Ayisat Agbaje-Okunade on Ethical Leadership, Stronger Institutions, and Nigeria’s Future

Ayisat Agbaje-Okunade has carried one question through her entire career: what becomes possible when capable people are given the right environment, exposure, and support? That question has guided her from community development work in London to the Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship, to advising governors in Kaduna and Lagos, and to her 2023 appointment by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu as Executive Secretary of the Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy, one of Lagos State’s most ambitious investments in leadership development and public service excellence.

It is the same question driving her today as the Academy celebrates the graduation of its third cohort, inducts a new one, and launches the Leader Room, a monthly webinar series designed to make honest, practical conversations about leadership more accessible to young Nigerians.

Agbaje-Okunade is a public sector leader, institutional builder, and youth development advocate whose work sits at the intersection of governance, leadership development, and social impact. She is a Kashim Ibrahim Fellow, a Harvard-certified professional in government, and a University of Cambridge-certified expert in circular economy and sustainability strategies. She founded the AA Initiative, a nonprofit that has impacted over 5,000 vulnerable Nigerians. Her work has been recognised by the EKO 100 Aspire Women Award, nominated for the Future Awards, and acknowledged by Equality Now for her research on gender equality and public service. She has also received the National Leadership Conference 2026 Award for Excellence in Public Service Leadership.

What defines her most is not the recognition, but the conviction behind every room she has entered and every institution she has touched: that leadership is not about the position you occupy. It is about the systems you strengthen, the people you develop, and the opportunities you create for others to succeed.

Roots of a Public Service Career

At her core, Agbaje-Okunade describes herself as someone who believes deeply in the power of people and in the responsibility that comes with being given an opportunity to serve. Her journey has been shaped by a desire to contribute meaningfully to Nigeria’s development, particularly by creating opportunities for young people to participate, learn, lead, and become part of the solution.

She has always been interested in what becomes possible when capable people receive the right environment, exposure, and support. Over time, she came to understand that leadership is not simply about the position you occupy. It is about the systems you strengthen, the people you develop, and the opportunities you create for others to succeed.

Coming Home to Nigeria

Returning to Nigeria was, for Agbaje-Okunade, ultimately about purpose, but she also describes it as a spiritual decision. There was a deep sense that her journey could not be separated from where she comes from, her culture, her heritage, and the people who shaped her. She had the opportunity to build a comfortable and successful career abroad, but she knew there was something deeply meaningful about returning home and contributing to the country that had given her so much.

For her, it was not simply about coming back to Nigeria. It was about reconnecting with a part of herself and understanding that her heritage carries a responsibility to contribute to the society she is part of.

Nigeria also taught her that wanting to make a difference and actually making a difference are two very different things. You have to be willing to understand the context, work within the realities of the system, and remain committed even when progress is slower than you would like. Coming home made her sense of responsibility much stronger. She realised she was not simply there to have a successful career, but to contribute to building something that will outlive her individual role, to create opportunities, strengthen institutions, and leave something meaningful for the generation coming after her.

Building Leaders, Not Just Being One

Agbaje-Okunade became increasingly convinced that young people and human capital development infrastructure cannot be treated as an afterthought. She often says that young people make up nearly half of Nigeria’s population, but they represent 100% of the country’s future. If Nigeria is serious about its future, she argues, it must be equally serious about how it prepares, equips, and empowers the people who will inherit the responsibility of leading it.

She notes that while people often talk about the need for better leaders, there is not always enough investment in deliberately preparing people for leadership. We cannot wait until someone occupies a position before teaching them how to lead effectively and ethically. Leadership development has to begin much earlier and be intentional.

Leadership, in her view, requires competence, character, exposure, critical thinking, and an understanding of how institutions and systems work. It also requires the ability to work with people, solve problems, take responsibility, and make decisions that are bigger than one’s personal interests. That is what led her to focus on human capital development, particularly leadership development, rather than simply seeking to be recognised as a leader herself.

