Akaego Okoye

Akaego Elizabeth Okoye is the Founder of African Business Stories (ABS), an enterprise platform advancing women-led businesses across Africa by expanding their access to finance and strengthening their global positioning.

Her work focuses on how capital, institutions and global networks can be better mobilized to build stronger, globally competitive African businesses. Through ABS, she brings entrepreneurs, investors, financial institutions and policymakers into substantive engagement and translates those conversations into practical financing tools, research and partnerships. She has led high-level initiatives in Africa and the United States, including engagements during the United Nations General Assembly and the World Bank Group and IMF Spring Meetings.

Akaego brings over two decades of experience across law, aviation, trade, investment and U.S.–Africa business development. She previously served as Director of U.S.–Africa Business Development at global law firm DLA Piper and Director of Member Relations at the Corporate Council on Africa. Earlier, as Head of Legal and Corporate Affairs at EAN Aviation, she played a leading role in establishing Nigeria’s first purpose-built private jet terminal and an aircraft maintenance facility.

Akaego is a qualified lawyer in England and Wales and Nigeria, holding an LLB in Law from the University of Kent and an LLM in Commercial and Corporate Law from University College London and serves on the Advisory Board of 1952 Africa.