THIS week, our personality is a Deltan, a dynamic change maker and lover of the youth, Hon. Stella Erhuvwuoghene Okotete FCE, PFD. She is also a trailblazer in education and leadership.
Born on April 20, 1984, in Warri, Delta State. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Diplomacy from Benson Idahosa University, a Diploma in Law from the Rivers State College of Arts and Sciences, and a Master’s degree in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution from the National Open University of Nigeria and Executive Master’s in Business Administration (EMBA) from the University of Abuja.
Her dedication to continuous learning is evident through numerous certificate programs from prestigious institutions such as Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government (USA), the University of Virginia (USA), INSEAD Business School (France), University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School (UK), Pan Atlantic University’s Enterprise Development Center (Nigeria), and Columbia Business School in New York (USA).
For Hon. Stella Okotete, politics is her platform to transform Nigeria and make the biggest impact. In her own words, politics is a calling and a divine assignment and the whole county can attest to that.
She is a selfless leader, a backbone to the leaders of the All Progressive Congress, APC. Over the span of her career progression, she has served in the political clime in various capacities as an elected Councillor in Ughelli-North Local Government Area of Delta State from 2008 – 2011. Subsequently, she was appointed as the Special Assistant to the Governor of Delta State on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) from 2011 – 2015. In 2020, she was appointed as the National Women Leader of the All Progressives Congress’ Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) and nominated into the 2023 TinubuShettima Presidential Transition/Inauguration Committee to head the Secretariat, Planning and Monitoring Committee.
Hon. Stella Okote was the Executive Director, Business Development of the Nigerian Export-Import Bank, a position she held since April 2017. During her first tenure, Hon. Stella alongside the other executive management team, embarked on strategic reforms for the Bank, which invariably resulted in increased profits, favourable returns on capital earnings, reduction in non-performing loans and an increase in the total assets of the Bank. Following remarkable performance, she and the entire Executive Management team were re-appointed by President Muhammdu Buhari in 2022 for another 5-year tenure.
She used her position to continue to champion the development of the Export Sector in Nigeria, expanding the frontiers of NEXIM to other areas for growth, strategic collaborations, and lines of credit for the Bank.
During her tenure as the National Women Leader of the All Progressives Congress’ CECPC, Hon. Stella Okotete demonstrated exceptional leadership, in her quest to engender women’s visibility and inclusivity in governance, business and politics, which constituted her “tripartite approach” in line with the 35% affirmative action for women’s visibility, activism and inclusion in all governance processes.
Under her leadership, the first ever large gathering of women in politics – Progressives Women Conference – that canvassed over 600 women was held in January 2022. The APC Progressive National Women Conference was aimed at converging progressives women from the 36 states of the Federation and the FCT to chart a way forward on the role of women in party processes, business and governance.
The Conference, which climaxed in a resounding success introduced transformative initiatives and projects like the Progressive Young Women Forum (PYWF), Progressive Women Academy, APC Women Lobby Group, Progressive Women Trust Fund and the Progressive Women Movement. These initiatives played a crucial role in mobilizing and empowering APC women which contributed significantly to the Party’s success in the 2023 elections.
Her tenure as the National Women Leader of the APC’s CECPC not only solidified her position as a prominent advocate for women’s visibility and inclusivity but also left a lasting legacy of positive change and unity within the party and the Nation at large.
Interestingly, Hon. Stella Okotete is proponent for Digital shift and a trailblazer for creativity in the Digital space. As one of the youngest high-ranking women in Government, her unwavering commitment to leveraging the tech space shines through.
Over the years, she displayed a penchant for Digital Technology to connect with the youth and the grassroot to facilitate accessible Governance. Among her notable digital initiatives were the Presidential Inauguration Website and Mobile Apps which set new standards for communication, bridging the gap between the government and the people. Additionally, she initiated the groundbreaking Nigerian Export Academy (NEXA) Mobile App, Africa’s first platform aimed at training 5 million exporters within 5 years, showcasing her visionary leadership.
The Progressive Women Academy Mobile App, another remarkable endeavour, aimed to empower and prepare 20 million women for Leadership and Political Office.
Her impact is not limited to external initiatives alone. She spearheaded the creation of an internal Learning Management Platform for NEXIM staff, enabling them to learn efficiently from any location and on any device. Additionally, her visionary approach extended to the launch of the Women Mobilization Apps and numerous other digital ventures.
In both work and life, Hon. Stella Okotete serves as an inspiring force, harnessing the power of digital technology to foster progress and inclusion, thus leaving an indelible mark on the landscape of governance and empowerment.
As an ardent supporter of the Youth, Hon. Stella Okotete, is the biggest supporter of Young People across Nigeria, especially at the grassroots level. Her passion for excellence is a big influence on those that work around her and she is never tired of training, connecting and speaking with young people.
In August 2021, she formed the Progressive Young Women Forum (PYWF), a platform to bring all young women between the ages of 18-35, across the country, into one forum to promote the visibility of Nigerian young women in governance and politics. Nigerian Women make up almost half of the population and have strong economic potentials which led Hon. Stella Okotete to appoint State Coordinators and invested in theirs leadership development with a view to harnessing the power of women across Nigeria.
It would be recalled that, Stella Okotete, had sometime ago, opened up about her disqualification as a Ministerial nominee by the Nigerian Senate.
In August 2023, President Bola Tinubu had submitted her name as a nominee from Delta State to the Senate for screening and confirmation as a Minister.
But in a dramatic twist, she, along with a former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-rufai, and a nominee from Taraba State, Danladi Abubakar, were denied clearance by the Upper Legislative Arm, citing a security report against them.
But speaking in an online interview on “mic on podcast” , Stella Okotete said, the refusal of the Senate to clear her was “purely political games”.
she said: “I was not beaten out of the game of becoming a Minister; I think some people tried to stop me from serving the country on a higher platform, and they didn’t succeed.”
