STANDARD PROFILE OF DENZEL HENRY AKOGWU, FPCEL

Denzel Henry Akogwu, FPCEL is a distinguished business leader, philanthropist, and visionary whose career spans over fifteen years of active leadership within Nigeria’s mining, mineral trading, and exploration ecosystem. As the Principal Chief Executive Officer of Elipse International Ltd, he has built one of Nigeria’s most respected indigenous mining enterprises, transforming it into a fully integrated mineral solutions provider with national reach and growing international relevance. His influence extends beyond mining into energy transition minerals, community development, capacity building, and ethical resource governance.

An Overview of a Dynamic Career

Principal Chief Executive Officer at Elipse International Ltd

Since August 2009, Denzel Akogwu has served as the Principal Chief Executive Officer of Elipse International Exploration Solutions Limited, later formally registered as Elipse International Ltd. Under his leadership, the company has evolved from its early operational identity into a highly structured, compliance driven, and processing focused mining and mineral trading enterprise.

Originally founded in 2008 as Elipse International Solutions, the company underwent strategic transformation and rebranding in 2013 before emerging under its current corporate identity. This evolution reflects Akogwu’s long term vision to build not just a mining company but a fully integrated mineral value chain organization. Today, Elipse International operates as a trusted provider of exploration, mining, processing, inspection, buying center management, logistics coordination, and export services.

Under Akogwu’s direction, Elipse International has expanded from a regional operation into a nationally recognized mining company with multiple fully licensed mine concessions across several Nigerian states. Its mineral portfolio includes copper ore, gold, manganese, lead, zinc, tin, lithium, tantalite, columbite, molybdenum, antimony, chromite, zircon, monazite, and other critical industrial minerals aligned with global demand.

The company operates across Nigeria’s major mining corridors with active presence in states such as Plateau, Zamfara, Niger, Bauchi, and Nasarawa. Through strategically positioned mineral buying centers in cities including Jos and Zamfara, Elipse International provides transparent and standardized market access for artisanal and small scale miners, reinforcing responsible sourcing while stabilizing local mining economies.

Akogwu’s leadership emphasizes disciplined execution, operational efficiency, and strict adherence to ethical and environmental standards. Mining activities are conducted using appropriate techniques such as open pit, underground, and alluvial mining depending on geological conditions. Safety, environmental responsibility, and community trust are treated as strategic priorities rather than regulatory obligations.

A defining feature of Elipse International under his leadership is its commitment to quality assurance. All mineral products undergo rigorous inspection, laboratory testing, and grade verification before export. With a grade compliance rate approaching ninety eight percent, the company has earned the confidence of international buyers, smelters, and manufacturers. Its corporate membership of the Nigerian Shippers Council further reflects its credibility and compliance within regulated export frameworks.

Beyond extraction, Akogwu has positioned Elipse International as a processing driven enterprise. Through dedicated mineral processing facilities, raw ores are transformed into value added products that meet international industrial standards. This approach strengthens local value creation, improves export earnings, and aligns with Nigeria’s broader industrial development objectives.

Chief Executive Officer at Elipse Lithium Ltd

In February 2023, responding to the accelerating global demand for lithium driven by electric vehicles, renewable energy storage, and advanced electronics, Akogwu founded Elipse Lithium Ltd. This strategic subsidiary focuses exclusively on lithium mining, processing, and distribution, positioning Nigeria as an emerging participant in the global clean energy mineral value chain.

Elipse Lithium Ltd holds a growing portfolio of lithium concessions and is structured around local processing, transparent lithium buying centers, and international market integration. Under Akogwu’s guidance, the company emphasizes job creation, technology transfer, and responsible sourcing, ensuring that Nigeria’s lithium resources contribute meaningfully to national economic growth and global sustainability goals.

This expansion reflects Akogwu’s foresight and ability to align indigenous resources with future facing global industries, ensuring long term relevance and competitiveness.

Chairman of the Elipse Foundation

Beyond commercial success, Denzel Akogwu’s leadership philosophy is deeply rooted in social responsibility. As Chairman of the Elipse Foundation, established in September 2019, he has institutionalized the company’s commitment to community development and social impact.

The foundation operates across host communities where Elipse International conducts mining activities, delivering healthcare support, food relief programs, educational assistance, scholarship initiatives, school infrastructure rehabilitation, and skills development interventions. Through structured community engagement, the foundation reinforces the belief that mining must be transformative and inclusive, benefiting both present and future generations.

