Arc. TitilayoAdeleye, The Purpose-Driven Leader Behind Eden Group: “Leadership Is Not a Title, It Is a call to service.” Arc. Titilayo Adeleye is an Architect, property developer, author, social impact advocate and certified life coach. She is the Founder and current principal and CEO of Eden Group, a consortium of companies that operate within the architecture and construction industry. With over 35 years of experience in the built environment. She holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc.) and a Master of Science (MSc.) degree in Architecture from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. A former Federal Government of Nigeria Merit Scholar, Arc. Adeleye combines excellent working knowledge of the processes and procedures involved in the Nigerian building design, construction and property industry with proven core skills in programming, concept development, leadership and business development. She is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Architects and a full member of the Architects’ Registration Council of Nigeria. With a strong footprint in architecture, interior and construction solutions and strategy development, she has built a brand anchored on excellence, professionalism, integrity, and impact. Beyond business, she is passionate about mentoring women, youth and other vulnerable groups, promoting ethical leadership, policy making and championing the rights of vulnerable groups within the society. Her work reflects her core belief in the principle that excellence must be the watchword in everything we do and that “Building a good society begins with building a good environment” while “Sustainable transformation begins with positively impacting people through the built environment.” In this special International Women’s Day 2026 report, Arc. TitilayoAdeleye shares insights on Eden Group’s growth and the pivotal role of women in nation-building.   What is the Vision Behind Eden Group? We envision building an enterprise that delivers distinctive services with integrity and excellence, contributing positively to the environment and society. We aim to go beyond transactions and commissions, creating environmental and societal sustainability solutions through excellence-driven innovation. Our mission is to deliver innovative architecture, interior, construction, and design solutions, integrate social responsibility into business operations, and empower individuals connected to the company through skill acquisition and mentorship, championing excellent delivery, environmental sustainability, ethical leadership, and strategic policy innovations.   What fuels your Leadership drive? I am inspired by the resilience and strength of Nigerians. My dedication to transformative leadership stems from a deep belief in the Nigerian dream and the untapped potential of its greatest resource, which is industrious and hardworking Nigerians. And also, I believe that Nigerians do not lack potential; rather, we need to create more platforms that will allow our potential to thrive; this can be done if we are committed as a people to building systems that create empowerment, access, opportunity and visibility for others. With the inculcation of the right values, competence, integrity and excellence, lasting societal change becomes easily attainable. The theme for International Women’s Day 2026 is “Give to Gain,” which emphasises collective generosity to drive change. What strategies do you believe are necessary to accelerate progress toward gender equality in Nigeria? For me, “Give to Gain” is not just a timely and relevant theme but also a foundational strategy for national advancement. “When women are empowered, families stabilise, communities prosper, and nations advance.” She elucidates a few critical strategies that can help achieve this: ⁃ Intentional Mentorship: Established female leaders must hold the hands of the younger ones so we can all win together ⁃ Policy Accountability: Gender policies must move from documentation to measurable action and feedback. ⁃ Economic Access: We must be intentional about funding initiatives, skills development, and marketplace opportunities for women and women-led businesses ⁃ Educational Reorientation: Limiting cultural narratives must be challenged through sustained advocacy. ⁃ Strategic Partnerships: Government, private sector, faith-based institutions, and civil society must collaborate to achieve this goal.   Your take on Sexual Assault & Child Protection The age-long scourge of abuse of women and children in our society must be confronted through structured, sustained, and community-driven education and awareness. Some fundamental key actions that can be taken to resolve this include integrating age-appropriate safety education into school curricula, creating sustained media advocacy campaigns across traditional and digital platforms, strengthening confidential and trusted reporting systems, and ensuring justice is served through visible and swift enforcement of consequences for culpable offenders. Enlisting the help of faith and community leaders is also crucial. Ensuring women have equal access to opportunities and resources will enable them to participate in all aspects of society, including education, work, politics, and family life, without discrimination or bias. This will boost national economic growth, improve social well-being, and lower poverty rates. So, key policy strategies are needed to drive this change. Strengthening legal and policy frameworks to support women is essential, including advocating for policies that ensure economic empowerment through equal pay, maternity benefits, and inclusive workplaces. Closing the gender pay gap, promoting wage transparency, and supporting women entrepreneurs are also vital. Encouraging more women to take on leadership positions through mentorship and sponsorship programs, and