Life at Babban Gona

TEMI OKEOWO

Head of Technology General Counsel & Lead, Partnership

“You will become the expert at solving the unsolvable.“
My name is Temiloluwa Okeowo, General Counsel & Lead, Partnerships at Babban Gona, and I want to share with you how I build a legacy of impact, my way. By way of background, Babban Gona is a social enterprise focused on increasing the profitability and productivity of smallholder farmers in Nigeria by atleast two times the national average. We do this by providing a holistic package of inputs and services to support farmers across the entire crop-cycle. Babban Gona seeks to address urgent social issues such as extreme poverty, unemployment, and the associated risks of violence and instability.
Our goal is to become the Earth’s highest impact company by creating opportunities for dignified and fulfilling work for rural youth, who are at risk of being recruited to conduct violent acts, thereby disrupting the downward spiral of poverty and violence. Talk about impact!
In my role at Babban Gona, amongst other things, I am tasked with securing the financing that we use to support farmers with their input packages. Why is this financing important? It’s simple. Without adequate funding, we cannot provide farmers with the essential resources they need to increase productivity and profitability. From seeds and fertilisers to equipment, technology and training, these input packages are the lifeblood of agricultural success. I am not only facilitating transactions but also contributing to the transformation of agricultural landscapes and communities.
Working at Babban Gona has been transformative, allowing me to build a legacy of impact, my way. Every day, I witness the tangible impact of our work on the lives of farmers and their communities as we pave the way for economic empowerment and social upliftment. Visiting our our operations in Northern Nigeria I am able to connect with the communities that we are impacting directly and meet farmers like Grace. Grace was unfortunately made a widow very young in her life, alone with four young children, struggling to make ends meet. Incredibly, when she received her first payment as a Babban Gona farmer, with more money than she had ever held in her hand at one time, her first action was to use that money to pay it forward, by adopting another child. This is the legacy, Babban Gona allows you to create.
We are also working to promote financial inclusion amongst our farmers in a bid to assist them become more independent and sustainable. This involves us assisting them register legal entities, setting up bank accounts and tax verification so that they will be able to access financing directly from the formal lending system. But our journey doesn’t end here. Our mission at Babban Gona is to support 50 million farmers like Grace by 2043, and to do this, we need your help. If you share our passion for making a difference and are interested in contributing to our cause, I encourage you to explore opportunities to work with us.
To express your interest in joining Babban Gona and contributing to our impactful work, please send your CV to [email protected]. Together, let’s build a legacy of impact, your way.
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Frank Altman

Board Director

Frank Altman is the founder and first CEO of Community Reinvestment Fund, USA. As CRF’s founder, Altman pioneered the development of a secondary market for community and economic development loans. Since 1988, under Altman’s leadership and in partnership with a network of more than 200 local community partners, CRF has funded more than $3.5 billion in loans to job-creating small businesses, non-profits, charter schools and affordable housing projects in 50 states plus the District of Columbia and more than 1,000 communities across the United States.
 
Altman helped design the creation of the federal New Markets Tax Credit to encourage private investment in low-income communities and is a founding member and first President of the New Markets Tax Credit Coalition. He is also a member of the Center for Community Development Investors at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and an advisor to the Social Innovation Initiative at Brown University and the Center for Impact Finance at the University of New Hampshire. His work has been featured in Inc. Magazine, where he was named one of its Entrepreneurs of the Year, and he received Fast Company’s Social Capitalist award.
 
Altman has been awarded the Economic Development Innovation Award from GIS Planning Inc. and fDi Intelligence for his contribution to the field of economic development. Altman is a Senior Fellow at Ashoka, the world-wide network of social entrepreneurs and a founding member of Kindred.
 
More recently, in September 2023, Altman authored a book published by Forbes and titled “A New Capitalism: Creating A Just Economy That Works For All.”It is available in physical and online book stores and on Audible.

Michael Jainzik

Board Director

Michael Jainzik works as an independent consultant and brings his extensive expertise in the areas of agricultural finance, international investments, risk management and corporate governance. He is currently based in Rome, Italy.
 
From 2001 to 2011, Michael worked as an investment professional at KfW Development Bank, focusing on international debt financing and equity investments in investment funds and banking institutions, mainly in the areas of agricultural finance and microfinance. From 2011 to 2015 he worked as Director of KfW’s office in Windhoek. In this role, he helped manage and develop KfW’s EUR 250 million portfolio in Namibia. From 2015 to 2017, he took on the position of Head of Corporate Development at Access Microfinance Holding, where he was responsible for structuring and leading a merger process between Access Holding and another company.
 
Prior to joining Babban Gona, Michael served as a non-executive director in Access Bank Azerbaijan (2006-2011, Chairman), Belarusian Bank for Small Business (2008-2011), Rural Impulse Fund II Luxemburg (2010-2011) and AB Bank Zambia (2011-2016).
 
Michael studied economics and management at the Universities of Lüneburg and Witten/Herdecke (Germany) and at ETEA – Universidad Loyola in Córdoba (Spain) and holds a Master’s degree in economics and management.

