RefinedNG’s Hall of Fame
Hello Refined Nigerians! This week, we featured fantastic wins across the creative fields of sports, advocacy, entertainment, literature, film, arts, and education. This week’s Hall of Fame celebrates astounding achievers that have made us proud as Nigerians. We are thrilled by their accomplishments and we continue to celebrate them.
See below for more details:
On BBC’s list of 100 most inspiring and influential women from around the world for 2021 are two Nigerians – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi, an author; Oluyemi Adetiba-Orija, a criminal lawyer; and others such as Malala Yousafzai, the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate; Fiamē Naomi Mata’afa, Samoa’s first female prime minister; and Professor Heidi J Larson, who heads The Vaccine Confidence Project.
Okonjo Iweala, Mo Abudu and President Hassan Make Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women List
On Forbes’ 18th annual list of powerful women are the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Founder of EbonyLife Place, Mo Abudu; and President of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Funke Opeke’s MainOne Cable Company Acquired by Us-Based Equinix at $320 Million Valuation
Funke Opeke is the founder and CEO of MainOne Cable Company, a leading provider of innovative telecom services and network solutions for businesses in West Africa. MainOne is the owner of three data centres in Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Ghana, while a fourth is under construction.
The company which previously raised funding to lay a sub-sea cable stretching from Portugal to West Africa is now being acquired by Equinix ( a US digital infrastructure company) at a valuation of $320 million, one of the continent’s biggest tech deals this year. This deal allows the U.S. data-centre investor to tap into a regional boom.
Wizkid Received Best International Act & Best African Music Act at the 2021 MOBO Awards
Wizkid has won two awards: Best African Music Act and Best International Act at the 2021 MOBO Awards. The UK awards honour achievements in “music of black origin”, including hip hop, grime, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and African music.
Veteran actress Joke Silva will play the role of Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti in the forthcoming biopic – “Funmilayo: the Lioness of Lisabi.”