Early Career Foundations and International Exposure

Akogwu’s professional journey in the mining sector began at Coltan Global Mines, where he served as a sales representative from March 2007 to November 2009. In this role, he gained firsthand exposure to international commodity markets, mineral distribution networks, and client relationship management. This formative experience provided him with deep market insight and practical understanding of the global minerals trade, laying the groundwork for the establishment and growth of Elipse International Ltd.

Following this, he gained his first international exposure as Chief Operating Officer at Asian Global Services Ltd from 2008 to 2011. This position allowed him to acquire cross continental business experience, operational management skills, and international trade expertise, further equipping him to build a world class mining enterprise.

Educational Background and Professional Credentials

Denzel Akogwu’s leadership trajectory is supported by a solid academic foundation that blends management science, mining expertise, and international economics. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Imo State University earned between 2003 and 2007. He further obtained a Master of Business Administration in Management from the University of Jos in 2011, strengthening his strategic and executive management skills. In addition, he earned a Diploma in Information Technology with specialization in general applications from the University of Jos Consultancy between 2010 and 2012.

To deepen his technical and sectoral expertise, Akogwu pursued a Postgraduate Diploma in Mining and Geology at the prestigious School of Mines Jos, equipping him with scientific, geological, and operational insight crucial for mineral exploration and extraction. He further enhanced his strategic perspective by completing an Executive Program in Mining Economics in the United Kingdom, gaining advanced knowledge in resource valuation, investment strategy, and global mineral market dynamics. These academic and professional credentials have endowed him with strong organizational leadership skills, strategic thinking capability, and digital and technical fluency, all of which underpin his effectiveness in managing complex, multi-layer mining operations in a rapidly evolving global industry.

Elipse International Ltd as a Strategic Mining Enterprise

Under Akogwu’s leadership, Elipse International Ltd has distinguished itself as more than a mining company. It operates as a comprehensive mineral solutions provider managing the entire journey from geological exploration and surveying to extraction, processing, inspection, logistics coordination, and export.

The company maintains operational bases in Jos and Zamfara and international representation including offices in China, enabling seamless engagement with global buyers across Asia and the Middle East. Its integrated structure reduces operational risk, improves efficiency, and guarantees consistency in supply and quality delivery.

Through sustained investment in processing facilities, enterprise systems, and operational capacity, Elipse International continues to strengthen its scalability and long term competitiveness while contributing meaningfully to Nigeria’s gross domestic product and industrial positioning.

Driving Economic Development and Social Impact

Akogwu’s leadership aligns corporate performance with national development priorities. Through Elipse International and its subsidiaries, he advances job creation, youth empowerment, skills transfer, and local economic stabilization. The company’s presence in rural mining communities has contributed to employment generation, infrastructure activity, and improved livelihoods.

At the national level, mineral exports, processing initiatives, and capacity building efforts under his leadership support Nigeria’s diversification agenda and reinforce the country’s role within Africa’s mineral economy.

Vision for the Future

Denzel Henry Akogwu envisions a future where Nigeria moves beyond raw material exportation to become a leader in mineral processing, industrial innovation, and global resource strategy. His long term ambition is to convert Nigeria’s abundant mineral wealth into sustainable prosperity anchored on ethical practices, community inclusion, and industrial depth.

With Elipse International Ltd expanding its processing capabilities, Elipse Lithium Ltd positioning Nigeria within the clean energy transition, and the Elipse Foundation deepening social impact, this vision continues to take tangible shape.

Conclusion

Denzel Henry Akogwu, FPCEL represents a new generation of African industrial leadership defined by strategic clarity, operational discipline, and social consciousness. Through mining, mineral processing, philanthropy, and enterprise building, he continues to redefine what is possible for indigenous African companies operating at global standards.

He is not merely extracting minerals. He is building systems, empowering communities, shaping futures, and transforming natural resources into enduring value.

West Africa’s Shadow Network: The Human Trafficking Scam Crisis.

By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by saharaweeklyng.com

“How Criminal Syndicates Are Turning Hope into Exploitation and What the World Must Do.”

Human trafficking is not a distant atrocity happening “somewhere else.” It is a brutal reality unfolding across West Africa (a region grappling with socioeconomic hardship, youth unemployment and porous borders) where criminal networks exploit desperation, allure victims with false promises of jobs abroad and entrap them in modern slavery. This crisis has morphed into a scam-driven trafficking epidemic that not only enslaves victims physically but also weaponizes digital deception to sustain itself. It is a crisis that demands global attention, decisive policy and coordinated enforcement if countless lives are to be saved.

