Okonjo-Iweala tops a new ranking of Nigeria's thought leaders
Cardoso, Adesina, Dangote and Elumelu complete the top five of Podhium's first GREY Capital Index; 44% of the 500 ranked are women.
Lagos — WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is Nigeria's leading thought leader, according to the first GREY Capital Index, published by Podhium, a Lagos-based reputation ratings firm. She scored 91.2 out of 100.
The top ten
1. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, 91.2 2. Yemi Cardoso, Central Bank governor, 83.0 3. Akinwumi Adesina, former AfDB president, 81.0 4. Aliko Dangote, 78.6 5. Tony Elumelu, 77.4
The rest of the top ten are Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, Jim Ovia, Atedo Peterside and the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi.
How it works
More than 3,000 names were screened and 500 leaders across 25 sectors were ranked on the depth, originality, reach and influence of their ideas. Only 10 reached the top "Apex Architect" tier, with a score of 75 or more.
Women make up 222 of the 500, or 44.4%. No serving banker made the top tier, which the report links to the risks of speaking openly in regulated industries.
Source: AllAfrica, 26 October 2026.
