Barrister Lawal Ejide, a Notary Public and Principal Partner at Ejide Lawal & Co., has been installed as the 24th President of the Rotary Club of Egbeda, Rotary International District 9111, Nigeria.
The colourful installation ceremony held on Saturday at Ademoj Hall, Isheri-Igando Road, Lagos, making Ejide the fourth female President of the club.
It also reflects the growing emergence of women in the organisation’s leadership stata.
She succeeded Princess Oluwatoyintosin Adejinmi, an entrepreneur and logistics practitioner, who completed a successful tenure in office.
Her emergence also sustained the club’s recent trend of female leadership, as she is expected to hand over to Alhaja Yinka Shodimu, a real estate developer and investor, at the end of her tenure.
The development marked a significant shift for the humanitarian organisation, whose leadership had been dominated by men until Rotarian Esther Nwamma became its first female President seven years ago.
Nwamma’s tenure earned the club Rotary International’s Presidential Citation, one of the organisation’s highest performance recognitions.
Following her administration, the club returned to male leadership for four consecutive tenures before Rotarian Yetunde Masaku and Princess Oluwatoyintosin Adejinmi emerged successively, paving the way for Ejide’s presidency.
Ejide’s installation ceremony attracted Rotarians, dignitaries, family members and friends, with one of the major highlights being the formal transfer of the presidential collar from the outgoing President to her successor.
In her acceptance speech, Ejide described her election as a great honour and pledged to lead with integrity, commitment and selfless service.
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She announced that her administration would focus on raising funds for the completion of the club’s Vocational Development Centre at Royal Estate, Iyana Odo, Isheri-Igando, Lagos, adding that the centre was designed to provide vocational training, mentorship and leadership development opportunities for young people.
She also unveiled plans to equip public primary healthcare centres within the club’s service area with medical equipment and other essential healthcare materials.
According to her, the club budgeted about N20 million for the projects, alongside interventions in basic education and literacy, maternal and child health, water, sanitation and hygiene, peace-building, conflict resolution and environmental sustainability. She appealed to individuals, corporate organisations and development partners to support the initiatives through funding and strategic partnerships.
Delivering a keynote address, the Guest Speaker, a medical practitioner and Immediate Past District Governor of Rotary District 9111, Dr. Oluwole Kukoyi, called for stronger collaboration among governments, humanitarian organisations, healthcare professionals and the private sector to reduce maternal and child mortality in Nigeria.
He commended the new President’s decision to strengthen primary healthcare centres through the provision of medical equipment and collaboration with healthcare workers, describing the initiative as consistent with the recommendations of the World Health Organisation and Rotary International’s commitment to improving maternal and child health globally.
In her valedictory speech, the immediate past President, Princess Oluwatoyintosin Adejinmi, expressed appreciation to members and partners for their support throughout her administration.
She identified the chartering of a new Interact Club at Great Michael Comprehensive College as one of the landmark achievements of her tenure, noting that the initiative helped nurture young leaders and promote the values of service, integrity, leadership and community engagement.
Adejinmi also disclosed that her administration sponsored the establishment of the Rotary Club of Isheri Olofin Midtown, a move she said expanded Rotary’s presence and created more opportunities to deliver impactful humanitarian services across communities.
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