Forbes Names Okonjo Iweala, One of the Unsung Heroes Of 2014

The Chairman of Global Business Policy
Council of A.T Kearney, a top global
management consulting firm, Mr. Paul
Laudicina, has named the Coordinating
Minister for the Economy and Minister of
Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, number
one on his list of five “Unsung Leaders of
2014” based on a survey.
Writing in Forbes magazine, Laudicina said
the minister and four other distinguished
leaders stood out for demonstrating
“capability, reliability and authenticity” in the
discharge of their duties at different levels.
Okonjo-Iweala, the first woman finance
minister of Nigeria, the world’s seventh
largest country, was lauded for fighting
endemic corruption and helping to refurbish
Nigeria’s image and economic prospects.
The management expert stated that while
there is a tendency to focus on the negative
and on leaders who fail to live up to
expectation, “maybe we have not looked long
or hard enough to find the real leaders right
under our gaze.”
He stated that “We all know intuitively that
none of our institutions would be working at
all if there weren’t committed, capable,
reliable and authentic leaders delivering on
their promises day in and out, and adding
value to the lives of the people they serve.
“We also know the difference a respected
leader can make in inspiring broader support
for noble humanitarian, peacekeeping, or
governmental missions.”
The others on list are: Pope Francis’ right-
hand man and Vatican Secretary of State,
Pietro Parolin, Indian-born engineer, Arati
Prabhakar, who is the Director of the US
Department of Defence’s Defence Advanced
Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the
brother of Jordan’s King, Prince Feisal Al
Hussein, Prince Feisal, and former President
of Mexico, Felipe Calderon.