A Crime of Two Fronts: Promise and Deceit. At the heart of West Africa’s trafficking scandal are fraudulent employment schemes that prey on the hopes of young people seeking better lives. Recruiters promise coveted jobs in Canada, Europe or the Middle East (often backed by fraudulent phone numbers, falsified travel documents and compelling online material) only to deliver something far darker. In one high-profile case in Ivory Coast, 33 West Africans from Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana paid up to $9,000 each for the promise of legitimate work abroad. Instead, they were trafficked to Abidjan, held under coercive conditions and forced to participate in scam operations designed to lure more victims into the web of exploitation.

Perpetrators not only deceive victims before arrival but keep them in psychological captivity. Those trafficked were made to take staged photos in luxury restaurants and hotels to create the illusion of Canadian employment, then restricted from contacting family and effectively deepening their isolation and reliance on traffickers.

These scams operate like twin instruments of coercion: the lure of opportunity and the fear of exposure or debt. Once ensnared, victims often endure physical abuse, debt bondage and forced labor under threat of violence and stark violations of human rights.

From Digital Scams to Physical Enslavement. Interpol, the world’s largest international police organization, has warned that West Africa is emerging as a regional hub for human trafficking-fueled scam centres, mirroring earlier trends in Southeast Asia. Traditionally associated with regions like Cambodia and Myanmar, these trafficking networks have now spread globally to include West Africa, where increasing evidence points to systemic exploitation through online scam syndicates.

According to Interpol’s crime trend analysis, victims from 66 countries have been trafficked into scam centres worldwide, with West Africa among the newly recognized hotspots. While Southeast Asia still accounts for the majority of cases, the rapid expansion of similar operations in West Africa and other regions highlights how organized crime evolves in response to global demand for cheap, exploitable labor and illicit profit.

Perhaps most troubling is how digital technology has exacerbated the threat. Traffickers now exploit artificial intelligence (AI) to craft convincing fake job ads, deepen deception and generate fake identities or profiles used in romance and sextortion scams though amplifying both recruitment and exploitation.

The Human Cost: Lives, Dignity, Futures. Human trafficking is not just a criminal statistic, but it is a human tragedy. Many of those trafficked into scam operations are young men and women with limited economic prospects at home. They represent regions most promising potential with education abandoned, futures deferred, lives destabilized.

Beyond online job scams, trafficking in West Africa also feeds into other forms of forced labor. According to migration and anti-trafficking data, children constitute more than 50% of detected trafficking victims across Africa, with forced labor including begging, domestic work and exploitation along migration routes.

For every case uncovered, many more remain unseen. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and United Nations data consistently show that only a fraction of trafficking victims are detected or rescued, while many fall victim to smuggling networks that blur the lines between irregular migration and outright exploitation. The IOM reports that a majority of African migrants arriving irregularly in Europe are at high risk of being trafficked, especially women and girls.

Structural Drivers: Poverty, Unemployment and Desperation. What drives young West Africans into the hands of traffickers? The answer lies in structural inequalities: poverty, unemployment, climate change and lack of educational opportunities. In countries like Sierra Leone, where youth make up a large portion of the population and unemployment is chronic, the promise of jobs abroad becomes a lifeline worth pursuing, even at high financial and personal risk.

These vulnerabilities are compounded by weak enforcement infrastructures and limited cross-border cooperation. Traffickers exploit gaps in legal frameworks, corrupt practices and the relative ease of forging documents or digital identities to move victims across borders without detection.

What Experts Are Saying: Cyril Gout, Acting Executive Director of Police Services at Interpol, has emphasized the global scope and persistence of the crisis: “Tackling this rapidly globalising threat requires a coordinated international response.” His warning underscores that no single country can dismantle these networks alone, but a collaboration among law enforcement, NGOs and technology platforms is essential.

Scholars studying the nexus between trafficking and migrant smuggling underscore another crucial point: trafficking thrives where legal migration pathways are limited. Research from the Department of International Relations at Universidad Complutense de Madrid notes that criminal actors exploit migration pressures, turning migration aspirations into exploitation upon arrival.

At the grassroots level, activists like Chelcy Heroe of the Informal Workers Organisation in Sierra Leone highlight the gendered nature of exploitation, especially for women lured into forced labor under the guise of legitimate recruitment programmes.

Law Enforcement and the Global Response. Efforts to dismantle trafficking-linked scam operations have seen some successes. Law enforcement collaborations (such as joint operations between Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana) have led to arrests and the rescue of dozens of victims. Such initiatives demonstrate the potential of cooperative policing across borders.

