Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah

Citation of Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah, CON, OON, FCA

Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah, the immediate past Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is an icon whose personal core values of trust, integrity, and commitment have assisted him tremendously to have blazed so many trails and still counting.

A most recent graduate of the Harvard Business Online School Certificate on Organizational Leadership and of Power and Influence for Positive Impact in May, 2023, his quest for continuous education knows no bounds. He had also graduated from the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) Enugu with Distinction in Accountancy in 1995, proceeded to the University of Nigeria Nsukka for his PGD in 1999, and the University of Lagos for an MBA in 2006. A seasoned Accountant whose professional excellence earned him Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Accountants in Nigeria, he made his decade-long glorious mark in the banking sector, notably Zenith Bank, by achieving rapid unprecedented corporate growth of a 9+ digit balance sheet from zero balance sheet in a newly created branch. This rare feat catapulted him to the position of Assistant General Manager.

He left the banking sector in 2006 after just 10 impactful years in the sector to further put to good use his core competencies of Business Development, Business Innovation, Analytical and Strategic Thinking, Market Share Leadership, Strategic Partnership, and Corporate Growth. This prompted his setting up of Masters Energy Group as both the founder and the Group’s President. Masters Energy Group, a conglomerate of about 20 companies with about 6,000+ employees, is today a household name in diverse sectors of Nigeria’s economy, contributing to the nation’s GDP and wealth creation. Among Dr. Uche Ogah’s giant strides in the management of his business empire, aside from Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited having one of the largest storage facilities in the entire West Africa, it has also become a major marketer within a short period in the oil and gas sector of Nigeria and beyond—a feat so uncommon and commendable. Also, Alsa Petrochemical Limited has the largest business and manufacturing cluster east of the Niger when most investors are dreading to invest in the South East.

His foray into politics earned him the Abia APC Gubernatorial candidacy in 2019, where he came second behind the ruling party in the state after thumping APGA—the Igbo party. This feat was achieved when the hate against the APC in the South East was at a crescendo, yet he achieved it due to the goodwill he enjoys from the masses and his cult-hero status in Abia State. He was later appointed in 2019 as a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and was deployed as Minister of State in the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, where he shone brightly and made notable marks. For instance, as the supervising Minister for the Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Initiatives, he pioneered the creation of the National Gold Policy and Gold Purchase Scheme in Nigeria—the first of its kind; he raised the bar of revenue generation in the Ministry, which hitherto was lackluster; he facilitated the Ministry’s access to the National Steel Fund; for the first time in the history of Nigeria’s mining history, he interacted at the same time with the 774 Local Government Chairmen through ALGON on the development of mineral resources in every Local Government Area in Nigeria; he ensured that the National Metallurgical Development Centre signed an MOU with the Nigerian Defence Academy and DICON on technology and capacity development, among other feats achieved. He voluntarily resigned his appointment as a Minister to vie for the 2023 Gubernatorial election, which he eventually did not contest for obvious reasons.

A holder of the National Award of the Commander of the Order of Niger, CON, and also a recipient of the Officer of the Order of Niger (OON), whom the former President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR, described as a man with a heart of gold, Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah is a widely acknowledged philanthropist. He utilizes The Uche Ogah Foundation to advance his philanthropic activities, such as tertiary education scholarships both in and outside Nigeria to numerous beneficiaries, organization of annual health outreaches in various communities, and donation of infrastructural facilities in schools, like the sprawling Wilson Ogah Auditorium in Abia State University, Uturu, among other philanthropic gestures too numerous to mention.

A recipient of numerous awards, including the OON by the Federal Government of Nigeria in 2012, “Onwa Abia” by the Abia State Government in 2013, Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Entrepreneur by Nigerians in 2013, Business World Newspaper Man of the Year Award in 2014, Sun Newspaper Investor of the Year Award in 2015, United Nations Ambassador of Peace (UN POLAC) in 2015, and an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Business Administration by the Abia State University, among others.

Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah is a fellow/member of notable professional bodies, including the Chartered Accountants, Nigerian Institute of Shipping, Chartered Institute of Taxation, Institute of Brand Management of Nigeria, and Chartered Institute of Bankers, among others.

In demonstration of his creed for continuous education, he successfully earned Executive Courses at Harvard Business School and the University of Cambridge Judge Business School.

Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah is married and blessed with children.