Nigerian energy magnate Igho Charles Sanomi II has been named this year’s Forbes Best of Africa Leading Philanthropist in recognition of his activities in child health and education, cancer research and community development.
Sanomi, 47, is the founder of the Taleveras Group, an international commodities trading company with operations across numerous African countries. He is the founder of the Dickens Sanomi Foundation which funds a number of philanthropic activities projects and grants scholarships to impoverished children.
His philanthropic efforts through the Dickens Sanomi Foundation, which he founded with his siblings to honor his father, earned him a commendation from Cancer Research UK and the Bobby Moore Fund in the United Kingdom for his philanthropy towards bowel cancer research.
The Forbes Best of Africa Leading Philanthropist 2022 award was presented to him on September 20th by Mark Furlong President of Forbes Media during a reception hosted Forbes Media on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly Meetings in New York.
Forbes stated that the award is in recognition of his notable achievements as well as his many humanitarian works through his Foundation, which has consistently helped some social reformations as well as provided education, healthcare, and relief materials to the oppressed and disadvantaged.
“Your capacity to lead and help different Nationalities through your business, work and extraordinary Philanthropic activities has positioned you as a role model for many in Africa and beyond,” Forbes said, praising Sanomi’s philanthropic efforts.
In a letter of thanks for the Forbes Best of Africa Leading Philanthropist of the Year Award, Sanomi thanked Forbes Media, Forbes Best of Africa, and the Foreign Investment Network for celebrating and recognizing the efforts of his foundation, the Dickens Sanomi Foundation, which he established more than eight years ago.
“It is a great honour and privilege to be awarded Forbes Best of Africa Leading Philanthropist of the Year. You can be rest assured this will motivate me and the entire team to keep working towards the greater good of mankind,” he said.
“As the late Andrew Carnegie, an astute New York entrepreneur in the mid 19th century who I truly admire said, “wealth is not to feed our egos but to feed the hungry and to help people help themselves.” This duty extends to our wealth and to our time, one which I undertake to carry on within all of of my philanthropic activities, covering cancer research, education, healthcare, and global employment to name a few,” Sanomi added.
In recent years, Sanomi has played an important role in the fight against cancer, as evidenced by his collaboration with the Bobby Moore Fund and Cancer Research UK, which has helped the organization raise millions of dollars in recent years to combat bowel cancer.