African Union member states have also taken steps to reinforce continental cooperation against trafficking and migrant smuggling. In late 2024, senior officials validated Continental Guidelines for Sharing Information and Intelligence, aimed at strengthening mechanisms to detect, disrupt and prosecute trafficking networks.

However, enforcement alone cannot solve a problem rooted in structural inequity. Prevention (through education, community awareness, access to safe employment and legal migration pathways) must be part of a comprehensive response.

Conclusion: Turning the Tide Against Exploitation. The human trafficking scam crisis in West Africa is a stark reminder that vulnerability can be commodified by criminal actors who operate with sophisticated tools, global networks and a chilling disregard for human dignity. This is not abstract, it is a present-day stain on global society that undermines human rights, shatters families and erodes the very promise of opportunity.

Addressing this crisis requires collective resolve from governments, civil society, international institutions and everyday citizens. It demands robust legal structures, transparent international cooperation, investment in young people’s futures and a refusal to let exploitation flourish in the shadows.

Human trafficking is not inevitable. Where there is will and coordinated action, there is hope; for rescue, for justice and for renewed dignity for those who have been robbed of both. Let the world’s conscience be stirred, and let action follow urgently.

Armed Forces Day: Banwo Says Military Owes Nigeria an Apology for Political Interventions

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‎As Nigeria marked Armed Forces Remembrance Day, public commentator and technology entrepreneur, Dr. Ope Banwo, has challenged the celebratory mood surrounding the military, insisting that the institution must confront its historical role in derailing the nation’s democratic and developmental trajectory.

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‎In a strongly worded reflection, Banwo argued that while Nigerians are encouraged to honour the armed forces for their service, the country has failed to properly reckon with the long-term consequences of repeated military interventions in governance.

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‎According to him, Nigeria’s relationship with the military has followed a damaging cycle: civilian governments falter, the military intervenes under the guise of national rescue, and the nation emerges weaker, more centralised, and more institutionally fragile than before.

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‎Banwo acknowledged that Nigeria’s early civilian leaders contributed to political instability through flawed elections, ethnic rivalries, and political violence. However, he maintained that military coups did not correct these problems but compounded them.

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‎He traced Nigeria’s democratic disruption to the first military takeover in 1966, noting that it opened the door to a succession of coups that normalised force as a political tool and eventually plunged the country into a devastating civil war.

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‎“That moment was not just a political crisis; it was a permanent detour in Nigeria’s destiny,” Banwo stated, arguing that generations of Nigerians lost opportunities because power-hungry military rulers treated the nation as a possession rather than a republic.

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‎He further contended that prolonged military rule entrenched excessive centralisation of power, weakened institutions, and created a governance culture that still haunts the country decades later.

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‎Banwo described the military to civilian transition of 1979 as incomplete and unstable, likening it to transferring a fragile system to civilians without allowing democratic norms to mature. He criticised the subsequent 1983 coup, saying it reinforced the military’s impatience with accountability, debate, and the slow nature of democratic governance.

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‎He also dismissed the recurring justifications used by military regimes to seize power, including promises to fight corruption, restore discipline, and sanitise governance.

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‎“Instead of eliminating corruption, they refined it,” he said, adding that military rule produced a powerful class of politically connected elites who amassed wealth and influence while ordinary Nigerians struggled with poverty and insecurity.

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‎According to Banwo, the military never fully exited politics but merely shifted its influence from the barracks into civilian life, allowing retired officers to continue shaping national affairs with an entrenched sense of superiority over constitutional authority.

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‎He argued that in functioning democracies, the armed forces are firmly subordinate to elected civilian leadership, regardless of personal or institutional disagreements.

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‎“In Nigeria, we too often treat the constitution as optional,” Banwo said, warning that this mindset fuels recurring nostalgia for authoritarian intervention.

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‎Turning to present-day challenges, Banwo stressed that the military’s true responsibility lies in addressing Nigeria’s worsening security crisis, including terrorism, banditry, and mass killings, rather than engaging in political ambition or moral grandstanding.

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‎“Democracy is untidy and frustrating,” he noted, “but it is not the military’s assignment to repair civilian politics.”

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‎Banwo insisted that political reform must come through elections, civic engagement, legal processes, and public accountability, not through force.

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‎He concluded by calling for a national acknowledgment of past mistakes, arguing that a sincere apology from the military would represent accountability rather than weakness.

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‎Such an apology, he said, would recognise that repeated coups destabilised governance, militarised politics, and normalised the idea that constitutional order could be suspended at will.

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‎Banwo also issued a warning against any renewed fantasies of military takeover, stressing that modern societies are built on civilian supremacy.