She believes leadership is most powerful when it is reproduced. For her, the question is not just how many people she can lead, but how many people she can equip to lead others. She wants to build people who can recreate systems, transfer knowledge, teach others, and prepare the next generation to lead better than we did.

The real measure of leadership, she says, is not how many people know your name or how prominent your position is. It is how many people are better equipped, more capable, and more confident because they encountered your leadership. That is why she sees leadership development as much bigger than producing people who can speak well, win positions, or occupy important offices. It is about developing people who can think critically, serve ethically, understand systems, collaborate across differences, solve problems, and take responsibility for the communities and institutions they are part of. It is also about creating a culture where leadership is not concentrated in a few individuals but becomes a shared capacity within society.

The Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy

The Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy was created from a simple belief: if we want better leadership outcomes, we have to intentionally develop better people and better leaders. The Academy is designed to give young Nigerians more than theoretical knowledge. It provides practical exposure to leadership, places participants within government ministries, agencies, and institutions, and allows them to understand how policies, programmes, and public institutions actually work.

Beyond the technical exposure, the Academy is interested in a shift in mindset. It wants young people to understand that leadership should never be tied to a title. You do not have to be called a Director, Commissioner, CEO, or hold any particular office before you can make a difference. Leadership is ultimately about responsibility, initiative, and your willingness to contribute to solving the problems around you.

What changes in a young person who goes through the Academy is often their understanding of themselves and their responsibility to society. They begin to see public service differently. They become more aware of how institutions work, how decisions are made, and how they can contribute meaningfully within those systems. More importantly, they begin to see themselves not simply as beneficiaries of society, but as contributors to it. They move from asking, “What can I get?” to asking, “What problem can I help solve?”

Agbaje-Okunade says the Academy is not particularly concerned with the titles its young people will eventually hold. Titles are temporary. What matters is the kind of citizens they become and the value they are able to create wherever they find themselves. Her hope is that every young person who comes through the Academy leaves with greater competence, confidence, exposure, and a stronger sense of responsibility, understanding that they have a role to play in shaping their communities, institutions, and country.

The Leader Room: Honest Conversations About Leadership

Agbaje-Okunade launched the Leader Room, a monthly webinar series that is part of the Academy’s growing ecosystem, because she was tired of seeing conversations about leadership reduced to titles, personalities, and positions, while the actual work of leadership was often discussed at a very surface level. While there are many seminars, conferences, and speaking engagements, she felt there was a need for something more intentional and structured—a space where young people could continuously learn, ask questions, engage with experienced leaders, and have conversations that are both practical and relatable.

The world young people are navigating today is complex. The social and political environment can create a great deal of uncertainty and, sometimes, anxiety about the future. She believes one way to help young people navigate that uncertainty is by giving them access to knowledge, context, and honest conversations with people who have experienced and understand these spaces.

There is so much more to leadership than who has been appointed, who has won an election, or who occupies a particular office. She wanted to create a space for honest conversations about what leadership actually requires—the decisions, the failures, the values, the difficult lessons, the realities of navigating institutions, and the responsibility that comes with influence.

The Leader Room is intended to become that space. She wants it to evolve beyond a monthly webinar into a learning ecosystem where leadership is explored continuously and from different perspectives. A place where young people can learn not just from the successes of leaders, but also from their failures, their difficult decisions, and the lessons they have gathered along the way. She wants to bring together people across different sectors and generations—public servants, policymakers, entrepreneurs, professionals, academics, community leaders, and other changemakers—to share knowledge and experiences that young people can learn from and apply.

Most importantly, she wants the Leader Room to make leadership feel accessible. You should not have to wait until you have a title, an appointment, or a certain level of influence before you begin to think of yourself as someone who can contribute. Ultimately, she wants every young person who participates to leave with greater clarity, better questions, and a stronger understanding of how they can navigate the world around them and contribute meaningfully to it. Because leadership should not just be something we talk about. It should be something we learn, practise, and continuously improve.

