MEET YEWANDE SADIKU, THE EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF HALF OF THE YELLOW SUN

+WHY HER PROFILE IS ON THE RISE

Yewande Sadiku

In the last few months, the career profile of Yewande Sadiku has been on the rise. This highly intelligent lady is regarded as one of the most outstanding female bankers in Nigeria. Sadiku, the Head, Investment Banking of Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, produced the screen adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s best selling novel, Half of a Yellow Sun. The film tells the story of the effect of the Nigerian-Biafran War (1967-1970) through the dynamic relationships between two sisters and their lovers. It stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton, O.C. Ukeje, Genevieve Nnaji, Onyeka Onwenu and many others.

 An experienced investment banker, also of the Atedo Peterside School of Investment Banking, Sadiku is currently the Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited. She served as the Head of Finance Department of Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc (formerly, IBTC Chartered Bank Plc). She was responsible for the execution of debt and equity issues, mergers and acquisitions, divestitures and financial advisory assignments handled by IBTC and also responsible for the packaging, analysis and execution of a variety of assignments. At Stanbic IBTC Bank, Sadiku has handled transactions for clients in virtually every sector of the Nigerian economy, including the utilities, financial, pharmaceutical, food/beverage, packaging and conglomerate sectors.

Yewande and husband, Muktar Bakare

 In her quest to actualize her dream of producing the screen adaptation of Half of a Yellow Sun, Sadiku had embarked on an Eisenhower Fellowships in the United States of America in 2010. The fellowship was the cornerstone of her journey to the actualization of the film, and she was able to bring everything she learnt at the programme to bear in structuring the fund raising. The fellowship also afforded her the opportunity to study the role of the financial sector in supporting the development and growth of the media and entertainment industry in the U.S. During this time, Sadiku became inspired by the use of film to allow inner city communities to tell their stories. Invariably, Eisenhower Fellowships gave her the platform to explore a dream that she had had for about 18 months. Also, EF allowed her to see the U.S. through fresh eyes and to properly engage it professionally for the first time in her life. During the programme, she made many personal and professional friendships with Fellows and with professional contacts that she expects to continue long after the fellowship period. She met people who have enriched my life and who have opened her mind to possibilities.

 In May 2012, filming began for Half of a Yellow Sun, with Sadiku acting as an executive producer. Leveraging her experience as an Eisenhower Fellow, she raised about £3m for the production of the film from Nigerian investors, which was about 70% of the total budget. Sadiku sees the film as a bridge between Nigerian cinema and the international film community. Most of the local members of the crew, who make up roughly 60% of the production, are getting their first chance to work on a film with a high level of technical detail, acquiring skills that will help the local industry to move forward. 

 Sadiku believes that the success of this film will improve the comfort of Nigerian investors with film investments and allow Nigerian filmmakers to raise formal financing in the future beyond their circle of family and friends. The production quality and values of this film have also raised the bar to indicate what is possible from a production shot in Nigeria.

Sadiku holds a Bachelors degree in Industrial Chemistry from University of Benin and an MBA from University of Warwick, United Kingdom. She started her banking career with Nigeria International Bank Limited, where she worked from 1992 to 1994. She is in regular contact with the Securities & Exchange Commission, The Nigerian Stock Exchange and other regulatory authorities as well as several of Nigeria’s leading corporations and multinationals at the senior management levels. A member of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Sadiku once served as the Chairperson of the Rules and Regulations sub-Committee of SEC’s Capital Market Committee.

Though a little bit conservative, Sadiku socializes well with friends and associates. She is married to Muktar Bakare, the Managing Director of Pearson Nigeria, a subsidiary of Pearson International, which owns the Financial Times and is the largest education business in the world. Bakare is also the Kachfo Limited, the publishers of Half of a Yellow Sun, and several other award winning books, and he is the former Managing Editor of NEXT newspaper. Their union is blessed with two children.