Femi Otedola donates US$14mn to Save the Children Fund
Femi Otedola, one of Nigeria’s richest men, donates US$14mn to Save the Children Fund through his daughters foundation to support destitute children.
The Save the Children Fund was established in the UK in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic opportunities, as well as providing emergency aid.
Who is Femi Otedola?
Femi Otedola is a self-made billionaire with a net worth of US1.8bn and is the controlling shareholder of Forte Oil. The company was founded in 1964 - originally a subsidiary of British Petroleum (BP) - and has over 500 gas stations with the aim to be the foremost integrated energy solutions provider in Nigeria.
He made his donation of US$14mn to Save the Children Fund via his daughter's the DJ Cuppy Foundation. The DJ Cuppy Foundation aims to improve the welfare of Nigeria’s vulnerable and marginalised children. Its core focuses are education and healthcare among others.
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Commenting on his donation Otedola said: “God has been so kind to me in life and I feel highly privileged. The only way I can show my gratitude to Him is to use my resources to support those who are underprivileged. This I intend to do for the rest of my life.”
Kevin Watkins, CEO of Save the Children has pledged that every penny of Otedola’s donation will be spent to improve the lives of the children affected by insurgency in the northeast, financing various intervention programmes for children in Borno, Adamawa and Katsina.
Did you know? The donation is said to be the single largest individual donation to charity in Nigeria’s history.
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