Citibank Chairman Bags Honorary Degree

The Chairman of Citibank Nigeria Limited, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso has received an honorary Doctorate of Business Administration from Aston University for his outstanding contribution to business and society. The awardwaspresentedbytheuniversity'sChancellor,SirJohnSunderlandat the conferment ceremony recently was attended by Clare Short, former UK Secretary of State for International Development. In his address at the occasion, Mr. Cardoso highlighted the importance of graduates having mentors to guide them in their careers, particularly encouraging women graduates to do so with organisations increasingly embracing the goal of gender parity. He also urged graduates at the ceremony to engage in life-long learning and to prepare for the digital revolution set to transform the world of work. Cardoso, a career banker and development policy expert, started out in banking with Chase Manhattan and became a member of the founding team of Citibank Nigeria in 1984. Following an exemplary career in banking and business, Mr. Cardoso went into public service in 1999 as the pioneer Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget for Lagos State, the economic nerve centre of Nigeria, when the country returned to a democratically elected government after many years of military rule and economic mismanagement. A highly unusual career move for a business person at the time, Mr Cardoso said he felt it essential to contribute one's knowledge and experience to bringing about reforms that were needed, and other notable professionals in Nigeria have since been encouraged to follow his lead.