Segun Awolowo, grandson of Nigeria’s first Western region premier is dead

Segun Awolowo, grandson of the late statesman Obafemi Awolowo and a prominent figure in Nigeria’s trade and export sector, has died at the age of 62.

His family announced the news on Thursday, describing him as an extraordinary pillar of strength and devotion. In their statement, they hailed him as “the world’s most phenomenal husband, father and grandfather — steady, wise, endlessly loving… a painfully loyal servant to Nigeria”.

Although the cause of death was not disclosed, the family said he lived a life marked by integrity, vision and unwavering commitment to national development.

Awolowo served as executive director and CEO of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) from 2013 to 2022, where he championed Nigeria’s non-oil export agenda. In 2021, ECOWAS member states unanimously elected him president of the National Trade Promotion Organisations (TPOs), recognising his regional influence.

He was later appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023 as secretary of the National Action Committee on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), reinforcing his role in shaping Nigeria’s economic direction.