Kemi Ajumobi 
Adebayo Ogunlesi
Founding Partner, Chairman & CEO, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP)
If you are a Nigerian, I am sure, just like me, when you hear his name and all he has achieved, just like several other great Nigerian men around the world that you are proud are excelling impressively, you are proud of him too. On ‘We’ve Got Men’ this week, we are honoured Adebayo Ogunlesi, Founding Partner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), is gracing our page.
Watching his recent interview and hearing him say “Nigeria is now a place that is exciting to invest in” is a beautiful thing to hear. I mean, from someone who has invested in energy by building LNG plants in Texas and Australia, “why not Nigeria?” anyone would naturally ask. To make it even more mind-boggling, his company has ports in Cotonou and Lome, so close by, and none in Nigeria? I guess you understand why it was encouraging to hear him say he is now coming to do the same in Nigeria. Whatever the reasons were for not doing so earlier, it is good to know he has changed his mind. Adebayo is looking into investing in gas. According to him, “There is gas in Nigeria, Nigeria is a huge gas province. Mr President was very encouraging of international investments in Nigeria.” He stated.
Beyond gas, Adebayo is also looking into investing in the aviation sector, where he quickly corrected the opinion of people saying he personally bought Gatwick Airport. “People describe me as the guy who bought Gatwick Airport, I didn’t personally buy Gatwick airport, but the aviation sector in Nigeria is also an area of interest to us.”
Well, he asked for forgiveness from Mr. President for not investing back home and he said “The president forgave me, but he said you have to bring port investment to Nigeria.” If the President forgave him, who are we not to? We forgive you too Mr. Adebayo, let the investments begin!
Aside from all mentioned, his company is also looking at investing in renewables in Nigeria. He concludes that the land is green and opportunities abound. “There are lots of investment opportunities in Nigeria; you just have to be serious about making the right moves.”
Adebayo Ogunlesi is a man whose ways oozes a veneer of affluence and class. As the enigmatic Founding Partner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a leading infrastructure investor that specialises in investing in, owning and operating some of the largest and most complex assets across the energy, transport, digital infrastructure, water and waste management, Adebayo pilots his business with the grace of excellence he is known for, backed by a commendable drapery of successes.
He is also a Senior Managing Director of BlackRock and a member of the firm’s Global Executive Committee (GEC) and its Board of Directors. He holds a B.A. (First Class Honors) in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford University, a J.D. (magna cum laude) from Harvard Law School and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Ogunlesi was an attorney with the New York law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore. He also served as a Law Clerk to the Honourable Thurgood Marshall, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He has been a Lecturer at the Harvard and Yale Law Schools and the Yale School of Management where he taught courses on transnational investment projects.
He was previously the Lead Director of Goldman Sachs Group. He is a Member of the Dean’s Advisory Boards of the Harvard Law and Business Schools and the Harvard University Global Advisory Council.