Biography of Adedeji Adeleke; A Nigerian Billionaire and Father of Davido
Adedeji Tajudeen Adeleke; a Nigerian billionaire, business magnate and philanthropist was born on March 6, 1957, in Enugu to Late Chief Sen. Raji Ayoola Adeleke and Late Esther Nnena Adeleke (née Akparah). Although he lived briefly in the eastern region of Nigeria with his maternal grandmother, his primary school education took him to Lagos, the former capital city of Nigeria.
Adedeji Adeleke is also the CEO of Pacific Holdings Limited. He is the father of Adewale Adeleke, Davido, a Nigerian musician and Sharon Adeleke. He was married to Dr Vero Adeleke who died on 3 March 2003.
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Between 1965 and 1970, he was a pupil of Ansar-ud-Deen primary school, Surulere, Lagos. Upon completing primary school education in 1970, he was admitted into Seventh-Day Adventist Grammar School, Ede, Western Region (now Osun State), Nigeria. With a West African School Certificate (WASC) in 1975, Adedeji worked briefly at the Federal Ministry of Education until 1976 when he gained admission into Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA.
Beginning class in the Fall of 1976, Adedeji completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance in 1979. He enrolled for the Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) in Fall 1979 and completed in 1981. Between 1981 and 1983, he was enrolled for the doctoral degree at Pacific Columbia University, Mills Valley, California, where he bagged the PhD degree in International Business after successfully defending his thesis titled “Japan’s conflicting international trade behavior” in 1983.
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Learning about the dignity of labour, Adedeji returned to Nigeria and diligently served in the Nigeria National Youth Service Corps. It is worthy of note that Dr. Adeleke enrolled for a second doctoral degree in Business Administration (DBA) with the reputable University of Phoenix, Arizona in 2007. In 2010, he successfully defended his thesis titled “Electricity supply, efficiency and organizational growth and profitability in Lagos, Nigeria.”
Earlier in 1996, he established a not-for-profit Non-governmental organization called Springtime Development Foundation (SDF) to sponsor the poor and downtrodden citizens of Nigeria through higher education. To sustain his interest in human capacity development in Nigeria, he sought the Federal Government license for Adeleke University, Ede which was approved in March 2011. The Board of Trustees of the University appointed him as the pioneer Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council in 2011.
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Deji Adeleke has great experience in education – he is the Founder and President of Adeleke University, which is situated in Ede, Osun State. He is the CEO of Pacific Holdings Ltd Company, which specializes in finances and investments in different sectors of the Nigerian economy. It deals with steel production, energy, logistics, and warehousing. Apart from that, Deji Adeleke is involved in real estate as well as banking.
A Christian of the Seventh-Day Adventist faith and a widower, he is blessed with five children – two girls and three boys. His hobbies are playing long tennis, reading, writing, and traveling.
Dr. Deji Adeleke, Chairman as he is fondly called is a humble, highly intellectual, honest, and dedicated man of great repute.
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