The first of its kind in Nigeria, this book profiles seven remarkable organisations, tracing their business histories, spanning 1923 till 2005, and highlighting the fundamental prerequisites for effective succession and business sustainability. From nonprofit organisations to publicly traded institutions, from triumph to tragedy, these case studies highlight the fundamental prerequisites for effective succession and business sustainability in the Nigerian context.

The book features a foreword from Professor John L. Ward, an internationally recognized Professor of Family Enterprise of the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA and endorsements from private and public sector leaders.

According to Christopher Kolade, the Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, “Defying the Odds uses the examples of firms that have actually succeeded to prove to us that “it can be done”.

Professor John Davis, of the Harvard Business School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA notes that “Defying the Odds is an extraordinarily useful and inspiring book. Its seven interesting and well written stories of long lived Nigerian family companies are instructive about the practices that keep families in business for generations.”

The launch of this book will coincide with LEAP Africa’s 2 nd Annual CEO’s Forum which is scheduled to hold on April 4 th, 2006 at the MUSON Center, Onikan, Lagos.

For further information about the book, please contact Oyebola Olabisi at oolabisi@leapafrica.org or 234 1 270 6541/2