Tag: Nigerians in America

African Food

Sam Osemene’s place is not just an African market, it is a meeting place for African immigrants in Austin, Texas.

By Ebimo Amungo

Sam Osemene and his team must be doing something right. A steady stream of Uber Eats and Door Dash delivery drivers strolled into his restaurant to pick up orders for clients just as plates of an assortment of African dishes were being served to dine-in clients.

Seated on different tables were a potpourri of African immigrants that included Congolese, Cameroonians, Ghanaians, Nigerians and Liberians eating and chatting over beer about their work and life in Austin, Texas.

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Uncategorized

Nigerian-Americans Serving in the Biden Administration recognised for their excellence

By Ebimo Amungo

The professionals among the Nigerian community in America recently organised an event where a number Nigerian-Americans in the Biden Administration were recognized for their excellence.

News of the event was brought to light in a tweet by Dr. Ngozi Okonji-Iweala, the Director-General of World Trade Organisation.

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African Food

At The Green Place in Brooklyn, Fufu is the favorite food of Americans

By Ebimo Amungo

Jollof rice may be the rage but at The Green Place, fufu is the food that is ordered the most by Americans.


Joy Green, owner of this Nigerian restaurant on Rockaway Avenue in Brooklyn, New York, gave this insight with a laud guffaw.


“They also order a lot of okra soup” she added laughing.

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Sports

New York Giants sign Nigerian offensive tackle Roy Mbaeteka from NFL international pathway program

By PAT LEONARD | NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Maybe one day, Roy Mbaeteka can be the Giants’ Jordan Mailata.

The Giants signed Mbaeteka, a 6-9, 320-pound Nigerian offensive tackle, out of the NFL’s international pathway program on Friday, the team announced.

He has no high school or college football experience. The team says former star Giants pass rusher Osi Umenyiora has mentored Mbaeteka, 22, and first saw him at a camp in Nigeria in May 2021.

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African Food

Spice Kitchen wants to change the world with its stellar Nigerian food


By Tim Carman | The Washington Post

Thin strips of beef, dusted with a formidable West African spice blend, are scattered atop a waxy sheet of “The American Times,” a faux newspaper whose motto is “All the News That Changes the World.” The slogan, an obvious riff on the Gray Lady’s 19th-century retort to yellow journalism, seems custom-made for Olumide Shokunbi and Spice Kitchen.


Shokunbi earned his stripes in the restaurant business at Chipotle Mexican Grill, rising to the level of general manager at a store in his native Bowie, Md. The chain left its mark on him, not so much with its approach to customization but with its big-tent philosophy.

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Sports

Onwuzurike named Athlete of the week in US

By Monica Iheakam | The Sun

Nigeria’s Udodi Onwuzurike has earned his first Track Athlete of the week award after his phenomenal performance at the Stanford Invitational last weekend at Cobb Track and Angell Field in USA.

The World U20 champion,last weekend, broke Stanford Univeeity’s  freshman records in both the 100 and 200 meters races  in his collegiate debut running 10.14 in the 100m prelims and topping it  that with a 10.07 in the final, which is No. 2 in America this year.

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Conferences

Conference on Current Business Issues in African countries ends at Wagner College, New York.

By Ebimo Amungo

A conference on Current Business Issues in African countries has ended in New York. Hosted by Nicolais School of Business at Wagner College, the conference examined the impact of Covid 19 on Supply Chains, Climate Change, Sustainable Development, and Entrepreneurship in Africa.

Participants, at the conference, which ran between the 7th and 8th of April, 2022, were drawn from all over Africa, America and the New York Metropolitan area. The conference was held in a hybrid format with both on-campus and online participation.

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Uncategorized

Tope Awotona | Nigeria-Born Techpreneur Who Is One Of America’s Wealthiest Immigrants

By Amy Feldman | Forbes

Tope Awotona, the 40-year-old founder and chief executive of Calendly, leans back in his chair and lets loose a loud guffaw.

“You call it on message, I call it the truth,” he says, slapping his hands on the table. The truth, as Awotona has it, is that everyone needs Calendly, his scheduling software, to lead better, more productive, happier work lives.

Nine years ago, Awotona started Calendly, pouring his life savings of $200,000 into it and later quitting his job selling software for EMC. Today, the company has 10 million users and counts Lyft, Ancestry.com, Indiana University and La-Z-Boy among its customers.

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Awards

Nigerian Professor wins Distinguished Scholar Award in U.S.

By Premium Times

A Nigerian professor, Chris Ogbondah, has won the Distinguished Scholar Award for the 2021-2022 academic year at the University of Northern Iowa in the United States of America. The award is given annually to the lecturer in the university who is most accomplished in scholarly and creative activity.

A letter dated March 11, 2022, which was signed by Gabriela Olivares, Associate Dean, Graduate College of the university, and addressed to Professor Ogbondah said: “The Graduate College is pleased to inform you that the faculty committee for the 2021-2022 Distinguished Scholar Award has selected you as the recipient from a group of excellent nominees.

