Olusola Owonikoko selected as 2022 Obama Foundation scholar

Olusola Owonikoko, the executive director of Stanforte Edge and founder of Project Enable Africa, has been selected as one of the scholars of the 2022/23 Obama Foundation cohorts.

The foundation made the announcement in a statement released on Tuesday.

Valerie Jarrett, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Obama Foundation, said the program aims to empower emerging leaders with a proven commitment to service with the tools they need to make their efforts more effective and impactful upon their return home.

“The Obama Scholars program provides students with the unique opportunity to give and gain insight into the work that fellow young leaders are driving in their communities while speaking to the intersectionality of their efforts through collaboration,” the CEO said.

“We are eager to welcome the new cohort of Scholars to the foundation family–a network of changemakers tirelessly working for a more equitable future.”

Owonikoko works at the intersection of inclusion, business and technology. His work at Project Enable Africa is bridging the gap between the demand and supply of talents with disabilities in the formal and informal sectors towards equitable access to economic opportunities.

His organization has provided training and support services to over 250 organizations to develop inclusive policies, practices, and programs, and trained over 5,000 young persons with disabilities in 8years.

Through his work, Owonikoko is promoting disability diversity, equity, and inclusion in workplaces and legislations to enable people with disabilities to fully participate in employment and civic life.

Now in its fifth cohort, the Obama scholars, made up of 30 emerging leaders from around the world, will study at either Columbia University or the University of Chicago for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Since its inception in 2018, the program has served 125 young leaders from 55 countries.