I Foresee my expertise helping solve some of Nigeria’s Challenges

Adetola Anifalaje’s looks are as smart as her brain. In this interview with The PUNCH, she discusses her approach to issues and how to succeed in business. Excerpts…

As an entrepreneur who has investments in Nigeria, what are your thoughts on the recent improvement in Nigeria’s ranking on the Ease of Doing Business Index?

I think they are making some sort of effort. For instance, it’s easier to register a business all by yourself with the CAC. They are being more lenient with the regulations on a few things to make it easier for businesses to survive. We can definitely improve our current ranking if we stick to these reforms.

Your LinkedIn page says you speak Mandarin, French, asides English and Yoruba languages. Could you please share with us your interests in language and what drives it?

I’m not very fluent in Mandarin, but I took interest in it because it’s the Language of the future for anyone in the business world. The Chinese economy is one of the strongest now and is even predicted to be for years to come. French was my mother’s influence — she speaks fluent French, so, I grew up learning the language.

As an engineer, which part of your work do you find most challenging but fulfilling?

Idealization; I’m a very creative individual and with each project I work on, I tend to think way outside the box to come up with some of the sickest solutions by theory. They seem impossible to replicate in reality, but in today’s world, and with technology, “impossible” is not a valid dictionary term. The process to bring that alien solution to reality and finalization is, however, fulfilling.

Made-in-Nigeria vehicles have come to light. In view of your work in the automotive industry, what are your thoughts on this development?

It’s a pretty exciting phenomenon. I think it’s a good start for us as a people, and definitely, we could branch out into the introduction of different technologies to improve aesthetics and appeal for commercialization. IVM currently is doing a great job at it. The question we need to ask ourselves, though, is, how many Nigerians are willing to drop their American-made or Japanese-made cars for the Nigerian ones? We, as a society, are too quick to damage our own creations. We don’t even buy made-in-Nigeria toothpick! So, that says a lot on how far we have to go to convince ourselves on our competence.

In what ways can your work in engineering be used to solve some of Nigeria’s challenges?

So, I always tell myself, ‘Determine your own legacy because quixotism is the killer of tomorrow.’ I can foresee my expertise helping solve some of the challenges by providing clean energy to the millions of individuals living off the electricity grid, for starters. I’m also an avid believer in the growth of young leaders; so, I create a platform for networking with experts and career development to help young and inquisitive minds connect to the STEM field. Fixing Nigeria requires a team of likeminded individuals to come together and share ideas on what sort of solutions can best suit a sector to make a difference. Only then can a glimpse of the future of Nigeria be seen.

You claim to have worked on NASA EPSCoR on Bio-Mimetic self-healing composite sandwich for impact tolerant next-generation aerospace structures. What does that mean to a layman?

It’s a classified project; but just for the sake of clarification, sure. Basically, think of an airplane manufactured out of a material that can heal itself when cracked, so in the case of a crash, there’s less damage to human lives because the material is able to absorb so much on impact.