Fatai Idowu Onafowote is Director General of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency, an accomplished public procurement professional and public sector administrator with over three decades of experience in the Lagos State Public Service, spanning agricultural development, project implementation, public procurement, regulatory governance and institutional reform.
He began his career in the Lagos State Public Service in 1992 as a Seed Officer with the Lagos State Agricultural Development Project, before transitioning fully into public procurement. Between 2009 and 2016, he served in procurement roles under the World Bank assisted Commercial Agricultural Development Project, covering procurement planning, bid evaluation, contract administration and compliance. He also participated in drafting the Lagos State Public Procurement Law enacted in 2011 and played a key role in operationalising the State’s procurement regulatory framework.
He was appointed Acting General Manager of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency in May 2016 and confirmed as substantive General Manager in December 2018. Following the enactment of the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency Law 2021, his designation changed to Director General. In this role, he has led the Agency’s efforts to strengthen transparency, accountability, competition, due process and value for money in public expenditure, overseeing procurement reviews, compliance assessments, audits, policy reform, capacity development and the continued digital transformation of the State’s procurement system.
Mr. Onafowote holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Biochemistry and Nutrition from the University of Ibadan and a Master of Information Science from the African Regional Centre for Information Science, University of Ibadan, alongside specialised training in procurement, contract and project management across Nigeria, Canada, the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates and Ireland. He is a Fellow of the Association of Public Procurement Practitioners of Nigeria (APPON), a Fellow of the Institute of Information Management Africa, an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Management of Nigeria, and a member of the Chartered Institute of Directors, Nigeria.
His contributions to procurement reform and institutional governance have earned him several recognitions, including the Distinguished GovTech Trailblazer’s Award (2023), Public Sector Procurement Personality of the Year (2023), Procurement Leader of the Year (2025), Public Procurement Leadership Award (2025), Most Innovative Procurement Director General of the Year (2025), the NIPSS Integrity Ambassador Award, and the APPON Award of Excellence (2026).
Session: E-commerce and Procurement
Date: Tuesday 25th August 2026
📍 Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Port Harcourt
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