Nigerian Lady, Shola Olatoye, Becomes Head of New York City Housing Authority

Many Nigerians abroad are making us proud in several ways and one of them is Mrs. Shola Olatoye:

As you read this, Shola Olatoye is the new head of New York City’s Housing Authority, NYCHA. She was appointed into the position by the Mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, in his bid to overhaul the previous administration’s old housing policy.

Mrs. Olatoye described the decision to let her run the NYCHA as an honour. She said, “Everything we will do will be focused on improving the quality of life for our tenants, especially protecting their safety.” 

A Nigerian who is happily married with two sons, Mrs. Olatoye added that “This is an enormous opportunity. Public housing helped people in my family. I want it to do the same in the future for others.”

Bill de Blasio said his administration is working towards building and preserving 200,000 units of affordable housing over the next decade to address longstanding health and safety issues in the city.

“We are going to take a new approach to this crisis that holds nothing back,” said the mayor.

Before her appointment, Mrs Olatoye, the daughter of a Nigerian immigrant, was Vice President for Enterprise Community Partners, a firm that has helped build or preserve more than 44,000 affordable homes for lower-income New Yorkers and invested more than $2.5 billion in and around the city.

We say a big congrats to a trust worthy sister!