Why Experiential Exposure Matters

The Academy places young leaders inside government ministries, agencies, and institutions, not just in classrooms. Agbaje-Okunade explains that this matters because leadership is ultimately practical. You can teach someone about policy in a classroom, but there is something fundamentally different about watching a policy move from an idea to implementation. You begin to understand the complexity of decision-making, stakeholder management, bureaucracy, resource constraints, and the realities that come with serving people.

Experiential exposure also helps young people understand that institutions are made up of people, processes, and systems, and that improving those systems requires patience, competence, and collaboration. It gives them context. It also allows them to see themselves differently. A young person who once thought government was something distant suddenly realises, “I can contribute here. I can solve problems here. I can be part of this.” That shift in perspective can be transformational.

Lessons From Her Own Journey

Reflecting on what her journey has taught her about herself, Agbaje-Okunade says she is more resilient, more adaptable, and more purpose-driven than she initially thought. She has learnt that purpose does not always come with a clear roadmap. Sometimes, you have to take the next step with faith, remain open to learning, and allow the journey to shape you along the way.

She has also learnt that she is deeply fulfilled by creating opportunities for other people. Some of the most meaningful moments in her career have not necessarily been the positions she has held or the programmes she has led, but seeing someone gain confidence, discover their capacity, or access an opportunity because she chose to create a pathway for them. That has taught her something important about herself: she is a builder. She is drawn to building people, building systems, and building opportunities that can outlive her immediate involvement.

The journey has also taught her that leadership requires humility. You will not always have all the answers, and you will not always get everything right. What matters is your willingness to learn, to listen, to adapt, and to keep showing up. Perhaps most importantly, she has learnt that she does not want her life to be measured simply by what she achieves for herself. She wants it to be measured by what becomes possible for other people because she was there.

Creating Systems That Keep Women in Public Service

Nigeria keeps producing brilliant young women who want to serve, and then loses them to systems that were not built to keep them, Agbaje-Okunade observes. She argues that we need to move beyond simply encouraging women to participate and begin creating systems that make their participation sustainable. Women need access to mentorship, networks, leadership opportunities, institutional support, and spaces where their voices are taken seriously. We also need to recognise that women should not constantly have to prove that they belong in rooms where decisions are being made.

For her, this is also about being intentional about gender balance. When building teams, programmes, and leadership pipelines, we have to consciously create opportunities for both men and women to participate and lead. Gender balance should not be something we achieve by chance; it should be part of how we design institutions and opportunities from the beginning.

Personally, she believes strongly in creating pathways for women to gain the exposure, experience, and confidence they need to participate meaningfully. Through the work she leads, she tries to create opportunities for young people, particularly young women, to learn, engage with institutions, and see leadership as something that is accessible to them.

She also believes representation matters. When a young woman sees another woman leading, making decisions, building institutions, and contributing meaningfully to society, it expands her understanding of what is possible for her. It tells her that there is a place for her at the table and that she does not have to wait for permission to aspire. But beyond representation, we need to build systems that ensure women can remain at the table. That means creating environments where their contributions are valued, where they have access to opportunities for advancement, and where leadership is based on competence and capacity, while also recognising the structural barriers that can limit participation.

Ultimately, she wants us to move from simply telling young women that they can lead to actually creating the conditions that enable them to lead and thrive. Sometimes, the first step to changing a system is helping someone believe that they have a place within it. But the next step is making sure that the system is ready to receive them.

The AA Initiative and a Life of Service

Agbaje-Okunade started the AA Initiative when she was 18, and in many ways, it was through that experience that her understanding of impact, service, and leadership began to take shape. It taught her very early that you do not need to have a large organisation, a significant budget, or an official position before you can make a difference. Sometimes, all you need is the willingness to recognise a need and the courage to respond to it.

