 2014, she is listed as the 96th most
powerful woman in the world by Forbes .[5]
Early life and education
Folorunsho was born in 1951 to the family of Chief L. A.
Ogbara in Ikorodu, Lagos State . At age seven, she traveled
to the United Kingdom to begin a four-year primary
education at Dinorben School for Girls in Hafodunos Hall in
Llangernyw, Wales . After returning to Nigeria, she attended
Muslim High School Sagamu Ogun State, Nigeria.
Afterwards, she returned abroad for her secretarial studies
at Pitman's Central College, London. She also studied
fashion design at the American College, London and the
Central School of Fashion. [6]
Career
Folorunsho started her career in 1974 as an executive
secretary at Sijuade Enterprises, Lagos, Nigeria. She moved
on to the former First National Bank of Chicago, now
FinBank now acquired by FCMB (First City Monument
Bank), [7] where she worked for some years before
establishing a tailoring company called Supreme Stitches. It
rose to prominence and fame within a few years, and as
Rose of Sharon House of Fashion, became a household
name. [8] As national president and lifelong trustee of the
Fashion Designers Association of Nigeria (FADAN), she left
an indelible mark, promoting Nigerian culture through
fashion and style. [3][9]
In May 1993, Folorunsho applied for the allocation of an oil
prospecting license (OPL). [10] The license to explore for oil
on a 617,000-acre block—now referred to as OPL 216—was
granted to Alakija's company, Famfa Limited. The block is
located approximately 220 miles south east of Lagos and 70
miles offshore of Nigeria in the Agbami Field of the central
Niger Delta. In September 1996, she entered into a joint
venture agreement with Star Deep Water Petroleum Limited
(a wholly owned subsidiary of Texaco) and appointed the
company as a technical adviser for the exploration of the
license, transferring 40 percent of her 100 percent stake to
Star Deep. [11][12] Subsequently, Star Deep sold off 8
percent of its stake in OPL 216 to Petrobras , a Brazilian
company.
As of 2014, she is listed as the 96th most powerful woman
in the world by Forbes. [5]
Philanthropic interests
Folorunsho has a foundation called the Rose of Sharon
Foundation that helps widows and orphans by empowering
them through scholarships and business grants. [13][14][15]
[16]
On 1 July 2013, the federal government of Nigeria
inaugurated the National Heritage Council and Endowment
for the Arts and appointed Alakija as vice-chairman of the
body. While inaugurating the council, Nigeria 's Minister of
Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Edem Duke, said
Nigeria had identified 100 new heritage sites, which "are
unique and uncommon assets that we intend to preserve
and promote." He charged the council, which is headed by
Igho Sanomi, to "ensure the protection and conservation of
places and objects of heritage significance and the
registration of such places and objects." [17]
Personal life
Folorunsho married a lawyer, Modupe Alakija in November
1976. They reside in Lagos, Nigeria with their four sons. [6]
Her nephew is the British-Nigerian, DJ Xclusive
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