Newly elected student leaders of the University of Lagos have completed a four day intensive leadership training organised by the Olusegun Obasanjo Leadership Institute in Ogun State.
The programme, themed 'Leadership for the Future', combined plenary sessions, interactive engagements, emotional intelligence laboratories, constitutional literacy workshops, financial management training, and leadership reflections.
Professor Elvis Otobo, the Media Consultant of the institute, described the training as deeply engaging and intellectually enriching, designed to shape a new generation of responsible, visionary, and values driven leaders.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the founder of the institute, delivered the keynote lecture on the role, objectives, and values of leadership, presenting what he described as the 55 objectives of a true leader.
"Chief Obasanjo delivered a profound lecture on the role, objectives and values of leadership, imparting lessons that captivated and engaged the entire audience. He presented his renowned 55 objectives of a true leader, highlighting attributes such as achiever, actualiser, analyser, arranger, and communicator. The former president also listed decision maker, encourager, enquirer, friend, and giver as essential leadership values," Otobo stated.
The former president also emphasised 15 core values of good leadership, including integrity, honesty, dependability, patriotism, orderliness, tolerance, trustworthiness, and peace, among others.
The training featured facilitators from academia, civil society, mental health, finance, law, business leadership, and transformational leadership development, with their sessions complementing the former president's keynote address and providing practical, real world tools for effective leadership.
Otobo noted that facilitators enriched the training with insights spanning governance, activism, emotional intelligence, financial stewardship, constitutional literacy, communication, and global leadership trends.
Senior officials from UNILAG also attended the programme, including Vice Chancellor Professor Folasade Ogunsola and Dean of Student Affairs Division Professor Musa Obalola.
In her closing remarks, Professor Ogunsola thanked the former president for his "legendary and monumental" contribution to leadership development in Nigeria and the continent, commending the OOLI Board of Directors for championing the cause of leadership development in the country.
Lady Anne Welsh, CEO and founder of Painless Universal, United Kingdom, delivered an inspiring session on resilience in goal pursuit and leadership, emphasising determination, self belief, and the power of personal adversity as a catalyst for transformational leadership.
The programme concluded with participants visiting the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library Museum, the zoo, and Olumo Rock to enrich their cultural and historical understanding of leadership.
