John Obaro

John Tanimola Obaro is a Nigerian, technology entrepreneur, public speaker and founder of SystemSpecs Nigeria Limited.[1]

John Obaro
Born (1958-04-19) 19 April 1958
Kogi State, Nigeria
OccupationManaging Director of SystemSpecs
Years activefrom 1992 till date

Early life and education

John Obaro is from Kogi State. He is of the Okun tribe in Nigeria, and was born April 19, 1958. He had his formative years in Kano and Ilorin, Kwara State, where he had elementary education. Raphael Awoseyin "unconsciously influenced" Obaro's decision to study Computer Science.[2] Obaro had his primary education at Baptist School in Ilorin, and his secondary, at Government Secondary School, Ilorin from 1970 to 1974. It was here that Awoseyin, then a temporary teacher in the school, taught Obaro's class mathematics. It stimulated Obaro's interest in the subject, to the point that he (Obaro) decided to study mathematics and computer science in the university. Obaro proceeded to Kwara State College of Technology, now renamed Kwara State Polytechnic for a diploma. He attended the Ahmadu Bello University where he graduated with a second class upper degree in Mathematics and Computer Science in 1979. He proceeded to have an MBA from the University of Lagos in 1981. He is an alumnus of Lagos Business School (LBS), Chief Executive Programme at the Pan-African University, Nigeria, Lagos.[3][4] Obaro was accepted into Stanford Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies, a program which "serves promising companies in developing countries by providing business training and onsite coaching."[5]

Career

Obaro had his first stint in formal employment as a part-time teacher while he was pursuing his MBA.[6] He started his professional career as a computer salesman at Leventis Group from where he moved to United Bank for Africa to take up a role in Systems Development of the financial institution. In 1984, he joined now defunct International Merchant Bank of Nigeria, one of the Nigeria's earliest investment banks, where he rose to become the Head of Information Systems. In that position, he led a team that implemented Nigeria's first international banking application on a network linking Lagos and four other states. With this feat, John led a team that pioneered Nigeria's online real‐time banking.[7]

He moved on to found SystemSpecs Nigeria Limited, a company he nurtured from a 5-man partner agent of Systems Union, (now Infor) in 1991 to a financial technology company. Prominent among the solutions SystemSpecs has developed are Remita, HumanManager among others.[8][9]

Advocacy, courses and services

He is committed to promoting and advancing of local software development. He has given presentations and speeches advocating youth empowerment and IT entrepreneurship. Obaro has served on the boards of the Ministerial Advisory Council on Information and Communication Technology, Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria, Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN), Nigerian Information Technology Policy Drafting Committee, Governing Council of the National ICT Incubation Programme and others.[10]

Honours and recognition

Obaro was recognised as the "Software Personality of the Year" at the Nigeria Communication Week's Beacon of Information and Communications Technology (BoICT) Awards in Lagos on April 23, 2016.[11] He had earlier led his company to Glasgow, Scotland, where SystemSpecs was bestowed with "Leadership in Technology" award hosted by the Africa Forum Scotland for the use of Remita "as a tool of national and economic development." He was conferred a "fellow of the Centre for African Policy, Development and Research, Scotland," and had a research centre after him.[12][13] In 2015, he emerged winner of 'Engineer Simeon Agu Prize for Best Software Entrepreneur' at the National Information Technology Merit Award (NITMA), an annual event organised by Nigeria Computer Society (NCS). He was awarded Nigeria's IT Personality of the Year at the same NITMA in 2013.[14][15]

gollark: Neurons are apparently individually about as complex as a large computer "DNN".
gollark: The components aren't really understood either.
gollark: I don't know what you're saying here. It isn't as if all the operational details of the brain are particularly well-understood in any case.
gollark: Devalued how?
gollark: It isn't like knowing about something and how it works stops it being cool.

References
  1. Zweli Sikhakhane (24 June 2014). "John Obaro, SystemSpecs MD and CEO". BizNis Africa.
  2. Bode Adeyemi (30 November 2016). "Speech: Okun Youth Development And The National Equation". Kogi Reports.
  3. "Who's Who in Nigeria:OBARO John Tanimola". The Biographical Legacy & Research Foundation (BLERF), Nigeria.
  4. "John Obaro". Nigeria Computer Society.
  5. Dinesh Ramde (1 June 2015). "Seed Guides Nigerian Software Company to $100 Million Plan". Graduate School of Stanford Business.
  6. Jaco Maritz (28 May 2014). "Meet the Boss: John Obaro, CEO, SystemSpecs". How We Made in Africa.
  7. "John Obaro". Nigeria Computer Society.
  8. Prof. Bamiro, O. A. (February 2007). "The Vision and Challenges of ICT Production in Africa: Software Production and Services". African Economic Research Consortium (AERC): 10.
  9. Emma Okonji (22 December 2016). "Obaro: Remita Software Has Addressed Nigeria's Financial Imbalance". ThisDay.
  10. "About us: John Obaro". SystemSpecs.
  11. Mayowa Tijani (3 May 2016). "Remita, the TSA platform, gets international award". The Cable.
  12. "John Obaro – Managing Director of SystemSpecs was Inaugurated as a Fellow of the Centre for African Research & Development Scotland which was presented by H. E. Ekwelle Ekaney, High Commissioner for Cameroon in the UK". African Forum Scotland. 23 June 2016.
  13. "SystemSpecs recognised for contribution to national development". World Stage Group. 3 May 2016.
  14. O'Lekan Babatunde (12 January 2016). "John Obaro Wins Best Software Entrepreneur Awards". Brand Crunch.
  15. Jide Awe (5 December 2014). "Special Recognition Award Citation John Tani Obaro". Brand Crunch.
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