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UBA GMD, Kennedy Uzoka, Others Wins Zik Leadership Award

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Kennedy Uzoka, Group Managing Director UBA Plc, has been announced as the winner of the 2019 Zik Leadership Award.

News Rain gathered that he clinched the much-coveted award alongside other eminent Nigerians which included Senate President Ahmed Lawan and the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer at the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof Umar Danbatta.

How UBA GMD, Kennedy Uzoka, Others Won Zik Leadership Award

The UBA GMD and others were announced winners in a letter signed by the Member Advisory Board, PPRAC, Professor Pat Utomi, and Executive secretary, Emeka Obasi, which stated that Uzoka was chosen as a result of his outstanding contributions to the development and growth of the Banking and Financial Services Industry and unblemished record of service as a banker of international repute.

The letter read, “The GMD/CEO, of Africa’s global bank, UBA Plc, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka is a banker’s banker and an astute player in the Nigerian financial services sector. He has consistently led the Bank to set a year-on-year track record of profitability, wealth creation, and innovative financial products across its operations in the African continent despite global economic challenges.

Continuing, it said, “Kennedy Uzoka continues to lead his team in chalking newer and higher credits by the day. Not even the current challenge of COVID-19 has been a dampener as the bank under his watch continues to scale new frontiers and post assuring results.”

Apart from Uzoka, Senate President Ahmed Lawan and Danbatta, other winners in various categories of public service, good governance, business, and professional leadership included; Borno Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum; Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa; Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde; SGF, Boss Mustapha; Dr. Stella Okolli amongst others.

Whilst congratulating Uzoka and the UBA family, the organizers noted that the formal presentation ceremony of The Zik Prize awards will be a celebratory event to be held on Sunday 6th December 2020.

Uzoka is a renowned African business executive, with vast experience in banking, business development, financial and business advisory, strategic planning, and execution as well as human resource management. He is an advocate of disruptive technology and has led many game-changing innovations in the African banking industry over the past two decades of his career.

Kennedy holds a BSc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Benin and an MBA from the University of Lagos. He is an alumnus of the Advanced Management Program (AMP) of the Harvard Business School, Boston USA, the International Institute of Management Development (IMS) in Lausanne, Switzerland, and the London Business School, United Kingdom. Kennedy is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Nigeria (CIBN).

The Zik Leadership awards are organized by the Public Policy Research and Analysis Centre (PPRAC) and were instituted 25 years ago, in 1995, in honor of the first President of Nigeria, Late Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, primarily to encourage and nurture leadership on the African Continent and in the Diaspora.

The PPRAC which is celebrating the silver jubilee anniversary of the Zik Prize in leadership awards pointed out that in the last 25 years, some other notable leaders have been recipients of the prize such as; President J.J. Rawlings, President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim, President Sam Nujoma, Dr. Nelson Mandela, President Yonweri Muzeveni, President John Agyekum Kuffor, Senator David Mark, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, Otunba Subomi Balogun, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Alhaji Ahmed Joda and Mr. Godwin Emefiele.