Dr. Stella Chinyelu Okoli

Dr. Stella Chinyelu Okoli (MON, OON) is a Nigerian pharmacist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, born on July 30, 1944, in Kano State, to a family of Igbo descent from Nnewi, Anambra State. She received her education at All Saints Primary School in Onitsha and Ogidi Girls Secondary School before travelling to the United Kingdom, where she graduated from the University of Bradford in Pharmacy and later earned a Master’s degree in Biopharmaceuticals from the University of London, Chelsea College in 1971. She is also an alumna of Harvard Business School, Lagos Business School, and I.E.S.E Business School in Barcelona, a woman who never stopped learning.

In January 1977, she established what is today known as Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, starting from a small retail pharmacy in Somolu, Lagos, and growing it into one of Nigeria’s most recognised pharmaceutical companies, producing over 140 products including antimalarials, antibiotics, analgesics, and vitamins. She has served as a member of the Economic Summit of Nigeria, the Health Matters Advisory Board of Nigeria, and Vice President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, and also held a position as Non-Executive Director at Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. She is married and is a mother of three children, Emeka, Uzoma, and the late Chike Okoli.

Following the death of her son Chike in 2005, she established the Chike Okoli Foundation in 2006, aimed at fighting poverty and disease through awareness on cardiovascular health, alongside the Chike Okoli Centre for Entrepreneurial Studies, which has trained thousands of Nigerian students. Her remarkable journey has earned her numerous honours, including the Member of the Order of the Niger award, the ECOWAS International Gold Award, the CePAT Honors Lifetime Achievement Award (2014), the Ernst and Young Lifetime Achievement Award (2016), and the Institute of Directors Lifetime Achievement Award (2016).