Omotola Odeyemi: A fit peg for the right hole

BY BABAJIDE FADOJU

One of the most deliberate yet worthy appointments by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the appointment of Omotola Odeyemi.

Fittingly appointed as the Postmaster-general of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the young, savvy and intelligent Odeyemi has been tasked with the duty to serve as a liaison between the federal government of Nigeria and members of the public on issues that relate to the postal service, new regulations and laws.

Armed with over 15 years experience and a strong track record of professional achievement in the public and private sectors in Nigeria and across Africa, Odeyemi joins a growing list of young and accomplished professionals and females whose hands are on deck to turn Nigeria around.

She has an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Morgan State University, Maryland and holds a Master’s degree in Systems Engineering from George Washington University, Washington DC.

Odeyemi’s experience in the technology sphere as well as fintech is not only commendable but has prepared her for the daunting task of the postmaster-general of Nigeria.

Some of her achievements that have shone like bright lights span implementing and regulating new technologies for the public good by anticipating and addressing complex governance and security issues; leveraging digital transformations to co-design innovative and inclusive public services; and managing digital transformation projects in government and industry.

In the private sector, she served as the head of government affairs at Binance, the world’s largest blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem in Sub-Saharan Africa, where she was at the forefront of crafting and shaping critical conversations around blockchain technology
and cryptocurrency with the governments on the continent.

Prior to her appointment at Binance, she worked at Uber Technologies as Head of Public Policy for West Africa where she collaborated with policymakers across Francophone and Anglophone West Africa, fostered lasting partnerships with political and community stakeholders, and supported efforts of major cities in Nigeria, Ghana, Cote d’Ivôire and Senegal to move towards smart mobility.

Unknown to many and quietly making impactful commitments, Odeyemi’s experience also includes working in the public sector. Her public sector career spans federal and state governments in Nigeria. In Lagos state, she was appointed by the Lagos state governor as the acting executive secretary of the Lagos State Environmental Trust Fund, a first-of-its-kind central endowment fund established by law in 2017 and as the senior special assistant to the Lagos state governor for the Public Utilities Monitoring and Assurance Unit (PUMAU).

Before this appointment, she served as the special assistant to the governor on global outreach and partnerships at the Office of Overseas Affairs & Investment (Lagos Global), the first sub-regional investment promotion agency in Nigeria.

At the federal level, Odeyemi was the project lead for the south-west region of Nigeria in the shared services office under the banking operations directorate of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). At the Bank, her team supported CBN’s policy thrust towards a cashless economy by executing the banking industry infrastructure transformation program whose initiatives included an industry-wide cash management infrastructure, payment systems transformation, IT infrastructure & services, IT standards and back-office office operations centralisation initiatives for the financial sector.