Chairman, Southern Nigeria Council of Traditional Rulers(SNCTR) and Ooni of Ife, Arole Oduduwa Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi,CFR, Ojaja II, has visited the Nigerian President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu at his Queen’s Drive, Ikoyi, Lagos on Sunday for the first time since Tinubu was elected in 2023 to lead Nigeria as president.
During the meeting which held privately, Ooni Ogunwusi who is also the Natural Father and Leader of the entire Oduduwa race worldwide and Mr President had important discussions touching on the peace and tranquility in the South West part of Nigeria. The discussions at the meeting also enabled the Ooni to brief Mr President on his recent visit to the Republic of Kazakhstan invited by the country’s president Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev where he had participated as the only Africa’s Royal Delegate at the and gave a speech during the Astana International Forum on the necessity for Kazakhstan to form strategic partnerships with Nigeria and Africa at large.
“I just came back from a strategic trip to Kazakhstan on the special invitation of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan where I went to showcase business and economic potentials of Africa, Nigeria in particular. I in my speech, I asked the business community in Kazakhstan come and invest in our country Nigeria and that of the entire Africa.
So, I came here today to brief Mr President on my recent trip to Kazakhstan. The good thing is that Tinubu is opening Nigeria to foreign investors that were hitherto so scared and unwilling to do business with Nigeria and I think we traditional rulers should capitalize on this opportunity by going outside Nigeria to attract foreign direct investments to our country complementing efforts of Mr President who has made lots of audacious progressive economic policies which has now opened our economy to so many developed countries around the world who were hitherto so scared and unwilling to invest in Nigeria. But by virtue of what he has done in terms of policies and reforms, he has opened up Nigeria to many countries to look the way Nigeria for their investments.”
The world is watching us, as a nation and we don’t need to leave everything to the government we traditional rulers should lead by example by working to complement government to give hope to our youth. Here is another testimony to the youth, so many companies are coming to Nigeria to open businesses which will create massive employment opportunities for the Nigerian youths. Kazakhstan is the largest economy in the Central Asia with very large land for farming, they have huge production for chocolate while Nigeria has cocoa raw materials for chocolate, it is a country between China and Russia and they are very similar to us in the areas of Natural resources, they have Oin and Gas, they manufacture Armoured vehicles and other war artillery equipments needed to combat our insecurity, very large land for farming to train and work with our youths not only in Yorubaland but also across Nigeria. So, I needed to come and brief Mr President because he is also being expected to visit Kazakhstan before September this year. The hope is actually real and I am so proud of our president for these reforms.”
The Ooni, it will be recalled, had sent his own delegation to Kazakhstan in early February 2025 to engage with investors, government officials, and business stakeholders with the goal of attracting investment to Nigeria. The delegation included his Director of Media and Public Affairs, Otunba Moses Olafare, the Executive Secretary of Nigeria – Kazakhstan Business Council, chief Kehinde vAdeniyi Akepe and the Honourary Consul of Kazakhstan to Nigeria, Mr Bruce Ayonote met with key figures including Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, business leaders, and representatives from various industries such as agriculture, mining, IT, and manufacturing. They explored opportunities for bilateral trade and cooperation, particularly through the Nigeria-Kazakhstan Business Council, which has Ooni Ogunwusi it’s chairman. This visit was part of broader efforts to strengthen economic ties following a meeting between Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev earlier in the UAE.
The Ooni’s 3 man delegation’s work paved the way for a 30-member delegation from Kazakhstan to Abuja in February this year to attend the Nigeria-Kazakhstan Business Council International Conference held at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja and hosted and funded by the Ooni of Ife was equally attended by some top Federal Government functionaries such as; Minister for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, Representative of the Central Bank Governor of Nigeria, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, Representatives of the Ministry of Trade and Investments and private sector stakeholders led by the MD/CEO of Keystone Bank,
Lady Ada Chukwudozie.
The Ooni led summit in Abuja aimed to strengthen economic collaboration between Nigeria and Kazakhstan, focusing on trade, investment, and food security during which Ooni Ogunwusi praised President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, highlighting improvements such as the closure of the gap between parallel and official exchange markets, which has created a more investor-friendly environment. During the summit in Abuja, leader of the delegation and Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alibek Kuantyrov, called for the establishment of a Nigerian embassy in Kazakhstan to facilitate trade. The event featured Nigerian government officials and business leaders, and followed a recent Nigerian delegation visit to Kazakhstan to explore investment opportunities. The summit marked a significant step in deepening bilateral economic ties between the two countries.
The Astana International Forum (AIF) is a major global platform for dialogue held annually in Astana, Kazakhstan, aimed at addressing pressing international challenges through cooperation and discussion among political, business, and academic leaders from around the world. Established in 2008.
This year’s edition was attended by investors, diplomats and leaders from across the globe including the Kazakhstan’s President, Mr Kassym-Jomart Tokayev who declared the opening session opened, the country’s Prime Minister, Mr Oljas Bektenov, President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkovaof the Republic of North Macedonia, President Paul Kagame of the Republic of Rwanda, the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, Former Secretary General of the United Nations(UN) Mr Ban Ki Moon, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, Dr. Qu Dongyu and the Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union,Thérèse Blanchet while the Ooni of Ife, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi,CFR, Ojaja II was specifically invited by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev as the only African Royal Delegate to speak on Africa.
Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi,CFR, Ojaja II, the Ooni of Ife is an astute international business magnate and strong promoter of Youth Development. He is the Natural Father of all the members of the Oduduwa race worldwide, Permanent Chairman, Osun State Council of Obas and Chiefs, Permanent Chairman, Southern Nigeria Council of Traditional Rulers(SNCTR), Co-chairman, National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria(NCTRN), owners of the OJAJA Park and Residences, Akure, Ondo State, OjajaMore shopping outlets in Akure, Ile-Ife, Lagos, Osogbo and other cities in Yorubaland, Inagbe Grand Resorts in Lagos and Ife Grand Resorts and Industrial Hub in Ile-Ife. He is the Chancellor, University of Nigeria, Nsuka(UNN) and Founder, OJAJA University located in Eyenkorin near Ilorin in Kwara state, Nigeria.
