NJ Ayuk is a professional lawyer focused on improving the lives of millions of people in Africa, his home country. NJ is set to accomplish this by working with top energy companies to make lasting change.
Ayuk is the CEO and founder of Centurion Law Group, a successful law firm. He’s also the chairman of the African Energy Chamber. With these endeavors, NJ concentrates on helping the African community as best he can. While there are several ways to support the continent, he realized the energy industry should be a top priority.
“I worked with the United Nations at the start of my career, thinking about human rights and gender-based violence,” Ayuk says. “I felt I was part of an African generation that wanted to see how we could improve the continent. But every time that I thought I wanted to do something with our work, I started to realize that energy was part of it,” he adds.
The only problem—NJ wasn’t too familiar with the energy field, especially how it works in the legal world. As he went to law school to learn about the dangers of big oil companies, he later realized that energy needed to be the focus. NJ Ayuk came to this conclusion when he returned to Africa after his schooling.
“I was traveling around Africa, I was in Khartoum [Sudan] actually, when I realized that a lot of our problems came from lack of energy,” he says. Ayuk went on to talk about how energy is needed for the country to industrialize and make progress as a nation. “The severe lack of energy across the continent, I realized that it’s part of the problem,” he continues.
After changing his focus, NJ realized he needed to speak with local energy companies to improve the way of life on his home continent. As there are 600 million people in Africa with no access to electricity, NJ Ayuk knew this was a pressing problem. However, no one was talking about these issues. That said, NJ set out to use his legal skills and determination to show politicians that significant change is needed for millions. “Whether it is a minister, a president, whether it’s a corporation — they are going to have to listen to these people,” he adds.
After thinking about this new endeavor in his career, NJ Ayuk thought he could become a new type of lawyer, one who advocates for those less fortunate. He would fight for these people while in the room with big energy companies.
Bringing affordable energy solutions to Africa can result in generational change. It can lead to better medical care, improved education, and a greater quality of life. Ayuk is determined to find a better future for his long-time neighbors.
