Jerome Udoji

rdf:langString Jerome Udoji

rdf:langString Jerome Udoji

rdf:langString Jerome Udoji

rdf:langString Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

rdf:langString Commander of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George

rdf:langString Papal knight of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great

rdf:langString InternetArchiveBot

rdf:langString November 2017

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rdf:langString Traditional Ruler

rdf:langString Businessman

rdf:langString Philanthropist

rdf:langString Government Official

rdf:langString Chief Jerome Oputa Udoji CMG, CFR (1912–2010), Igwe Ozuluoha I of Igboland, was a Nigerian business administrator, government official, traditional ruler, and philanthropist. He was one of Nigeria's most famous public servants as a result of the "Udoji Award" and his various roles in the government and private sector. Udoji commanded respect both nationally and internationally as an honest, disciplined and intellectually alert public administrator and private sector operator. He received his education at the University of Cambridge in England and later the Economic Institute of the World Bank in Washington. He held the traditional title of Igwe, was a recipient of the Commander of the most distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George by the British Crown in 1959, Commander of Order of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFR) in 1963, and became a Papal knight of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great in 1975. Udoji was one of Africa's most distinguished administrators who had the rare and remarkable opportunity to serve in not only the colonial, military and civilian governments in Nigeria but also in the country's expanding private sector. He was the first African administrative officer to serve in the British Colonial government. Over the course of his government career he served in the ministries of finance, health and commerce, and was head of service in the former Eastern Region, Nigeria. He was part of the Constituent Assembly of 1977-78 that worked on the 1979 Constitution of Nigeria (Second Republic) and served as the official Constitutional Adviser, to the Eastern Nigerian delegation to the Nigerian Constitutional Conference in London. Udoji was also the first Nigerian to serve as Chairman of a multinational corporation in Nigeria and his success in that position opened the way to other Nigerians: Christopher Abebe in UAC, Michael Omolayole in Lever Brothers, Gamaliel Onosode in Cadbury and Jamodu in PZ. He helped found the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and served as its first Chairman from 1981 to 1986 in conjunction with his service as the second Chairman of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) from 1982 to 1987. Between 1974 and 1993, he was either the chairman or on the board of at least 13 major corporations, including Citibank Nigeria, The Nigerian Tobacco Company, R.T. Briscoe, Michellin, Motor Tyre Service Company, Wiggins Teape, Udoji United F.C., and Solgas Petroleum. He played a pivotal role in the shaping of the post-civil war history of Nigeria. A celebrated administrator, teacher, lawyer and businessman, Udoji, also positively impacted other countries of the African continent, during his eventful life as a United Nations consultant. For his contributions he received numerous honors and traditional titles including having schools, roads, and a government building named in his honor. In 1995 he published his memoirs, titled "Under Three Masters" and some of his speeches and correspondences as, Which Way Nigeria?: Selected Speeches of Chief J.O. Udoji (2000, Ibadan, Spectrum). Upon His passing, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State stated "Udoji was a legend, a selfless Nigerian and a devout Christian who took care of the down-trodden, the widows and the poor. His death will create a lacuna that will be very difficult to fill."

rdf:langString Nigerian Stock Exchange , Solgas Petroleum, Citibank Nigeria, Udoji United F.C.