Professor Soludo Named Africa Banker of the Year in the United States

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Professor Charles C. Soludo has been named Africa Banker of the Year by the United States-based organizers of the Africa Achievement Awards. He is scheduled to join the other distinguished honorees at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, California to receive the award.

According to the organizers, Professor Soludo satisfied all the criteria for this award because of his role in the recent re-structuring of the Nigerian banking sector which has experienced exponential growth and earned some of the Nigerian banks triple ratings from the global financial community.

The chairman of the organizing committee and publisher and editor-in-chief of The African Times / USA, a national U.S publication on Africa, C. Charles Anyiam in congratulating the honorees selected by the committee made up of members of the editorial board of The Times and members of the Africa Diplomatic Corps said that he believes that Africa has entered a new phase in its evolution and key players in this process of transforming the continent into a first class entity must be recognized and encouraged.

"Choosing to use the United States as the stage to recognize these men and women and organizations who are working to bring the continent at par with the rest of the world is deliberate on our part since the world is given the opportunity each year to witness Africa's best and brightest showcased under the same roof. The African Times and our partners in painstakingly selecting these eminent persons who are not only Africans by birth but those who have contributed to the uplift of the continent's profile never forget that it is the responsibility of the Africans themselves to re-write their stories and change the Western media stereotype of their homeland."

Among the 2007 honorees is the Governor of the Central Bank of Botswana, Mrs. Linah K. Mahohlo who is the only female head of the apex bank of any African nation. She will receive the Africa Leadership Award while Ethiopian Airlines was named the Africa Business of the Year and this award will be received on behalf of the 61 year-old airline by its chief executive officer, Mr. Girma Wake.

The year's event which is also part of the Africa Day-USA celebrations marks the 50th Golden Jubilee of Ghana which will be represented by a royal delegation made up of Ghana's high chiefs and members of the public sector and civil society.