Former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Tunde Lemo, has reflected on the hardships of his childhood, revealing that he attended primary school barefoot because his family could not afford shoes.
Speaking on The Legacy Series on Thursday, July 23, 2026, Lemo said financial difficulties shaped his early years and that he did not own a pair of shoes until he entered secondary school in January 1972, when canvas shoes became part of the compulsory school uniform.
“We had it very rough at the beginning. We trekked all through my primary school, I had no shoes. We were walking barefoot to the school. It was when I got to secondary school that it became compulsory that I had to wear a canvas. That was in January 1972,” Lemo said.
Lemo’s remarks highlight the challenges many children from low-income families faced in accessing basic necessities while pursuing education. Despite those early struggles, he later rose to become Deputy Governor of the CBN.
