Hon. Folasade Adefisayo

Hon. Folasade Adefisayo is a seasoned education leader, policy advocate, and social impact practitioner whose career spans nearly four decades across Africa’s education and development sectors. She is the Principal Consultant and CEO of Leading Learning Ltd, an education consulting firm she founded in 2014 to support school transformation, teacher training, and leadership development across the continent.

A University Scholar and recipient of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Merit Award for academic excellence, she earned her BSc. from the University of Ibadan, an MBA from the University of Lagos, and postgraduate degrees in Education (iPGCE and MA Ed, with distinction) from the University of Nottingham.

Her professional journey began in banking before transitioning into education, where she served as Executive Director and CEO of the Corona Schools’ Trust Council (2002–2010) and later as Director of Corona Secondary School, Agbara (2010–2014). Her leadership helped shape a generation of schools that modeled innovation and excellence in African education.

From 2019 to 2023, Hon. Adefisayo served as the Hon. Commissioner for Education in Lagos State, Nigeria’s commercial hub and Africa’s largest megacity. In this role, she led critical reforms to expand access, improve quality, and strengthen systems for millions of learners. She remains deeply committed to addressing the learning crisis on the continent, volunteering her expertise with government agencies, civil society groups, and development partners including Teach for Nigeria, Oando Foundation, Junior Achievement, YEDI, Volunteer Corps, Fate Foundation, and others.

Her influence extends beyond Nigeria through board service and leadership roles in pan-African and global institutions. She currently serves as Chairman of Atlantic Hall School and Oxbridge College, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Queens’ School, Ibadan Old Girls Association, a Founding Member of Teach For Nigeria, Member of the Federal Nigeria Society for the Blind, Member of Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), and on the board of the African Leadership Academy (ALA), Johannesburg, among others.

Driven by her passion for inclusive, transformative education, Hon. Folasade Adefisayo continues to work to ensure that African children and young people are equipped with the skills, values, and opportunities to thrive in the 21st century.