SEngr. Rafiu Abatan is a Strategic Business & Operations Executive with over 18 years of progressive leadership across Africa's premier FMCG powerhouses. He brings deep expertise in driving operational excellence, engineering strategy, and transformative change across food, beverages, juices, dairy, and snacks production.
At UAC Foods, Rafiu leads the end-to-end operations function spanning Manufacturing, Technical, HSE, NPD & Regulatory, Supply Chain, Quality Control, Planning, Projects, and Sustainability. He joined the company in 2023 as Head of Engineering and Project before being appointed General Manager, Operations. His leadership focuses on optimizing production efficiency, strengthening operational resilience, driving cost optimization, and enabling seamless collaboration across the business value chain.
Before joining UAC Foods, Rafiu held senior engineering and technical leadership roles at major multinational and blue-chip companies, including Nestlé Nigeria, Coca-Cola Hellenic, Promasidor Nigeria Limited, Integrated Dairies Limited, and CHI Limited. Throughout his career, he has successfully led major capacity expansion projects, commissioned new processing and packaging lines, and driven initiatives that enhanced plant efficiency, equipment reliability, and production output. He uniquely bridges technical engineering and commercial profitability — designing scalable maintenance strategies, leading complex capital projects, and embedding process-improvement frameworks that reduce waste while safeguarding quality and supply-chain integrity.
A Certified Maintenance and Reliability Professional (CMRP®️), Project Management Professional (PMP®️), and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (CLSSBB), Rafiu holds an MBA from the Lagos Business School, as well as Senior Leadership and Global Strategic Management programmes from Said Business School, University of Oxford, and the University of Indonesia respectively. He also holds a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Lagos and a Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering from the University of South Africa. He is a COREN-registered engineer and an active member of several professional bodies, including the Project Management Institute (PMI) and the Society for Maintenance and Reliability Professionals (SMRP).
Outside work, Rafiu is passionate about developing people and building high-performing networks. He enjoys exploring new cuisines and travelling with family and friends.