advocating for quotas that increase women’s representation in leadership and decision-making roles, is necessary. Creating safe, harassment-free workplaces with strong reporting mechanisms is also crucial. The education of the girl child must be prioritized, ensuring access to quality education and vocational training programs. Partnering with institutions to encourage women-targeted scholarships and grants can help. Challenging negative societal norms and stereotypes that limit women’s participation in leadership is also essential, leveraging media and positive storytelling to showcase female role models and amplify women’s voices. And also, educating women and girls about their rights, and the male gender on the importance of promoting gender equality, is vital. Supporting international frameworks like the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 on gender issues, and holding agencies accountable for pushing resources towards gender-focused programs, will drive progress.   Advice to Female Leaders Established female leaders must realize that “Leadership is not just about the position you occupy, it is about helping others to rise.” They must be generous with knowledge, access and opportunities by intentionally giving to

Titilayo Adeleye is an entrepreneur, and seasoned architect with over 32 years of experience in the field, a life and etiquette coach, where she applies to propagating moral values and good conduct. Titilayo Adeleye is an entrepreneur, and seasoned architect with over 32 years of experience in the field, a life and etiquette coach, where she applies to propagating moral values and good conduct. She is also the Chief Executive Officer of Eden Group, Lagos. In this interview with Geraldine Akutu, she shares her love for architecture and other sundry issues.   How would you assess your profession? Architecture, for me, has been a fulfilling and exciting journey, yes, there have been challenges but in all, the opportunity to conceive projects in one’s mind and see them become reality will always remain exhilarating. Why private practice instead of seeking employment in public service? Upon graduation, I was actually looking at getting a job with a parastatal but in the process of doing that, I got a job in a good private firm and that formed the trajectory for my path in the profession, ever since. I must say, my practice went on to do a lot of work with government parastatals, thereafter.   Architecture is often seen as male-dominated. What stands you out in this profession? In my opinion, architecture is no longer really a male-dominated profession. All over the world, and in Nigeria, especially, quite a number of women are making their mark. What has worked for me in my professional journey is to make excellence my watchword on every project whether small or big. When a job is well done, it becomes immaterial whether a man or a woman did it. It is worthy of note that female architects do add a lot of value because we have a natural eye for detail and for aesthetics.   In this harsh economy, what will keep one moving in the architectural practice? The current atmosphere cuts across all businesses. Business owners must be able to keep their business thriving in both good times and the not so good times. Business owners must ensure that their overheads are not unnecessarily high. They must also save and invest in the business when the going is good. It is important that they carry their staff along in whatever plans and changes they make in running their organisation and must remain flexible in their modes of operation to accommodate changing business climates in this new normal.   What are the challenges you have encountered so far? As a woman operating within the African setting, you sometimes, need to do much more than your male counterparts to prove your mettle. Also, we currently have a lot of unqualified quacks operating within the profession and they are unfortunately being enabled and patronised by clients who are either ignorant or not willing to pay industry recommended remuneration for architectural services rendered by qualified architects. This has led to an increase in the number of substandard and defective buildings in the society and is also portraying qualified architects in bad light. The body of architects is doing a lot of advocacy in this regard and we implore government complement our efforts by passing legislation that will discourage this unwholesome practice, and thereby, safeguard lives and property of Nigerians.   How do you bridge the gap between when the business is thriving and when it is low? Like I said before, in my practice we have ensured that we remain flexible in our operations to accommodate the changing business climate. We also have also explored affiliated streams of income within the construction industry.   Looking back, what are the things you felt should have been done better? If I had opportunity to do things differently, I will begin to invest in my company as an entity very early. I will also engage in more collaboration with other professionals and ensure that I put in place more structures that will position my company to run independently of my person.   What will you tell aspiring architects? I advise aspiring architects to ensure that they go through a period of formal or informal mentoring or tutelage after graduation to further learn the ropes of practice properly. They must also keep developing themselves and ensure that they develop their entrepreneurial skills alongside their skills as architects. They must ensure they are knowledgeable in the principles of design and not just artistic presentations so they are able to produce buildings and spaces that are not only beautiful but also functional. It is also very important to have a good grasp of corporate governance and international best practices.   Source: The Guardian