For her, service has never been confined to a job description. She believes strongly that learning to serve is learning to lead. When you learn to serve, you begin to understand people, their needs, and the responsibility that comes with having the ability to make a difference. That is why she often encourages young people not to wait until they have the perfect job, title, or platform before they begin contributing. You can start small. You can volunteer. You can give your time, your skills, your relationships, or simply your willingness to help. Impact does not always begin with an institution; sometimes, it begins with one person deciding to do something.

Titles and appointments are temporary. The responsibility to contribute to society is much bigger than any position you hold. The AA Initiative grew from that belief. Whenever she sees a need that she has the capacity to respond to, she believes she has a responsibility to do what she can. Over the years, the initiative has impacted over 5,000 vulnerable Nigerians, and while she is grateful for that number, she sees it less as a statistic and more as a reminder of what is possible when people choose to use their resources, skills, and relationships in service of others.

It has also shaped the kind of leader she has become. It taught her that leadership is not always about being in front. Sometimes, leadership is about showing up, listening, doing the work, and creating opportunities for someone else to move forward. Ultimately, she wants her leadership to be rooted in service. She wants to build institutions and programmes that create opportunities for others, but she also wants to retain the humility to remember where the journey began—with a willingness to serve. That, for her, is the essence of leadership: not what you can get from a position, but what you can give because you have been entrusted with one.

The National Leadership Conference 2026 Award

Receiving the National Leadership Conference 2026 Award for Excellence in Public Service Leadership was meaningful to Agbaje-Okunade, not because of the recognition itself, but because of what it represents. For her, public service has never been about seeking recognition. It has always been about the opportunity to contribute, to serve, and to create pathways for other people to grow. To have that work recognised was both humbling and deeply encouraging.

She also sees the award as recognition of a journey that started long before any of the positions she holds today. What makes it particularly meaningful is that it reinforces something she has always believed: leadership is ultimately about service and the impact you create through that service.

She receives the award with a great sense of responsibility. Recognition can be affirming, but it should never become the destination. If anything, it should challenge you to do more, to remain accountable to the values that brought you there, and to ensure that the work continues to create value beyond you.

As a woman in public service, she is especially conscious of what visibility can mean for the women and young people watching. She knows that sometimes seeing someone who looks like you occupying a space can be enough to make you believe that you belong there too. So, she does not take that visibility lightly. She accepts the award with gratitude, but also with the understanding that there is still much work to do. There are more young people to equip, more institutions to strengthen, and more opportunities to create.

Ultimately, she hopes the recognition serves as a reminder that public service is worthy of our ambition, our excellence, and our commitment. And she hopes it encourages more young women to see service not as a limitation on what they can achieve, but as one of the most meaningful ways they can use their abilities to create lasting change.

A Legacy of Possibility and Service

Beyond every appointment and every programme, Agbaje-Okunade wants her name to represent possibility, service, and the courage to build. She wants the next generation of Nigerian women to see her journey and understand that you can choose public service without losing your ambition, your individuality, or your vision for your life. You can enter difficult spaces and still remain grounded in your values. You can build institutions. You can create opportunities for others. You can lead with competence and compassion. And you can leave systems better than you found them.

More than anything, she wants young women to understand that public service is not about being seen; it is about being useful. It is about being willing to serve, to take responsibility, and to contribute to something bigger than yourself. She believes service is one of the most dignifying things a person can do. There is dignity in using your knowledge, your position, your resources, and your opportunities to make life better for someone else. And she wants young women to know that they do not have to wait for permission, a title, or a perfect system before they begin. They can start where they are, with what they have, and begin making a difference.

Ultimately, she does not want her legacy to be defined by the positions she held or the programmes she led. She wants it to be defined by the people she helped equip, the institutions she helped strengthen, and the lives that became better because she chose to serve. That, to her, is the real privilege of leadership: to be in a position to serve, and to leave behind a world that is a little better than the one you met.