Margaret Oguntala Profile: Investiture Of 1st Female President Of NSE

PROFILE OF MARGARET AINA OGUNTALA FNSE, FNSChE – ERELU

The life of Margaret Aina Oguntala is an open book. In everything she does, she ensures that she exemplifies diligence, good team spirit, excellence, capacity, competence, dignity, integrity, vision, commitment, contentment, accountability and unblemished character. She is, indeed, according to Aare Afe Babalola SAN, “a woman of substantial substance”.

Otherwise known as Erelu, Margaret obtained a B.ENG degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Benin in 1986. She was inducted as a Corporate member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in 1996, registered with Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) the same year and later became a Fellow of NSE in 2010. A Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (NSChE), Margaret is also a Fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC). A certified Environmental Consultant with proven success in executive and boardroom positions, she has participated in numerous Continuing Professional Development Programs both at home and abroad in order to keep herself up to date with the trends in the field of Engineering and Management.

Engr. Oguntala began her career as a Youth Corper with North Brewery Limited, Kano where she worked as an Operator and Assistant process Supervisor. She later gained employment as a Chemical Sales Executive with Afro International Enterprises Ltd, Matori Lagos in 1988 where she rose to the position of Marketing Manager before leaving to start her own Company, Bamsat Nigeria Limited in 1992. The Company which started as a chemical sales outfit has grown in leaps and bounds under her watch and diversified into other areas such as Environmental Consultancy, Oil & Gas services and Fire/Safety with clients amongst which are NNPC, First Bank of Nigeria PLC, Guinness Nig. PLC and Alaro Free Trade Zone.

OTHER CURRENT ENGAGEMENTS

Managing Partner, Bamsat Engineering Limited
Board Member, BlackHouse Media
Council Member, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN
Member, Governing Council, Lagos State Polytechnic
Member, College Industry Board, College of Engineering, Covenant University, Ota.

SERVICE

Margaret’s leadership qualities manifested early in life when she was made a Prefect in her final year in St. Clare’s Grammar School, Offa, Kwara State. In her quest for service while in the University of Benin, she was elected and served as Treasurer of Engineering Students’ Society and member, Student Union Congress in 1982 and 1984 respectively.

In her 25 years of membership of NSE, she has served diligently in various capacities.

She was Chairman of NSE Ikeja Branch (2009 – 2011) during which she led her Exco to ensure the completion of the 1st phase of the NSE Ikeja Branch Secretariat and moved the Branch into the permanent Secretariat building named Ralph Alabi Engineering Centre.
Apart from having served as National Exco Member and Chairman/Member of various Boards/Committees of NSE amongst other roles and positions,

Margaret is a 3-term Vice President (2014, 2015 & 2016). During her tenure as Vice President, Corporate Resources and Media,
She brought an innovation into the office by seeking Partners for the Society to improve the visibility and finance of NSE as well as the welfare of members. Notable amongst them was Samsung. For the NSE – Samsung partnership,
Members enjoyed a 10% discount on Samsung products throughout the years 2014 and
At least 40 young Engineers benefited from free HVAC training.
NSE got mentioned in all Samsung fora and received giant refrigerators and Air conditioners which were given out as Prizes at the welfare night of NSE Conferences in 2014 & 2015. A cash gift of about $82, 000 (Eighty-two thousand USD) was also received from Samsung.
She secured sponsorship of the Opening Ceremony, Cultural night and Young Engineers’ Program of 2015 Conference all to the tune of about N26M
She also sought and secured sponsorship for 2000 of the 3,900 conference bags and 3900 units of 4GB USB used for Sunshine 2015.
Erelu used her position as a Member of the Board of Directors of BLACKHOUSE Media Limited to influence the organizing of free training for the Staff of the Media Department of NSE in the first quarter of 2014.
She used her position as Director with Kenol Nigeria Limited to influence the donation and installation of 10 solar light poles for the National Engineering Center, Abuja in 2015.
The quarterly magazine of NSE, “The Nigerian Engineer” was self-funded.
In the Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN), Engr. Oguntala was

National Exco member (1995 – 2004)

Chairman, 2017 Conference Planning Committee. She got sponsors for the conference bags.
She has served in the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers in various capacities and the Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN) as a Council member (2010 – 2014).

PAPER PRESENTATIONS, AWARDS & HONOURS

This good team player and woman of many parts is recognized for her contributions within and outside Engineering. She is the recipient of over 53 awards. In Engineering, she has received the coveted NSE Presidential awards ten times as well as APWEN Innovative Leader Award, APBN Meritorious Service awards and awards by various NSE Branches and Divisions.
Erelu possesses a confident ability to deliver papers and presentations smoothly and combines this with interest in scholarly articles and personal development. This has led to the delivery of over 35 papers, both published and unpublished.

MENTORING

Over the years, Margaret has grown to become a female engineering leader who inspires, teaches and mentors the upcoming generations. She is also a renowned leader and well respected personality of the National Youth Congress who preaches strategic networking and partnership as tools for professional advancement.
In recognition of her mentoring role, she was appointed the Matron of Nigerian Universities Engineering Students Association, NUESA and the Association of Campus Journalists.

FAMILY AND HOBBIES
In spite of her heavy engagements, Margaret remains a committed family woman, a supportive wife to her husband of almost 33 years, Engr. Theophilus Ademola OGUNTALA FNSE, a dutiful mother to her grown children and a doting grandmother to her grandchildren. She enjoys traveling, acting and reading.

MISSION STATEMENT

To serve the Nigerian Society of Engineers by diligently and wholeheartedly contributing to the building of a pacesetting Society which would be a World-Class professional body that would

Boost mandatory continuing professional development and capacity building which requires training, retraining, updating and refreshing of the technical knowledge and skills of members to meet global challenges of the 21st Century,
Engage government, industry and other stakeholders on issues of welfare of engineering personnel to ensure that Engineers get the best out of their chosen career in terms of remuneration and other benefits while also Broadening the range of available discounted products and services for members,
Advocate for reforms in engineering education, in collaboration with COREN and other stakeholders in the Nigerian Technology space, to empower young graduates with requisite attributes and skills for global competitiveness,
Encourage local and international investment in grants for research and development thereby improving the synergy between the industry and academia,
Build on existing strategic networks with the diaspora and other relevant engineering associations and institutions around the world to ensure that NSE enjoys maximum visibility and relevance while providing a strong voice on matters of science and technology in order to ensure membership growth, improved finance and greater respect for the Nigerian Engineer.
Signed

Engr. Margaret Aina Oguntala FNSE, FNSChE