Fifty years after losing her mother at just 20 months old, development professional Dr. Funmi Akinyele is launching a national support initiative, “Diamonds in the Rough” (DIR), to provide mentorship, guidance, and support for vulnerable Nigerian children navigating life without maternal care.
​The initiative will be officially unveiled on Thursday, June 25, 2026, at the Dilay Event Centre in Old Bodija, Ibadan, during a hybrid memorial service marking the 50th anniversary of the passing of her mother, Olufunke Olayinka Akinyele, who died in 1976 at age 28.
Targeting children and youth aged 0 to 19, DIR aims to turn a five-decade personal tragedy into a vital resource for thousands of motherless children across Nigeria.
​”I have been asking, for 50 years, what you do for a child who loses their mother,” Dr. Akinyele said ahead of the launch. “DIR is the beginning of an answer. We do not have a building yet or a staff. What we have is a conviction.”
​The hybrid event, expected to draw global participants from Nigeria, the UK, Canada, and the US, will also feature the launch of Funke at 50, a commemorative magazine.
The publication is the result of months of research by Dr. Akinyele to discover the mother she never knew, compiling 27 testimonies from classmates and relatives who described Olufunke as an exceptionally intelligent, graceful woman—”a Queen all the way.”
​Olufunke Akinyele, daughter of the late Ibadan chief James Ladejo Ogunsola, MBE, was a University of Ibadan French graduate who later studied in France and worked as an Admissions Officer in the US while pursuing a Master’s degree.
She passed away in the US, leaving behind her husband, Professor Isaac Olaolu Akinyele, and two toddlers, Wale and Funmi.
Professor Akinyele, who later became a renowned Professor of Human Nutrition at the University of Ibadan, raised the children in Ibadan. He founded Food Basket Foundation International (FBFI).
The memorial will also spotlight the Ogunsola Award, established in 2025 by Olufunke’s sisters to support students of Queens School, Ibadan.
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