Taiwo Akinkunmi, the designer of the Nigerian flag has passed away

The Nigerian man who designed the country’s flag, Michael Taiwo Akinwunmi, has passed away at the age of 87, as announced by one of his children, Akinwunmi Samuel.

The announcement was made on Samuel’s Facebook page on Wednesday, August 30.

He was born on May 10, 1936, and hailed from Owu in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria.

Taiwo attended Baptist Day Secondary School in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State, for his primary education.

He continued his secondary education at Ibadan Grammar School.

After working as a civil servant at the secretariat in Ibadan, he traveled to London to study Agricultural Engineering at Norwood Technical College.

During his time in London, he came across a newspaper advertisement seeking designs for the Nigerian flag.

He submitted his own design, which was chosen as the best among over 2000 entries. The 23-year-old Taiwo at the time was awarded £100 for his design.

Taiwo returned to Nigeria and began working for the Ministry of Agriculture.