Background

Gwen Zino Abiola-Oloke

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Profile of Gwen Zino Abiola-Oloke (Founder/CEO)

  • Gwen is a cross-sector multi-faceted executive with over 27 years’ experience in banking, development finance and consulting working across Francophone and Anglophone West Africa.
  • After a successful banking career, Gwen pivoted from her role as CEO of a pan-African bank in the Republic of Benin, to join GroFin as Regional Investment Director, a role where she led SME development in West Africa, managed five funds that focused on high-impact sectors including Agribusiness, Renewable Energy, Healthcare, Education, Light Manufacturing, key services.
  • She has built expertise in business strategy, start-ups, business transformation, global partnerships, business development, fundraising, gender advocacy and foreign direct investment facilitation. She has managed key relationships of 17 Southern States and some Federal government portfolios in Nigeria as well as hundreds of private sector portfolio clients in Nigeria, Republic of Benin, Ghana, Senegal, and Cote D’Ivoire.
  • Gwen is an active advocate for female empowerment and entrepreneurship. She pioneered GroFin’s gender lens investing – GroWoman and forged key partnerships with development organizations that support women led businesses.
  • She is a member of the Institute of Directors of Nigeria and has served on Federal committees in Nigeria and The Republic of Benin as well as various company boards in West Africa. She serves on the judging panel of the Shell International LiveWire ‘Top Ten Innovators Award’ and served on the advisory committee for the consultative workshops on USAID Global Food Security Strategy (GFSS) for Nigeria in 2017. She was a steering committee member of Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) West Africa. She is also a USA accredited SME consultant and volunteers as mentor and coach to SMEs within and outside the continent.
  • Gwen holds an MBA from the Obafemi Awolowo University, an M.Sc. in Marketing from the University of Lagos and a B.Sc. in Economics from the University of Benin.
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