Ibukun Awosika Leadership Academy Conference in Dubai to Impact, Empower Women Globally

Over 400 c-suite delegates from across Africa and around the world are currently attending the maiden edition of the Ibukun Awosika Leadership Academy’s International Woman Leadership Conference taking place at the Hilton Dubai Al Habtoor City in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which is centred on impacting and empowering women around the world.

The conference, which is an Ibukun Awosika Leadership Academy flagship programme, is held in partnership with Dubai Tourism and Dubai Events with the theme: ‘Women in Leadership…Playing to Win’.

According to the organisers, the keynote speeches for March 30 were delivered by Nobel Peace Laureate and Liberian women’s rights advocate, Leymah Gbowee; and former CEO, Africa Regions at Standard Bank Group, Sola David-Borah.

A statement issued by the organisers noted that the wife of Nigerian vice president, Mr. Dolapo Osinbajo, delivered the goodwill message to kick off the conference on Wednesday morning in Dubai, where she said: “What you choose today will be the reality of your tomorrow.”

At the event, various speakers charged participants to build formidable legacies and emulate pace-setters who have shattered glass ceilings, overcome adversity, broken stereotypes, enabled empowerment, and created opportunities for all.

The conference’s diverse panel of speakers provided practical and transformative insights on topics such as ‘Playing to Win – Social Change Mindset’, ‘Playing to Win – Corporate Mindset’, ‘Value-Based Leadership – Your Defense’, and ‘Building Tribes’.

Other Speakers on the opening plenary included South African author and social entrepreneur, Wendy Luhabe; immediate-past Executive Secretary and CEO of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Yewande Sadiku;  former Minister of Communication Technology and the Honorary Chairperson of the global Alliance for Affordable Internet, Dr. Omobola Johnson; Company Secretary/Legal Adviser of Heritage Bank, Emi Ibisiki.

Delivering her welcome address, the Convener of the IWLC, Ibukun Awosika, who is a successful entrepreneur and renowned business leader herself, said the rationale behind the International Woman Leadership Conference is to impact women and empower them to be the best in all areas of life, adding that to take women to the top, a deliberate strategy needs to be deployed.

According to her, “Women have so much power but they have silos power, once you have silos power it is disconnected. You need to have a connected power so you can be the best of yourself and create a support system for other women.”

Speaking on the conference benefits, Awosika noted that delegates would learn how to develop winning strategies to secure their seats at the table, discover how to collaborate to win, overcome trauma and silence shame; rise above the imposter syndrome; mitigate unbeneficial financial surprises in retirement years and negotiate a fair contract that accurately reflects their worth.

Aside from the corporate world, there was a great representation from the government and the diplomatic corps. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo joined the conference live via an online telecast to deliver an inspiring goodwill message. There was also an insightful plenary on the importance of building tribes featuring women ambassadors of the Hellenic Republic-Nigerian Ambassador to Greece, Nimi Akinkuge; South African Ambassador to Greece, Beryl Rose Sisulu, and the Albanian Ambassador to Greece, Luela Hajdaraga.

The 3-day conference, which commenced with a networking cocktail reception on March 29, continues till March 31, 2022. To learn more about the International Woman Leadership Conference (IWLC), the speakers, and all the activities, visit www.tiwlc.com or follow on social media @theiwlc. Use #TIWLC2022 to see live updates and to join the conversation online.