Sir Dr. Emeka Offor was the best known, perhaps, one of the first indigenous, millionaire entrepreneurs in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry in the 1990s. What particularly stood him out then was the status he attained as a millionaire and philanthropist just in his 20s. Several years down the line, having struck a perfect marital and business partnership with his wife, Vivian Adaora, Dr. Offor still maintains a firm foothold on the frontlines of Nigeria’s entrepreneurship, oil and gas business and philanthropy. The platforms used by the couple for these hattrick of activities are the Chrome Group of companies and Sir Emeka Offor Foundation (SEOF) of which the husband is the Group Executive Chairman while the wife is the Vice-President, respectively.
Sir Dr. Offor who hails from Oraifite in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State, began his journey into business at the tender age of 21 as an apprentice to his uncle. He incorporated the Chrome Group in 1994 as an engineering outfit handling projects such as refinery maintenance. Thirty-one years on, the company has become a leading multi-billion-dollar conglomerate with diverse interests in oil and gas, finance/investments, telecommunications, insurance, maritime, destination inspection, real estate and the power sectors, operating in Nigeria and other West African countries, employing over 1000 staff.
The Group has 20 active member-companies. Some of the major ones include: Kaztec Engineering Ltd, a leader in the fabrication of drilling and production platforms in the oil and gas industry; Enugu Electricity Distribution Company distributes electricity to five states in the South East geo political Zone; Global Scansystems Technology Limited (GSTL) which is a wholly indigenous company that provides its global clientele with petroleum and allied products inspection services; Inland Containers Nigeria Ltd, a leading integrated shipping and logistics company in West Africa; Nimek Investment Ltd, an investment holding company with interests in real estate, banking, insurance, energy and aviation; Blaze FM, an independent commercial radio station; 99.9 KISS FM, an adult contemporary radio station that specializes in news, current affairs and community events; Starcrest Nigeria, a rising star in the natural resources sector in West Africa; Kingsbury Trading Ltd, in the business of import, export and distribution of crude oil, gas and other petro-chemical products; Interstate Electrics Ltd, a consortium incorporated as a vehicle for acquiring and operating Electricity Distribution Companies in Nigeria; I Surveillance Technologies Ltd, an environmentally-friendly, professional and committed international company which is strategically structured and branded to, amongst others, carry on the general business of:- (a) surveillances, telecommunications and information technology (ICT). (b) manufacturing, producing, installing and maintaining surveillance equipment, security apparatus, machinery plant and all types of telecommunication equipment.
Sir Dr. Offor’s wife, Dr. Vivian Adaora, a lawyer, is a business leader in her own right, with extensive managerial experience in the corporate world. She served as the Human Resource Manager for Chrome Oil Services, an oil and gas service member-company of the Chrome Group. As a legal practitioner, she established Maine Solicitors, a corporate and international trade law firm with practice areas covering corporate and commercial legal services, dispute resolution, energy and natural resources, real estate, tax advisory, and public sector governance. In business, she has established Ballpark Investments Ltd., a general investments and real estate company that has executed contracts in real estate, power, travel and hospitality, mining, and construction industries. The company has two subsidiaries: The Travel Place Limited, a travel and hospitality establishment, and Eden Residences by Ballpark Ltd. She continues to direct these entities as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
In 2003, the Offors established the Sir Emeka Offor Foundation (SEOF), a non-profit charity, with Dr. Adaora as the Vice-President and Chief Executive Officer, to channel part of their wealth towards supporting worthy societal causes and the needy. Its vision is to reduce poverty and create life-improving economic opportunities for individuals, organizations and communities through education, health care services and empowerment.
The Foundation, under Dr. Adaora’s leadership, has implemented a number of projects like giving scholarships to less privileged students both in secondary and tertiary institutions, building and furnishing classroom blocks. In collaboration with Books for Africa (BFA) it has donated over 10 million USD worth of books, computers and other educational materials to schools in Nigeria and about 19 other African countries. The Foundation established health centres, providing free medical consultations, treatment and drugs and established a €100,000 Glaucoma research grant at the Department of Ophthalmology, University of Mainz, Germany; it also established a Nigerian fellowship of Cataract Surgery and Glaucoma Management at the same university. Other notable achievements include: the establishment of widows’ cooperative to help widows become and remain independent, offering automatic employment in the company and a brand-new car to graduates of tertiary institutions who make first class honours, drilling boreholes that supply safe drinking water, provision and installation of transformers and road construction. The SEOF partners with The Carter Center to wage war against River Blindness in seven states in Nigeria, especially in the South-east and south-south where the disease is prevalent.
The Sir Dr. Emeka Offor Foundation commits resources and time towards human capacity development, provision of access to skills acquisition and transfer of knowledge to the grassroots. Such opportunities have enabled the establishment of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SME’s) and Cooperative Societies for the less privileged. These empowerment programmes focus on youth, widows and the differently-abled. One of them include the SEOF Blue Ribbon Campaign, dedicated to supporting neurodiversity in children (children with special needs) through awareness, advocacy, and providing funding for programmes and support materials. Another initiative which Dr. Adaora is passionate about is the Touch a Life Initiative, which aims to make a difference by constructing homes for indigent widows and challenging unjust laws and traditions that deprive them of their rights.
The couple have received several recognitions from reputable national and international organizations for their generous contributions to societal development. For instance, the couple are among Nigeria’s highest donors to Rotary International. For this, Sir Dr. Offor was elevated to the status of the Foundation Circle of the Arch C. Klumph Society (AKS) of the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International. This is as a result of his singular donation of over $1 million to Rotary Foundation spread across the four cardinal endeavours of Rotary, viz; peace and conflict management, maternal and child heatth, basic education and literacy promotion and polio eradication. He is currently Rotary International Polio Ambassador to Nigeria, having given over USD $3.1million towards the eradication of the polio scourge. By the above donations Sir Dr. Offor remains Rotary`s highest donor in the African continent. The Romanian Consulate in Nigeria recently honoured him for his invaluable contribution towards the development and enhancement of bilateral relations between Nigeria and Romania.
On her part, Dr. Adaora, a member of the Rotary Club of Wuse, Abuja, is a Paul Harris Fellow, an individual recognized for contributing, or having contributions made in their name, of $1,000 to The Rotary Foundation, to show appreciation for significant donations supporting Rotary’s various programmes.
In May 2024, she was honoured with an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Business Administration (Honoris Causa) by Tansian University, Umunya, Anambra State. In the same month, she received another honorary Doctorate Degree of Doctor of Social Advocacy from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State. She holds several certifications from the Harvard Business School and the KLC School of Design.
Dr. Mrs. Adaora Vivian Offor is a devout and serving member of the Anglican Communion and a minister with the Rebirth Ministries, a women’s evangelical ministry focused on prayer and outreach activities. She serves as the Liaison Officer for charitable works and the Head of the Northern Region of the Ministry.
Sir Dr. Emeka and Dr. Adaora Offor have been selected as one of the Top10 Magazine’s 10 Most Impactful Power Couples in Nigeria in recognition of their outstanding contributions to Nigeria’s economic development as they serve as inspiration to upcoming couples.
