In the colorful tapestry of the cultural and professional life in Nigeria today, Olajumoke Adenowo is a painter of out-of-the-ordinary brightness, having captured its unique place in the imagination and admiration of many. Olajumoke Adenowo is one such person; her path from the serene academic corridors of Obafemi Awolowo University to the high-paced dynamism of Lagos and beyond is, to say the least, inspirational.
CNN dubbed her ‘Africa’s Starchitect,’ but Adenowo’s story represents an ode to passion, resilience, and commitment akin to no other toward a quest for the highest excellence. Take this journey with us, be one of the many, and look back on the life and achievements of Olajumoke Adenowo.
Life and Education
Olajumoke Olufunmilola Adenowo was born in a highly erudite family on October 16, 1968, in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Her two parents were distinguished professors who exposed her to an early lifestyle rudimentarily soaked and influenced by activities on the Obafemi Awolowo University campus, where they resided between 1962 and 1972.
Trips to Paris and the sparkling, trippingly-on-the-tongue Palais de Versailles boosted her passion for architecture. She was enrolled at Obafemi Awolowo University long before all others at the tender age of 14. At 19, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture with Honours, brandishing the award for Best Student Design. She attended the same University, where she had the distinction of a Master’s Degree in Architecture in 1991.
That is not all; she has headed for various training programs ever after: Lagos Business School’s Chief Executive Programme at IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Barcelona, Spain, Yale School of Management, and Harvard Kennedy School, the summary of which has left her with a clear academic profile.
Architecture Career of Adenowo
Following College, Adenowo began as an Assistant Architect with Trowy Coker Associates to kick-start her career. She ended up with the same firm before relocating to Lagos and getting employment with Femi Majekodunmi Associates. She was with Femi Majekodunmi until she became part and parcel of the Federal Ministry of Finance Abuja.
In 1994, she founded her AD Consulting Architecture and Interior Design firm. Since then, AD Consulting has completed over 114 projects, from institutional buildings and office complexes to private residences and healthcare facilities. Some of their more well-known clients are big multinational ones like Coca-Cola, L’Oreal, Access Bank, and Guaranty Trust Bank.
Adenowo’s unique design philosophy is what she calls NeoHeritage Architecture, and she is not afraid to mix internationalist modernism with native elements as the innovator of the style. This very philosophy takes her above the rest as an architect in what she reveres in the hereditary forms she shows while representing them.
Adenowo’s Professional Affiliation and Media Recognition
Adenowo’s work has been acclaimed by most international newspapers, magazines, and associations influenced by the philosophy of architecture. She is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Architects and holds an Associate Membership of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. Her leadership in the space is marked by membership in other world-class organizations, including, but not limited to, the African Leadership Network, the Vital Voices Lead Fellowship, the Global Philanthropy Forum, and the African Philanthropy Forum.
Adenowo’s work has found expression in the public media space, where she has been conferred the title “Africa’s Starchitect” by CNN. Description by The Guardian (Nigeria) as the”face of Architecture in Nigeria,” the Royal Institute of British Architects named Adenowo in 2018 as one of the encouraging ladies bringing the discipline of architecture to the limelight these days. Academically, Adenowo has distinguished herself.
Practicing a niche for which she has a strong passion, she is a visiting professor at Technische Universität München (TUM) in Germany, and she was awarded Laureate and Guest Scientist.
Adenowo, as a Public Speaker
Adenowo is widely recognized as a Thought Leader and, therefore, has various invitations to speak on different platforms ranging from Architecture to Power Arts to Women’s Leadership and Motivation. Among some of them are International Platforms such as the MacKenzie Executive Leadership platform, which prevails in the Harvard Business School, SOLVE at MIT, and the Global Women Forum.
Since then, her syndicated radio show and podcast, “Voice of Change,” has taken over the airwaves and, with them, continues to charm a broad audience and confirm her status as a voice of leadership and empowerment.
Philanthropy and Social Impact
In 1999, Adenowo founded the Awesome Treasures Foundation (ATF), a non-governmental organization-based organization registered with the United Nations and the United States Congress. The foundation aims to raise transformational leaders for peace and advancement, focusing mainly on women and young people. Operating on six continents of the world through her volunteers, ATF has set an ambitious target of raising 1000 leaders by 2030.
In 2020, she was named the Forbes Woman Africa Entrepreneur of the Year and listed in the Forbes Africa 50 Most Powerful Women and 50 Over 50 Most Powerful Women in Africa lists. In 2023, the United States Congress honored her influence in leadership and philanthropy.
Other recognition includes the New African Woman in Business Award, Africa’s Most Inspiring Business Woman by La Batisseurs Des Economie De L’Afrique, and into the Hall of Fame of people of Black ancestry at the University of West England, Bristol.
Olajumoke Adenowo’s work is an inspiration and nourishment for minds in their hundreds of thousands across Africa and beyond as it seals the legacy of “Educate Africa: Nurturing Minds for the 21st Century.” Undoubtedly, Adenowo’s legacy will serve as a beacon of excellence and empowerment for generations as she continues breaking new ground.