His Excellency, Governor Abubakar Bukola Saraki, Governor of Kwara State
Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, Governor of Kwara State, has experienced great success in both the private sector and public service.
Born on 19 December 1962, Governor Saraki was raised in an independent Nigeria. He was educated in both Nigeria and the UK, and qualified and practised as a doctor in London. Returning to Nigeria in 1989, Dr Saraki began a career in the private sector. For nearly a decade, he oversaw corporate development and expansion programmes within the financial industry.
In 2000, Dr Saraki was appointed Special Assistant to the President on Budget. In this role he initiated the Fiscal Responsibility Bill. Dr Saraki also served on the Economic Policy Co-ordination Committee, where he was responsible for the formulation and implementation of key economic policies. Having served effectively in those roles, Dr Saraki was appointed Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Non-Oil Revenue Generation.
With a vision to translate his experiences into progress for the people of his home state, Dr Saraki decided to run for Governor of Kwara State.
He was elected in 2003, and in a demonstration of overwhelming support, Kwarans re-elected him in 2007. As Governor, Dr Bukola Saraki has garnered national and international acclaim for his innovative approach to health and educational reforms. His strategy of social and economic development, has been praised and emulated within Nigeria.
Governor Saraki was elected as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors‘ Forum, was awarded the National Honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger, and continues to serve as a nobleman of high rank in his capacity as the Turaki of the Ilorin Emirate.
Governor Saraki has worked tirelessly to bring progress and greater opportunity to Kwara State and the nation as a whole. On 20 September 2010 Governor Abubakar Bukola Saraki declared his candidacy for the Presidency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Governor Saraki stands to be the youngest elected president in Nigerian history, and the first President born into an independent nation.
