Board of Directors

Ambassador (Dr.) Dele Cole
Chairman, Board of Directors
Ambassador (Dr.) Dele Cole, Chairman of ASL, holds a Ph.D from King's College, Cambridge, UK and a Masters Degree from the University of Otago, New Zealand. He has over four decades of experience in both the public and private sectors in Nigeria and has held political office positions that include:
• The Ambassador of The Federal Republic of Nigeria to Brazil (1987-1990)
• Deputy National Chairman (South South) of the People's Democratic Party of Nigeria (1998-1999)
• Special Advisor on International Relations to President Olusegun Obasanjo (1999-2001)

In 1969 he was a Visiting Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, USA and from 1970-1973 he was a Fellow at King's College Cambridge, United KIngdom. Prior to joining ASL as Chairman, Ambassador Dele Cole was a senior bureaucrat in the Cabinet Office in the early to mid seventies and former Managing Director of Daily Times Nigeria Limited. He has also held the position of Chairman, Abuja Hotels Limited and is also currently a Board Member of Guardian Newspapers.

Mr. Richard Akerele
Chief Executive Officer
Richard Akerele holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Western Illinois University (1979). He is an Airline Services management professional with over twenty four years experience in the Nigerian telecommunications, business management and aviation services sectors. He is a former board member of EKO Meridian Hotel Nigeria and a consultant for Forte Hotels in Nigeria. Richard is presently a member of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group and a former Chariman of the sub-committee for the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority. He has recently been appointed a member of the Nigerian Federal Government' Committee in Revenue Generation in the Aviation Sector.

Richard also holds the same position at Gambit Nigeria (a trading company) and SIMBA Telecom (a GSM Telecommunications company with operations in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya).

In 2007, Richard and his team won "Africa Investor Award for Privatisation Deal of the Year".

Otunba Solomon K. Onafowokan, OON
Board Member
Otunba holds a Post Graduate degree in Business Administration and was Deputy President of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He chairs a number of Boards including Coleman Wires & Cables and ARTEE Industries Limited. In December 1998, he was conferred with the title of Asiwaju of Remo Kingdom and in October 2006 was honoured with the National award of OON by the Federal Government of Nigeria.