Lagos: The Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute (OOLI) in Ogun, in partnership with the University of Lagos, has concluded a four-day intensive student leadership training. The training, held from Feb. 19 to Feb. 22, was themed ‘Leadership for the Future’ and was organized for newly elected student leaders of the university.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, this initiative was highlighted in a statement by Prof. Elvis Otobo, Media Consultant of the institute, issued to newsmen in Lagos. The program aimed to shape a new generation of responsible, visionary, and values-driven leaders. The training began with a keynote address by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the founder of OOLI, who delivered a lecture on the role, objectives, and values of leadership.
Obasanjo shared his renowned 55 objectives of a true leader, emphasizing attributes such as achiever, actualiser, analyser, arranger, and communicator. He also listed decision-maker, encourager, enquirer, friend, and giver as essential leadership values. Further, Obasanjo stressed 15 core values of good leadership, including integrity, honesty, dependability, patriotism, and orderliness, while also highlighting tolerance, trustworthiness, and peace.
The training featured facilitators from academia, civil society, mental health, finance, law, business leadership, and transformational leadership development. Their sessions provided practical tools for effective leadership, complementing the ex-president’s keynote address. The program included plenary sessions, interactive engagements, emotional intelligence laboratories, constitutional literacy workshops, financial management training, and leadership reflections.
The Vice Chancellor of UNILAG, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, and the Dean of Student Affairs Division, Prof. Musa Obalola, among other senior officials, supported the event. In her closing remarks, Prof. Ogunsola expressed appreciation to Obasanjo for his contribution to leadership development in Nigeria and Africa. She also commended the OOLI Board of Directors for their efforts in promoting leadership development in the country.
One of the facilitators, Lady Anne Welsh, CEO and Founder of Painless Universal, delivered an inspiring session on resilience in goal pursuit and leadership, emphasizing determination, self-belief, and personal adversity as catalysts for transformational leadership.