Born on February 3, 1964, to the family of Hon. Justice Bolarinwa Oyegoke Babalakin and Hajia Ramat Ibironke Babalakin of Gbongan, Osun State, Arc. Tayo Babalakin attended the esteemed Government College in Ibadan from 1974 to 1979, graduating with Grade 1 in the West African School Certificate “O” levels test in 1979.
Thereafter, he went on to study for his “A” levels at the Federal Government College in Ilorin from 1979 to 1981.
He graduated from Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria in 1984 with a B.Sc. (Hons.) and in 1986 with an M.Sc. in Architecture. During his postgraduate studies, he worked as a Graduate Assistant at the Department of Architecture.
In addition, he graduated with a Graduate Diploma in Energy Studies (Climate-sensitive Architecture) in 1990 from the Architectural Association School in London.
He was elected President of the Association of Consulting Architects (ACANigeria) between 2014 and 2015.
While he was President, he drove some far-reaching initiatives that have continued to guide the association today. ACANigeria’s first book ‘Architecture In Nigeria’ was published in 2015 during his tenure as president.
He is undoubtedly loved by both professionals in the built environment and sundry professions because of his depth of knowledge and organisational skills.
“Time is my life” is a phrase he lives by, and it has become an essential component of his daily interactions due to his reputation for time management with an extraordinary passion for architecture as a profession. To many, these qualities are not far-fetched going by his parental pedigree.
According to the President of ACANigeria, Wale Okubadejo, Babalakin maintained an important symbiotic relationship with the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA) working with the Institute to address the various issues that affect the profession and the industry as a whole.
He said: “As President of ACANigeria , he also forged relationships with other stakeholders for advocacy in and advancement of the AEC industry such as the Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria (ACEN), the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), of which he is an honorary fellow, and the Association of Town Planning Consultants of Nigeria (ATOPCON) .
“The Association of Consulting Architects Nigeria also joined the NIA in involvement with the African Union of Architects (AUA) and under his tenure was represented at the AUA Convention in Kampala, Uganda in 2015. He has gone on to hold office at the AUA.
“He strives to ensure that ACANigeria is involved in protecting the public from poor practices and the use of unlicensed architects in the procurement of buildings.
“He is the Principal of the firm CCP, which is a multidisciplinary AEC firm which is ISO9001:2015 Certified for its Quality Management System. In this way, he has set the pace and created a benchmark for other aspiring member firms to emulate, whether they are within or outside the association.
“As he turns 60, we at ACANigeria know that he is unrelenting in the work ahead. We wish him many more healthy, fruitful and productive years to pursue and work his dreams,” he added.
Babalakin has over 35 years of experience in the built environment. He is one of the founding partners of Klif Consultants, which was founded in 1990 with his good friend and professional colleague, Arc. Femi Williams, as an architectural partnership that offers services in the areas of architecture, building consultancy, project management, landscape architecture and interior design for a range of clientele in the hospitality, institutional, educational and residential sectors.
Some of the projects that the company and Babalakin has worked on are Protea Hotel, Oakwood Park, GTBank Head Office, Lagos; GTBank, Ghana; Tarino Tower, Lagos and several opulent residences both inside and outside the nation.
He is a member of the Board of Governors, Daywaterman College, Abeokuta, Ogun State, and a Member of the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce.
Babalakin is also an honorary Fellow of the Nigeria Institute of Quantity Surveyors (FNIQS) in recognition of his contributions towards the development of the profession.
He served as Secretary of the Nigeria Institute of Architects (NIA) Electoral Commission for two terms (2011, 2013) and meritoriously served as Chairman for another two terms (2015, 2017).
He has been a major resource for the Education Board in conducting NIA professional practice examinations in Lagos over the years.
He joined the Ikoyi Club’s golf section in 1992 because he loves the game and plays it passionately. In 2013, he was elected to serve as the golf section captain for the years 2013-2014.
Babalakin is a trustee of the Victoria Garden City (VGC) Islamic Community as well as a member of the Metropolitan Club of Lagos.
He is married to Dr. Fareeda Babalakin, and the union is blessed with four children.
