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Engr. Olawale Adeniji Ige, C.ENG, M.I.E.T, FNSE, FAEng, MFR, died on May 9, 2022 at the age of 83, according to his family at Ile Seedu, Ijero, Ogbomosho, Oyo State.
Engr. Olawale Ige, ex-Minister of Communications, is dead
Engr. Olawale Adeniji Ige, C.ENG, M.I.E.T, FNSE, FAEng, MFR, died on May 9, 2022 at the age of 83, according to his family at Ile Seedu, Ijero, Ogbomosho, Oyo State.
Engr Ige was the former Director-General, Ministry of Communications before becoming a Minister of Communication in 1990 and reappointed a Minister to oversee the Ministry of Transport, Aviation, and Communications in 1992, according to a statement published by his daughter, Mrs. Atinuke Olashore.
He was a member of the Nigerian Communications Commission and the inaugural Director of the Digital Bridge Institute in Abuja between 1999 and 2010.
Engr. Ige was the inaugural chairman of the Nigeria Internet Group and a member of the International Telecommunications Union’s First World Telecommunications Advisory Group with headquarters in Geneva.
He began his professional career as an Engineering Assistant with the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation in Ibadan in 1957 before moving to the United Kingdom to study Electrical Engineering in 1961.
He began his career as an engineer with the Federal Ministry of Communications (Posts and Communications Department) upon his return to Nigeria in 1967, rising to become the first coordinating Director (Internal) of NITEL and then the General Manager, Long Distance Communications, NITEL in 1985.
In 1993, he began his consulting career and was hired as a consultant for the development of regional African satellite communications.
He was awarded the national honour of Member of the Federal Republic (MFR) in 1979 for his contribution to the country’s growth and development.
He was married to the late Mrs. Aderonke Ige (Nee Fetuga), and they had four children together. He was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Lagos, where he served on the Deaconate Board.
His children, Mrs. Atinuke Olashore, Mr. Babasola Ige, Mr. Adegbola Ige, and Mrs. Banke Laycock, as well as eight grandchildren, survive him.
