Mr. Rotimi Ojamamoye, Group Managing Director of Assetrise Limited, was honored by the Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN) at its 2025 International Conference, Exhibition, and Annual General Meeting held at the International Conference Centre, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State. The conference themed “Revitalising Nigeria’s Manufacturing Sector Through Innovative Engineering Solutions” attracted senior industry and government figures, including the President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Engr. Magaret Oguntala, the President of APWEN, Engr. Adebisi R. Osim, Honourable Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, Vice Chancelor, University of Ibadan, Prof Kayode Adebowale, President COREN, Engr. Sadiq Abubakar and other notable technocrats and policymakers.
The award recognises Mr. Ojamamoye’s leadership in applying engineering-driven, locally anchored solutions to Nigeria’s twin problems of food insecurity and low disposable income and for his wider role in demonstrating how industrial capacity can be rebuilt through strategic public-private partnerships.
APWEN’s 2025 International Conference: Innovation at the Core
APWEN’s 2025 conference focused attention on a growing consensus: Nigeria’s manufacturing revitalization must be driven by homegrown engineering solutions and local capacity building rather than continued dependence on foreign contractors and imports. In that context, Mr. Ojamamoye’s work at Assetrise Limited, which fuses real estate and agriculture into a model called Agro real estate was highlighted as a practical example of how industry, agriculture, research and finance can work together to deliver tangible results.
Speaking on a panel discussion centred on industrial companies partnering with manufacturers to develop local machinery and reduce reliance on foreign expertise, Mr. Ojamamoye argued that the solution begins with belief in Nigerian capacity and structured investments in skills and technology:
“We need to look to ourselves and ask if we have the capacity to power what we need. What do we need right now? We need roads! Do we have people to build them? Yes. Critical projects in Africa are too often given to foreigners when we have the expertise here. The biggest problems in Nigeria today are food insecurity and low disposable income. Both can be solved if we build capacity.”
He used Assetrise’s agricultural projects as a working example of the principle, explaining how deliberate partnerships with research institutes and financiers can convert local potential into largescale production:
“For food insecurity, we need to modernize agriculture. We have the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) here in Ibadan, doing incredible work to strengthen local production. By collaborating with them, we established one of the biggest farms in Lagos. For the first time in the history of Lagos, we produced one million tubers of yam, because we built local capacity. Every area of production begins with identifying our needs, building capacity to meet them, and then exporting what we have mastered to the rest of the world. That is how Nigeria can solve its major problems.”
Assetrise’s Blueprint for Capacity-Building
Under Mr. Ojamamoye’s stewardship, Assetrise Limited has expanded as the pioneer of Agro real estate, linking agriculture, real estate, engineering, finance and community ownership. Key innovations highlighted at the conference include:
- Palmrich Estate (oil palm plantations) – a multi-phase agro-real estate project that, since 2022, has scaled to more than 8,000 hectares across Lagos, Ondo, Oyo and Ogun states and now counts over 11,000 landlords. The project demonstrates how professionally managed plantations can deliver steady income, land appreciation and long-term value for investors and communities.
- Eko Yams – a stepwise expansion in yam cultivation. What began with 10,000 tubers (Eko Yams 1.0) scaled to 1 million (2.0) and then 5 million tubers (3.0). The program, powered by cooperative structures and partnership with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA, has catalysed local food supply and youth employment in Lagos and is now preparing further scale-up with Eko Yams 4.0.
- FUNAAB collaboration– a 100-hectare partnership with the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, to provide practical training, cultivate tubers at scale and nurture the next generation of agropreneurs.
These practical initiatives are proof that building local production capacity requires three things: research partnerships, institutional finance and scalable governance models that give ordinary Nigerians ownership and voice.
Institutional partnerships that underpin impact
At the event, Mr. Ojamamoye highlighted the role of strategic partnerships in de-risking projects and accelerating impact. Assetrise’s collaborative network now includes:
- IITA (International Institute of Tropical Agriculture) for research and intercropping innovations (Eko Yams being a flagship example).
- NIFOR (Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm Research) for agronomic best practice and disease management in oil palm.
- FUNAAB (Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta) for training and youth empowerment on 100 hectares of farm land.
- NSE (Nigerian Society of Engineers) for technical oversight and infrastructure planning across agro-smart city projects.
- State governments (Enugu and Abia) partnerships to replicate the Agro-smart city model beyond the southwest, with memoranda of understanding aimed at regional industrial development and job creation.
These collaborations along with finance and insurance partners such as AG Mortgage Bank and Mutual Benefits form the backbone of Assetrise’s agenda to mainstream industrial-grade agriculture, strengthen local supply chains, and create multiplying economic effects.
Why this Recognition Matters
The recognition by APWEN underscores not only Mr. Ojamamoye’s contribution to Nigeria’s industrial sector but also the broader relevance of his message: sustainable solutions must be homegrown. By integrating real estate, agriculture, and engineering, Assetrise has provided a blueprint for tackling systemic issues while empowering ordinary Nigerians to become stakeholders in national development.
Looking ahead, Mr. Ojamamoye reaffirmed Assetrise’s commitment to championing agro-industrial innovation, building more Agro smart cities, and fostering collaborations with research institutions and professional bodies to ensure that Nigeria not only meets its needs but also exports excellence to the rest of the world.
A call to action
The award also served as a call to action to policymakers, financiers and engineers: to finance capacity building, prioritize local procurement where possible, and align research institutions with private-sector scale-up plans. If replicated, the Assetrise model could form a template for other sectors, a way to convert Nigeria’s vast natural and human resources into jobs, incomes and durable national wealth.
Mr. Ojamamoye’s APWEN recognition thus functions both as an honour for his past achievements and as an invitation for a broader national project one that places engineering, agriculture and enterprise at the center of Nigeria’s economic revival.
