About OAF
...Making the Best of Your Potential
The Olusola Adekoya Foundation (OAF) was founded as an engine to support humanity and promote creativity in young minds, as well as challenge Nigerian citizens to become more involved in investing in social development and helping to create a better, more self-reliant future for the nation.
OAF is an NGO that focuses on empowerment, emancipation, skill acquisition, and creative-driven ideas.
At OAF we design and implement programmes that give financial independence and educational opportunities to people of all ages, with special emphasis on youths and adults.
A journey that started on the 19th of Feb. 2020 with three (3) technical students has developed into a network of almost a thousand hands in view today.
Olusola Adekoya Foundation (OAF) works in conjunction with Shodex Garden to provide special training with the best ambience location, tools and encouragement to the neglected populace of the society.
Our board of directors consists of people of integrity, experience, professionalism, excellence and achievements. Our work is produced by self-will as well as labour prompted by love and endurance inspired by paying forward.
This initiative is borne out of the benevolence of its founder, Mr Olusola Adekoya, who aims at addressing the long-term needs for creating a better space for creative minds in entrepreneurship and empowering them for a brighter, greater and greener future.
Our Mission
To create the right atmosphere, tools and resources for developing creative minds in life skills acquisition and sustainable entrepreneurship.
Our Vision
Value System
Driving social and economic advancement of society through skills acquisition and making of entrepreneurial champions.
About THE FOUNDER
Mr Olusola Adekoya, widely referred to as “Shodex” by his teeming admirers, was born some fifty-something years ago.
He started the journey to landscaping world thirty-two years ago
He attended Baptist High School Iwo, Oyo State and School of basic studies, Ijebu—Ode for his A’ Level study. While preparing for admission into the university to study Political Science (although he later attended Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye to realise his age-long penchant for University education but couldn’t finish the degree programme due to his very tight business schedules), he decided to embark on flower collections out of the passion he had for it.
Unknown to him, his colleagues and other people around him, this step was ‘a divine journey’ into stardom in the landscaping and world of beautification.
Having started operation as Shodex Enterprises 32 years ago, he worked assiduously and tirelessly to transform it to a limited liability company; Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited, now a frontrunner in the landscaping business with 45 permanent employees. Not only this, he is privileged to have trained over 200 individuals in landscaping skills acquisition.
As a visionary landscaper, he single-handedly transformed a derelict area that was used as hideouts by hoodlums, social miscreants, and hemp smokers into an oasis of green without any self-imposed scepticism about his capabilities. This very beautiful garden is now a toast of all.
For many residents around the area, the task seemed unachievable, but for Mr Adekoya, an incurable optimist, it never occurred to him as such as he constantly dreams of possibilities.
Olusola Adekoya has contributed greatly to the growth and development of Lagos through his Landscaping revolution. This is manifested in the social, educational and economic aspects of the state.
Socially, Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited has for a very long time been transforming our decayed and filthy environment through landscaping and beautification of self-sponsored projects, corporate and government projects – All aimed at making the environment cleaner, safer and quality enough for human survival.
Educationally, Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited has for over a decade offered a veritable platform for the promotion of green life education. It made available an exquisite garden with arrays of unique facilities to educate our youth population in nursery, primary, secondary schools.
Students of tertiary institutions studying botany, agriculture and other related courses no longer have problems in finding a suitable organisation to do their compulsory industrial training, something that was a great challenge in the time past.
Members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) have benefited on numerous occasions from the unique facilities offered by Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited for executing all kinds of programmes in their service year.
Economically, Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited has consistently proved to be an effective private sector collaborator with the government in solving the intractable problem of youth unemployment. Mr Adekoya has been a consistent employer of labour for over 15 years. During that time, he has employed 45 permanent staff and hired 25 to 100 casual labourers on a regular basis.
The company has trained and produced over 200 self-employed landscapers— who are now employers of labour themselves—and continues to train individuals for this profession.
Expectedly, these various feats have made Mr Olusola Adekoya a credible recipient of many laurels and awards from distinguished Nigerian bodies, which includes a Merit Award by the National Association of Botany Students (NABOS, Unilag Chapter), ’and an Award of Excellence by Horticultural Students Society (HORTSSO), University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (UNAAB).
Mr. Adekoya was also designated an ‘Environment Champion’ by the Nigerian Arts Group and the Lagos State Government, A Noble-Hearted Beautifier of the Earth award by the organisers of Glowing Channels Charity Concert 2004, The Year 2009 Leadership Role Model award by ACYA Shomolu branch and a host of others.
Shodex Beautification Landmark Limited has effectively collaborated with the Lagos State government in the great and positive transformation of the environment through beautification since the administration of Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) to the present, under the government of Mr Babajide Olusola Sanwoolu, a facilitator for wealth creation via infrastructural development.
A 12-time recipient of the Award of Excellence from the Lagos State Government, Mr Olusola Adekoya also took part in the climate change conference in Katowice in Poland.
Mr Adekoya, who is now a legend in the landscaping profession, is widely travelled, in his quest to continuously broaden his knowledge and expertise. He has successfully executed several mega landscape projects, including:
- Beautification of the ancient and popular Tinubu square, Lagos.
- Beautification of the Costain roundabout project (First Bank-sponsored).
- Beautification of the Palm Groove and Onipanu median project.
- Beautification of the Remembrance Ground Arcade project, Alausa. (Alausa Garden, ETB-sponsored)
- Beautification of the Fara Park Estate project.
- Ijora Causeway Lawma garden project.
- Anthony/Oshodi junction triangular lay-by landscape and many others.
Mr Olusola Adekoya emerged as a quarter-finalist in an international award contest for the Best Annual Entrepreneurship Award, which has been previously won by a fellow compatriot, the late Otunba Durojaiye ‘Gadaffi” of the “shit business is a serious business” fame.
Mr Olusola Adekoya is an active member of local and international botanical bodies, such as the Nigerian Institute of Landscape Horticulturist (NILH), Africa Botanic Garden Network (ABGN), South Africa and the Botanic Garden Conservation International, England.
As an ardent believer in the protection of nature and a global warming education crusader, he floated a non-governmental organisation, called the Nature Protection and Environmental Improvement Initiative (NAPEIIN) with a mission to protect the environment by working with the youth to educate them on conservation, preservation, sustainable living practices and much more.