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Awards

Nigerian-American Professor Tolu Oyesanya Wins Prestigious American Award in Nursing

by Victor Duru | Legit

History has been made in the US as a Nigerian-American professor emerged the recipient of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) Deborah L. Wilkerson Early Career Award for 2022.

Professor Tolulope Oyesanya was named the recipient of the prestigious award in a tweet by Duke University School of Nursing.

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Uncategorized

Bola Ibidapo | Daughter of Nigerian Immigrants Helping Under-Represented Students See the World

By Rashaad Jorden | Skift

Studying abroad doesn’t have to be a pipe dream for young Hispanic and African Americans. Bola Ibidapo’s Too Fly Foundation is on a mission to help young people overcome the barriers they face in their communities that prevent them from traveling the globe.

When Bola Ibidapo learned her friend Brandon Miller was raising money to help young students obtain passports, she immediately told Miller she was eager to provide assistance.

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Health

Making healthcare more accessible for Cleveland’s Congolese community

Story and Photos by Michael Indriolo | The Land

Snow fell outside last Saturday, but the mood was warmer inside the Amour du Christ Church on Clark Avenue where a few of Cleveland’s Congolese refugees braved the cold for a health clinic put on by IKON Health Foundation and The Refugee Response’s Community Advisory Board. 

This health clinic, like its predecessor at Cleveland’s Somali Community Center in February, was designed to make basic health services more accessible for local refugee populations who face language, cultural and logistical barriers to getting healthcare they need.

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Music

Nigerians dominate Billboard US Afrobeats Songs chart

By Gabriel Myers Hansen | Music Africa

Nigerian singer CKay is leading the Billboard US Afrobeats Songs chart, which debuted on 29 March. The chart was launched through a partnership between Afrobeats festival brand Afro Nation and music and entertainment magazine Billboard. Afro Nation was also responsible for initiating the weekly Official Afrobeats Chart on BBC Radio 1Xtra in 2020.

The Billboard US Afrobeats Songs chart, which was fuelled by the genre’s growing global demand, ranks the top 50 Afrobeats songs in the US based on official streaming data from leading audio and video music services, as well as download sales from top music retailers.

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African Food

Celebrating the African Influences in African American Cuisine

By Taiwo Balogun | Okay Africa

Africans have been instrumental in shaping the cuisine of America and the rest of the world for centuries — from the slaves who were forced across the Atlantic and brought with them unique foods, culinary traditions, and technologies, to the later African American chefs, farmers, innovators, and businesses who have profoundly impacted the way we eat and think about food. The Africa Center’s exhibition, titled African/American: Making the Nation’s Table, curated by Dr. Jessica Harris, a leading expert on the culinary culture of the African diaspora, seeks to honor those individuals and their legacy.

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Uncategorized

Lawrence Udeigwe uses elegant math to understand complex systems of the brain

By Leah Campbell | MIT News

It’s a tale familiar to many first-generation students: Neither of Lawrence Udeigwe’s parents had more than a sixth-grade education, and yet they were willing to sacrifice everything to educate their children.

“My dad,” Udeigwe says, “would tell us, ‘I’m ready to sell everything for you guys to go to school.’”

Udeigwe recounts that in Nigeria at the time, achieving the sort of success and stability his parents hoped for meant studying something practical and working for the government. So, he moved to the United States, enrolled at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, and majored in computer science.

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Uncategorized

Nigerian-Born Toyin Tofade Becomes First Black Female President Of U.S. College

By Adejayan Gbenga Gsong | Within Nigeria

Nigeria’s Toyin Tofade has been appointed as the first black female president of the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) founded in 1881. According to a press release by the college, Ms Tofade was selected to become the 10th president of the college, following a comprehensive search.

“Dr Tofade is the first Black woman to serve as president of Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in the college’s 141-year history. She begins her term on July 1, 2022,” the release said.

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Arts

In ‘A Place In Time,’ A Painter And A Photographer Explore Africa’s Give And Take With Black American Culture

By Maxwell Evans | Black Club Chicago

Nigerian-born painter Dayo Laoye always has relied on the generosity of South Siders to support his work. After twelve years tirelessly working to establish himself within the South Side’s Black arts scene, South Side Community Art Center co-founder Margaret Burroughs gave him several canvasses to use. They were musty and needed priming before he could use them, but they were a meaningful vote of confidence from one of the community’s most influential supporters of the arts.

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Arts, News

SMITHSONIAN TO RETURN COLLECTION OF BENIN BRONZES TO NIGERIA

By artforum

In a decision that could mark a turning point in the growing restitution movement, the Smithsonian Institution announced on March 8 that it will repatriate to Nigeria nearly all of the thirty-nine Benin bronzes held in its collection. Many of the objects are believed to be part of the trove of some 90,000 brass, bronze, and ivory items looted from the Republic of Benin, as Nigeria was then known, in 1897 by British troops and dispersed across the Continent and then to parts west.

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Africans in America's Media

A Nigerian Doctor’s Fight for Equitable Access to Vaccines

By Ginanne Brownell | The New York Times

Dr. Ayoade Alakija, an infectious disease specialist based in Nigeria, is co-chair of the African Union’s Vaccine Delivery Alliance (AVDA). In December 2021, Dr. Alakija, nicknamed Yodi, was put in charge of accelerating equitable access to Covid-19 tests, treatments and vaccines for the World Health Organization’s global initiative known as the Access to Covid-19 Tools Accelerator. She uses the term “global north” to describe high-income countries and “global south” to describe low- and middle-income countries.

