Igazeuma Okoroba

not notable enough October 13 2026 09:52 20261013095219 Igazeuma Okoroba (also known as Igazeuma Adikema Okoroba) is a Nigerian sociologist, sustainability leader, writer and social-impact storyteller. She is Group Head of Sustainability at Dangote Cement and serves on the Global Sustainability Standards Board of the Global Reporting Initiative. Quotes “I grew up as a second child in a family of seven with two academic parents. Living in the staff quarters of a University Campus meant we led a fairly conservative life. What stood out in my childhood though was the role my father played in supporting his five girls to become strong intelligent women. Before my parents had the boys they raised us to be confident citizens that would take on the challenges regardless of gender. My father made us comfortable doing the dominantly male chores like changing a flat car tyre, harvesting plantain and sometimes lifting fairly heavy items. I learned early in life that I could bring about social change wherever I was because my father exemplified this in the way he championed development projects in our community. I attribute my passion for society and inclination to activism to those early years of experiencing rural life whenever we had the chance to visit our village during the long holidays. The inequality between the rural and urban dwellers was something I believed I would grow up to tackle someday.” Businessday “In all the places I have been blessed to work, my career has been hinged on service to society. Throughout my 19-year journey in media, civil society, oil and gas and telecoms infrastructure, my roles exposed me to observing development needs. Whether I conducted research, implemented an advocacy campaign or an SME venture, the ability to scale solutions to development problems relied on models created externally, which were adapted or wholly adopted in Nigeria. When I observed the short-lived impact of such externally driven development models, it is not difficult to see why countries like ours made only slow progress. What was lacking was home-grown solutions to problems. Dangote Group, however, offered me a unique opportunity to address directly Africa’s need for homegrown solutions to its development problems.” Businessday “I accepted my current role in the pursuit of my career purpose to transform the industry through sustainability practice. Before this, I was looking out for sectors with opportunities to accelerate local economic development phenomenally. I had worked in corporate governance and project management but I wanted an environment where my ideas for social innovation could thrive. A significant part of my career in resource-intensive industries had focused on managing the company’s license to operate. It was my duty to design and implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives. The challenge however was that CSR was often treated as philanthropy rather than as a strategy which would benefit businesses and communities.” Businessday “As a Development Sociologist, empirical testing is at the heart of many projects I undertake, even personal ones. You can say that I am a stereotype-averse person as I tend to challenge the status quo to learn more and find answers. I am a lifelong learner. This is really why I create time to do research. I have participated in social development research in at least 96 Communities in Nigeria.” Businessday External links Category:Nigerian women Category:Nigerian sociologists Category:Sustainability Category:Living people