Olayinka Hakeem Babalola takes over as President of Rotary International

*The second African to lead the global membership organization will focus on peacebuilding and local and global challenges

A Nigerian, Olayinka Hakeem Babalola, will take over as president of Rotary International on Wednesday.
Babalola, the second African to lead the global membership organisation, is a member of the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi in Nigeria.
A statement from Rotary International said that during his one-year term, Babalola will focus on strengthening Rotary’s contribution to peacebuilding and supporting sustainable, community-led solutions that address local and global challenges and improve lives.
Babalola said, “Rotary offers people the opportunity to not only make a difference in their communities, but also to grow through meaningful relationships, collaboration and a deeper appreciation of diverse perspectives.

“At a time when many societies are facing division and uncertainty, I believe Rotary has an important role to play in building understanding, promoting peace and creating opportunities for communities to thrive.

“As president, I look forward to highlighting and strengthening this impact around the world.”

Babalola brings to this role decades of experience promoting community development, peacebuilding and public health initiatives across Africa. He was actively involved in the Rotary Peace Center at Makerere University in Uganda, the first organization on the continent.

As the leader of Rotary’s 45,000 clubs worldwide, Babalola will lead Rotary’s top priority: eradicating polio. Together with partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Rotary has reduced polio cases by 99.9 percent and contributed more than $3 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect more than 3 billion children from this paralyzing disease.

He has also been deeply involved in Rotary’s efforts to eradicate polio, serving on the End Polio Now Countdown to History campaign committee and advising Nigeria’s national PolioPlus commission.

Rotary members around the world develop and implement sustainable, community-driven projects that fight disease, promote peace, provide clean water, support education, save mothers and children, grow local economies, and protect the environment.
More than $5.5 billion has been awarded through The Rotary Foundation – the charitable arm of Rotary that helps clubs work together to perform meaningful and impactful service – to support these initiatives over the past 100 years.