Dr. Tunji Olowolafe, a medical doctor turned business magnate has funded West Africa’s first ophthalmic surgical simulation centre, naming it in memory of his late wife, Gbemisola Olutayo Olowolafe.
The Centre, Gbemisola Olowolafe Centre for Ophthalmic Surgical Simulation was unveiled at the Guinness Eye Centre, Idi-Araba, Lagos.
The project is a partnership between the Tunji Olowolafe Foundation, the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria’s Faculty of Ophthalmology, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, and Lagos State University Teaching Hospital.
The centre houses an EyeSi Surgical Simulator, a device that allows eye surgeons to rehearse procedures on a virtual patient. The machine scores every movement, records errors, and enables a trainee to return to the same step and practice again.
Cataract surgery and vitreoretinal procedures involve manipulating tissue measured in microns.
Across much of Africa, resident surgeons have traditionally learned those movements by performing them on patients, partly because simulation equipment is scarce and expensive.
Olowolafe said he committed the funding after a single pitch.
“Naming this centre in memory of my late wife, Gbemisola, gives this project a purpose that goes far beyond infrastructure,” he said.
He described the facility as providing resident doctors a safe environment to master surgical precision before operating on patients.
Olowolafe emphasized continuous training: “If I may be candid, across almost every profession and vocation in Nigeria, we don’t place enough value on continuous education. Once we qualify, we collect a certificate, and we consider the job done for life… But the most vital training is in what we already know, reminding ourselves, over and over again.
“This machine gives surgeons, whether they qualified last year or 30 years ago, a place to practise delicate movements over and over. It gives honest feedback, and it lets you come back the next day to get better,” he added.
The centre has admitted its first cohort of six trainees. Two of them traveled from Kaduna and Onitsha, indicating interest from beyond Lagos.
Olowolafe holds an MBBS from the University of Ilorin and practiced as a doctor before founding Deux Project Limited in 1988.
The company began by refitting hospitals, with Lagos State as a principal client.
Deux refurbished Lagos State University Teaching Hospital at Ikeja, constructed maternal and child care buildings across the state’s general hospitals, built the burns unit at General Hospital Gbagada, and delivered the Lagos State Cardiac and Renal Centre.
It also built the Bola Tinubu Diagnostics Centre inside LASUTH.
The company later expanded into civil engineering, construction, consultancy, and maintenance.
Olowolafe has also chaired the Lekki Concession Company and Eko Rail, and has been active in public-private partnerships.
His current interests span power, infrastructure, education, and manufacturing. He is a non-executive director of West Power and Gas and a principal shareholder of Eko Electricity Distribution Company. He sits on the boards of Infracorp Nigeria and education technology firm uLesson.
In 2009, Olowolafe joined a consortium that acquired a substantial stake in GZ Industries.
He founded Generic Product Limited in 1996 and chairs Deux Investment Limited.
He was born in London and lives in Lagos. He serves as Chancellor of Ekiti State University and Pro-Chancellor of Miva Open University.
In April 2024, the Are-Ekiti-born tycoon announced a ₦1 billion innovation fund for agricultural technology at Ekiti State University.
The eye centre is the latest project established in memory of his beloved late wife, Gbemisola.
The foundation has also built an ICT hub and a community secondary school at Are-Ekiti, and launched a five-year, ₦1 billion scholarship programme at Miva Open University.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Olowolafe chaired Ekiti State’s medical logistics committee, worked on upgrading the Oba Adejugbe Specialist Hospital, and established a molecular diagnostic laboratory at Ekiti State Teaching Hospital.
“True medical stewardship lies in service, learning, and leaving something of lasting value for those who come after us,” he said.
