#ELC: Shaping The Leadership Narrative Across Africa

By Sunday Osanyintuyi

Certainly, Africa continues to face serious developmental challenges. Such challenges as dependency, corruption, underdeveloped infrastructure, poor leadership and backward governance, etc are some of the impediments to Africa’s quest for sustainable and equitable development. In the past, attempts have been made by foreigners to tackle these challenges but these can only be solved by Africans.

Prominent among these issues in Africa is our leadership deficiency. Most Africa countries are blessed with natural resources but bedeviled with retrogressive leaders. Leadership is not a position, but ability to take people on a journey to a better end. It is the ability to influence others to achieve a set goal.  Nigeria and Africa continent have not been blessed with leaders who are developmental in thinking, focused on the people and committed to lifting the people out of poverty.

As a strong believer in Africa and a leadership consultant globally, Dr Sam Adeyemi has been consistent not only trumpeting these issues about Africa but setting clear path to recovery and solutions to its challenges.  As early as 2002, he established Daystar Leadership Academy (DLA), a leadership training platform committed to raising topnotch leaders. This academy has graduated over 35,000 students since inception. Many Africa leaders including business executives from the continent have also benefited from the academy.

Under his inspiring leadership, Daystar Christian Centre birthed the Excellence in Leadership Conference (ELC) over a decade ago to provide tailored made solutions to Nigeria’s leadership issues and the continent in general. “Occupying a position doesn’t make you a leader but it presents you an opportunity to lead. You will only offer what you know” Dr Sam Adeyemi.

Among speakers and attendees of the conference in the past is the current Vice President of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, Minister of Power, Housing and Works, Babatunde Raji Fasola (SAN) and former World Bank Executive, Dr Oby Ezekwezili.

WHY ELC & ITS IMPACTS

Excellence Leadership Conference (ELC) is an annual leadership development conference that brings together Africa’s finest, thoughtful leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators and professionals to share leadership lessons and ideas that will transform the current state of affairs on the continent, particularly Nigeria.

Since inception 2007, the conference has held annually with proven results. Over time, its impacts have not only been visible on the participants, it has increased the capacity of emerging leaders in Nigeria getting set to assume roles and positively shape the future of the continent. Among other impacts, Excellence in Leadership Conference (ELC) is serving as a good platform to network with forward-thinking industries relevant people. The quality of our association inevitably determines how far we go in life. Every participant annually, gets a chance to network with the most talented and dynamic industry leaders during the two-day conference.

This conference is not just a one-way speech event as it avails participants the opportunity to interact, discuss common problems and share stories of difficult challenges with the speakers, while getting lasting solutions. At the conference, participants will discover new trends and skills. Provided what is being learnt is put to good use, participants get to stay ahead of the pack in their industries by mastering the latest trends and skills in their industries as will be shared by our seasoned speakers.

DAYSTAR INTERVENTION AND AFRICA FUTURE

Under the leadership of the senior pastors, Sam & Nike Adeyemi, Daystar Christian Centre is intervening on very critical sectors of Nigeria ranging from education, family, career and to the most important, leadership. Among the comity of Pentecostal churches in Nigeria, Daystar Christian Centre is known for her strong leadership teachings laced with the message of love for humanity.

The leadership of the church believes the impacts of every church should be felt in the leadership roles it plays in the society.  This leadership role is what informed setting up the Excellence in Leadership Conference annually to chart the path of progress for Africa and to save its future.  It is amazing to note that there is no single leadership school in Nigeria that trains people on leadership and its rudiments. People who found themselves in leadership positions are not prepared for the roles, hence their abysmal and woeful performances. This conference covers that lacuna.

To this end, this year’s Excellence in Leadership Conference will hold in Lagos between November 1^st – 2^nd with a promise of paradigm shift for all attendees. The array of speakers this year includes Kola Olugbodi, Africa’s leading background check expert. He is also the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Association of African Professional Background Screeners.

He became an Entrepreneur immediately he left North South Bank (NSB) in 1995. He was the CEO of Josh Cyrus, a Human Resource and Outsourcing Organization. After which he became the inaugural CEO of Background Check International (BCI), pioneers of the background check industry in Nigeria and West Africa in 2004. Godman Akinlabi, a   lead Pastor of The Elevation Church (TEC), Lagos Nigeria, where he has a God-given mandate to ‘’Make Greatness Common.’’ He is also the author of several critically acclaimed books including the 7 Commandments of Foolishness, Don’t Waste Your Pain, Sexuality: Get a Grip For Singles and Sexuality: Get a Grip For Couples, Moving from Fear to Faith, I Am Possible, Solid and many others.

Others are Akinwande Ademosu, the Chief Executive of Credit Direct Ltd, a member of FCMB Group Plc, the business he started for the group in 2006.

He has over 20 years’ experience in both Retail and Consumer finance in some top financial institutions in Nigeria. His interest has been in business and management strategy, credit analysis, sales, marketing and organizational leadership as well as Ty Bello, one of Nigeria’s most recognized artists.  She came to public attention in the early 2000s as a member of the music group, Kush.  She has also built a reputation as one of Nigeria’s foremost photographers and a member of the talented photography collective depth of Field.

The conference conveners, Sam & Nike Adeyemi would be on ground to receive all participants both local and international. With Excellence in Leadership Conference (ELC), the future of Africa leadership is assured.