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Uncategorized

Nigerians in Chicago, Minnesota, Indianapolis requesting passports since 2018 yet to get

By NAN

Areport by the Nigerian consulate general in New York has revealed that there are outstanding passport requests dating back to 2018 that have yet to be responded to.

Consulate general Lot Egopija disclosed this in a report of the activities of the consulate in 2021.

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Embassies

Nigerian Consulate in New York laments increasing fake divorce documents

By NAN

The Consulate-General of Nigeria in New York has lamented the increasing number of fake divorce documents received from its nationals for certification in 2021.

A report on the activities of the Consulate for 2021 obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York, said that the documents, purportedly issued by various courts in Nigeria, were presented to the Consulate-General for certification.

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Uncategorized

Chiamaka Agbasi-Porter |Nigerian-American winner of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Awards who is inspiring futures in STEM

By Kylie Foy | MIT Lincoln Laboratory

“My day-to-day is forming relationships,” says Chiamaka Agbasi-Porter, Lincoln Laboratory’s K–12 STEM outreach coordinator. Each July, when Chiamaka Agbasi-Porter welcomes a new group of high school seniors to MIT Lincoln Laboratory’s two-week residential radar program, she starts with a question: Who here is applying to MIT?

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Uncategorized

Nigerian-American Adedolapo Adedokun named 2023 Mitchell Scholar by MIT

By MIT News

MIT senior Adedolapo “Dolapo” Adedokun has been named one of 12 winners of the George J. Mitchell Scholarship’s Class of 2023. After completing his degree in electrical engineering and computer science next spring, he will travel to Ireland to undertake a MSc in intelligent systems at Trinity College Dublin as MIT’s fourth student to receive this award.

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Health

There’s no single American hospital without a Nigerian: U.S. Professor

By NAN

There is no single hospital in the United States that does not have a Nigerian in its service, claims a U.S.-based historian and professor of African Studies, Apollos Nwauwa. 

“Apart from Indians, Nigerians are the most consequential immigrants in the U.S. based on the difference they make in many notable ways.

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Uncategorized

Jephtah Chidozie-Uche | Nigerian co-founder of fintech startup Kippa, invited to join Forbes Technology Council

By Victor Oluwole | Business Insider Africa

Jephtah Chidozie-Uche, co-Founder and CTO of Kippa, the fast-growing fintech start-up, has been accepted into Forbes Technology Council, an invitation-only organisation for world-class CIOs, CTOs, and technology executives.

Continue reading “Jephtah Chidozie-Uche | Nigerian co-founder of fintech startup Kippa, invited to join Forbes Technology Council” →
Uncategorized

Ikenna Okezie, MD | Meet the Nigerian-born co-founder of the largest values based provider of kidney care in Ameica

By Ebimo Amungo

Ikenna Okezie, MD, MBA is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Somatus, the market leader in value-based kidney care. Dr. Okezie founded Somatus in 2016 to introduce a preventive and more holistic solution for patients with or at risk of developing Chronic Kidney Disease or End-Stage Renal Disease. Under his leadership, the organization has grown to provide high-quality and customized care to nearly 21,000 patients with kidney disease across multiple states, employ over 300 clinical and operational leaders, and establish innovative, value-based partnerships with leading health plans, health systems, and providers.

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Business

Ikenna Okezie’s Somatus Raises $325M to Deliver Proven Value-Based Kidney Care Model to More Americans with Kidney Disease

By Businesswire

Co-founded by Nigerian-born Ikeena Okezie, Somatus, America ’s leading and largest value-based kidney care company, announced an oversubscribed Series E financing of $325+ million, at a valuation of over $2.5 billion. The funding will be used to further the reach and impact of its value-based kidney care model.

Continue reading “Ikenna Okezie’s Somatus Raises $325M to Deliver Proven Value-Based Kidney Care Model to More Americans with Kidney Disease” →
Uncategorized

Nigerian fintech, Sudo Africa raises $3.7 million pre-seed from San Francisco based venture capitalist firm.

By Michelle Ezenduka | nairametrics

Nigerian fintech, Sudo Africa has raised $3.7 million in pre-seed funding round led by Global Founders Capital a San Francisco based venture capitalist firm.

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Africa, African Politics

Nigerian Senate rejects diaspora vote

LAGOS (Reuters) – Nigeria’s Senate on Tuesday voted to reject changes to the constitution to allow citizens living abroad to vote in national elections, while a provision to allocate special seats for women to increase their political representation failed to pass.

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Appointments

Citigroup elevates Nigerian-American Titi Cole to lead legacy franchises

Citigroup Inc named Nigeeian-American Titi Cole as the chief executive officer of its legacy franchises segment, primarily consisting of the consumer businesses that the bank’s set to exit soon, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.

Continue reading “Citigroup elevates Nigerian-American Titi Cole to lead legacy franchises” →