FOLA ADEOLA

Fola Adeola is the chairman of Fate Foundation (www.fatefoundation.org/), a non-governmental organization in Nigeria which is dedicated to encouraging the creation of wealth through entrepreneurship, using an innovative mix of training, mentoring, loan support and consulting to support young entrepreneurs in Nigeria. To date, it has serviced over 5000 young people. He founded the organization in 2000, following a one year sabbatical at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies in Kuru, Jos, Nigeria, during which he carried out research on economic development and job creation policies.

Fola Adeola is also a Director of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc., (http://www.gtbplc.com/) a commercial bank he founded in 1990 and ran as Managing Director/CEO from inception until March 2003. Guaranty Trust Bank has grown to become one of Nigeria’s largest and most profitable companies. In addition, as part of its regional expansion strategy, it has opened branches in The Gambia and Sierra Leone. The bank became listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1996.

He is currently Chairman of the Pension Reform Committee (which has recently produced a bill for a new pension system for Nigeria), and a member of both the National and Awards Committee, and the Solid Minerals Committee (all of which are federally constituted committees). He is also the Chairman of Ogun State Development Trust Fund Committee. Fola chaired the Lagos State Disaster Relief Committee which was set following the January 27, 2002 bomb blast tragedy in Lagos. He was a council member, and is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria; member of the institute of Directors of Nigeria. He serves as a member of the Global Advisory Committee on Philanthropy at the World Economic Forum. In 1992, Fola attended HRH The Duke of Edinburgh Commonwealth Study Conference in the UK. In 2001, Fola was invited to join twenty-four other business leaders for Aspen Institute ISIB Annual Business Leaders Dialogue in Aspen, Colorado.

In 2002, Fola retired from Guaranty trust Bank, Plc. after twelve years as its founding Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer. He took up a fellowship at the Washington D.C. based Corporation for Enterprise Development where he is pursuing research on pensions reform, entrepreneurship, and financial services provisioning for poverty reduction. As part of this effort, he is currently traveling to various parts of the world meeting with practitioners and policymakers that are creatively extending financial services to low-income clients profitably.

Fola obtained a Diploma in Accounting from Yaba College of Technology in1975 and became a Chartered Accountant in 1980 following his training with Deloitte, Haskins and Sells and D.O. Dafinone & Company (Chartered Accountants). He has received professional development training at notable institutions worldwide including, Harvard Business School, INSEAD. And the International Institute for Management Development.

Born in January 1954, Fola is married to Hajara, and has four children.
Fola Adeola is currently the running mate to MALLAM NUHU RIBADU of ACN in the coming general election and the presidential polls 2011.