School Governers
Dr Rapu, Nkoyo
Advisory Board Member
Mrs Rapu is a lawyer, author, pastor and a woman of diverse interests and skills.
A passion for education and a desire to support the less privileged led to her establishing the Bethesda Child Support Agency in 2001, with a focus on addressing generational poverty by providing free education through the Bethesda Nursery & Primary schools in various areas of Lagos and Ogun States. Bethesda has been able to offer free educational support to over 5,000 children mainly through the 4 schools that the agency had set up in poor communities. The Scholarship program at both the secondary school and university levels ensures the continuity of the education of these children.
The success of the Bethesda Model culminated in an invitation in 2015 to Harvard University to speak at The Institute of African Studies on “Social Entrepreneurship in Africa: citing The Bethesda Model.”
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In addition to her serving on the advisory Board of Governors of BIS, she also sits on the board of Freedom Foundation and the House of Freedom, an evangelical movement made up of distinct churches such as This Present House, the Waterbrook Church and the Holy Trinity Church. She is also is also involved with the strategic planning and decision making of the Springfield International School, a 33 year old school founded in Port Harcourt by her family; as well as being an Executive member of the Justice P.O.E Bassey Foundation established for the purpose of promoting the advancement of legal studies and education in honour of her late father who was the first indigenous judge of the then South Eastern state of Nigeria in 1968.
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In recognition of her efforts in community development, she was named the ‘‘Island News’’ Personality of the Year in 2003 and received a Genevieve Magazine Award for outstanding women in 2008. In further recognition of her service to mankind, she was presented the “Humanitarian & Selfless Award” by Topgrade International School in 2017.
Mr Bijleveld, Paul
Advisory Board Member
Mr Bijleveld is an investment banker with over 25 years of experience with Barclays, Morgan Stanley, UBS and ABN Amro, and was Head of Investment Banking at Barclays/ABSA, based in Johannesburg.
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Mr Bijleveld, who was on the board of the Responsible Mining Foundation, is also a founding Partner of Ake Partners, a government relatons, publc policy and investment advisory firm which assists companies and investors navigate the operational, procedural and regulatory obstacles of doing business or seeking to invest in sub-Saharan Africa.
Paul is a Dutch national and holds a Law degree (LLM) from Leiden University.
Ms Doherty, Folasade
Advisory Board Member
Ms Doherty is a seasoned and astute legal professional with over three decades of post-qualification experience as a lawyer in Government, in a multinational enterprise and in private practice.
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She is a member of both the Nigerian Bar Association and the International Bar Association, with a Masters in International Business Law from the University of London as a British Chevening Scholar; and was elected the first Legal Adviser of the Chevening Alumni Association Nigeria in 2017.
She is presently involved in committee work for the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON), whilst also serving on the advisory Board of Banana Island School.
Mr Adeleke, Adebayo
Advisory Board Member
Mr Adeleke is a long-time professional and senior executive in the Nigerian banking & finance industry, having served in a number of executive and senior roles that included, but not limited to, M.D./C.E.O FBN Capital Limited and Vice President First Bank of Nigeria Plc.
Mr Adeleke is currently C.E.O. of Opticom Finance Limited, whilst also serving as a Director of La Casera Company, and on the advisory Board of Banana Island School.