Bello Maccido

Board Member

 Mr. Maccido is an accomplished Corporate and Investment banker with over 31 years post graduate experience. He had at different times served on the Boards of FBN Holdings Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Plc and Legacy Pension Manager Limited and is currently the Chairman, FBN Merchant Bank Ltd. Mr. Maccido is a Fellow of both the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers and the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria. Mr. Maccido holds a Law Degree (LL.B) and a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, USA respectively. He is a Barrister at Law (BL) of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and an Alumnus of the Executive Business Programs of the Harvard Business School and the IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Muhammad Sanusi, CON

Chairman of the Board

His Highness Muhammad Sanusi was appointed the 10th Governor and Chairman of the Board, Central Bank of Nigeria on 3 June 2009. He earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Economics from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and also has a first-class degree in Sharia and Islamic Studies from the African International University, Khartoum, Sudan.
 
From working as a lecturer at the Ahmadu Bello University, where he taught Economics, he joined the banking industry in 1985, and by January 2009 had risen to General Manager and Group Managing Director of First Bank of Nigeria PLC, Nigeria’s oldest and biggest bank. Mallam Sanusi has been conferred with a National Award of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and has also been awarded the “Global Central Bank Governor for 2010” by The Banker Magazine, a publication of the Financial Times.
 
He was also voted Central Bank Governor of the Year for Sub-Saharan Africa 2009 (an award he won again in 2010) by Emerging Markets, a publication of Euromoney Institutional Investors. In 2011, Mr. Sanusi was named Forbes Africa Person of the Year for 2011. He was also listed by TIME Magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Kola Masha (Managing Director) Prior to Babban Gona, Kola was a Managing Director and CEO of a major subsidiary in the Notore.

Lola Masha

Executive Director

 

Before joining Babban Gona, Lola was the Director for Trust and Safety at OLX Group, working across 30+ OLX markets to ensure that buyers and sellers can transact safely and securely on the platform. Prior to her global role at OLX, Lola was the Country Manager for OLX in Nigeria where she was responsible for driving all elements of the business including Business Development, Product Localization, Marketing and other relevant functions. OLX Group is one of the world’s leading online classifieds players. Through its brands including OLX, Avito, dubizzle and letgo, OLX Group is the home of online classifieds in high-growth markets.

These platforms are the leading destination for buying and selling used goods and services in 30 countries, and the #1 mobile app in its category in more than 20 markets. Globally ~ 11 million items are exchanged through its platforms every single month.

Prior to joining OLX, Lola spent 4 years at Google leading various Product Partnerships efforts across EMEA and Emerging Markets. Lola was one of the earliest Googlers in Sub-Saharan Africa when the technology company began its operations in the region.

Lola shaped the regional strategy, executed on several core initiatives and led business development efforts with key SSA partners including the telcos, OEMs, digital content providers and local entrepreneurs. Lola brings significant leadership experience in business development, entrepreneurship, operational transformation and product development across several industries including technology and financial services.

In addition to Africa, Lola has substantial international working experience in North America, Europe, and Asia. She also worked in the Chicago office of McKinsey & Company, where she spent time advising senior executives on extensive strategic management topics. Lola holds a Doctorate degree in Engineering from the UniversiAnnual Report 2019/2020 ty of California, Berkeley and a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the University of Virginia. She is happily married with two kids.

Kola Masha

Managing Director

 Prior to Babban Gona, Kola was a Managing Director and CEO of a major subsidiary in the Notore Group, one of Nigeria’s leading agricultural conglomerates, where he raised US$24 Million to develop an integrated agricultural trading, production and processing business.

Furthermore, he led the development and execution of Notore’s commercial strategy across West and Central Africa, preparing the company to sell one million tons of fertilizer and establish a modern seed business.

He led the effort to raise $130 million in equity and the restructuring of $360 Million in debt. Kola brings significant leadership experience in venture capital, corporate finance, business development, marketing and operations, across four continents with multiple global companies, including GE, Notore and Abiomed. In addition, Kola brings extensive public sector experience as Senior Advisor to the Nigerian Minister of Agriculture.

In recognition for his leadership in driving positive change on the African Continent, he has received several global awards including the prestigious Eisenhower Fellowship, a leading leadership institute led by General Collin Powell and appointed to the Board of the African Enterprise Challenge Fund, a $250 Million fund that awards grants and repayable grants to private sector companies to support innovative business ideas in agriculture, agribusiness, renewable energy, adaptation to climate change and access to information and financial services. Kola holds an MBA (Honors) from Harvard and a Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Kola Masha

 

Prior to Babban Gona, Kola was a Managing Director and CEO of a major subsidiary in the Notore Group, one of Nigeria’s leading agricultural conglomerates, where he raised US$24 Million to develop an integrated agricultural trading, production and processing business.

Furthermore, he led the development and execution of Notore’s commercial strategy across West and Central Africa, preparing the company to sell one million tons of fertilizer and establish a modern seed business.

He led the effort to raise $130 million in equity and the restructuring of $360 Million in debt. Kola brings significant leadership experience in venture capital, corporate finance, business development, marketing and operations, across four continents with multiple global companies, including GE, Notore and Abiomed. In addition, Kola brings extensive public sector experience as Senior Advisor to the Nigerian Minister of Agriculture.

In recognition for his leadership in driving positive change on the African Continent, he has received several global awards including the prestigious Eisenhower Fellowship, a leading leadership institute led by General Collin Powell and appointed to the Board of the African Enterprise Challenge Fund, a $250 Million fund that awards grants and repayable grants to private sector companies to support innovative business ideas in agriculture, agribusiness, renewable energy, adaptation to climate change and access to information and financial services. Kola holds an MBA (Honors) from Harvard and a Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.