Ubadigbo Okonkwo
FOUNDER
Ubadigbo Okonkwo is an Economist, Banker and MSME Development Expert. Ubadigbo Okonkwo has a diverse and multicultural educational experience. He obtained the Northern Region Certificate of Primary Education from the Ibo Union Primary School in Kano, Nigeria and his secondary school diplomas from the Calday Grange Grammar School, West Kirby, Wirral, England and Hendon County Grammar School, London. He studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), from where he graduated with a B.Sc. (Econ) degree in 1969. He undertook his post-graduate training at the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, obtaining the M.A. (Econ) degree in 1973. He is a member of the Executive Program in International Management at the Columbia University Graduate school of Business.
Ubadigbo Okonkwo commenced his professional career in the academia, serving as Assistant Professor of Economics and Research Associate at the Virginia State University, Petersburg, Virginia, USA. In 1974, he joined the Young Professionals Program (YPP) at the International Monetary Fund, Washington, D.C. (IMF) and later served as Economist in the Fiscal Affairs Department of the Fund. In 1981, he returned to Nigeria and commenced a career in development banking. He held Executive Management positions in several Nigerian development finance institutions (DFIs), including the Nigerian Industrial Development Bank as General Manager, the Nigerian Bank for Commerce and Industry as CEO/Sole Administrator and the Bank of Industry as Executive Director. Since 2005, he has served as Managing Consultant, VSL Consulting Limited, Abuja, which provide training and business development services to MSMEs.
Ubadigbo Okonkwo is a passionate advocate of private sector development and youth empowerment. In 2017, he founded the Link Africa Diaspora Initiative (LADI), a non- governmental organization (NGO) aimed at harnessing the contributions of international migrants and diasporans for African development. In 2019, he established the LADI Business Development Services Ltd (LADI-BDS) with a mission to empower entrepreneurs and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through the provision of training programs and business development services.
His volunteering activities include serving as President, London School of Economics Alumni Association of Nigeria (LAAN) since 2005 and recently as Regional Liaison Officer for Africa of the LSE Alumni Association. He has served as Vice President, World Association of SMEs (WASME), New Delhi, India. He also served as Chairman, Steering Committee for the Establishment of the Nigerian association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME) and Member, Board of Trustees of NASME. He was recently appointed by the Federal Government of Nigeria as Member representing NASME, on the Steering Committee of the MSME Survival Fund.