Rotary International Leaders
Olayinka Hakeem Babalola,
President Rotary International 2026-2027
Olayinka Hakeem Babalola, a member of the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi, Nigeria, is Rotary International’s president for 2026-27. His term began on 1 July 2026.
Babalola began his Rotary journey in 1984 as a Rotaractor. He joined the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi 10 years later. His leadership roles include serving as district governor (2011-12), RI vice president (2019-20), and member of the RI Board (2018-20). He was also an active leader and participant in RI committees such as the End Polio Now Countdown to History Campaign Committee (2017-23) and the Nigeria National PolioPlus Committee (2013-present, adviser 2016-present).
Babalola received a university degree in engineering in 1988. He worked for 25 years in the oil and gas industry, holding senior positions in Shell PLC. He is the founder of two companies: Riviera Technical Services Ltd., an oil and gas infrastructure delivery company, and Lead and Change Consulting, an executive coaching and organizational performance advisory group.
Babalola’s professional affiliations include the Nigerian Society of Engineers, the Institute of Safety Professionals of Nigeria, and the Association of Change Management Professionals. He is a member of Jericho Businessmen Club, an organization in his birth city of Ibadan that provides input to governments on economic and social policy.
Babalola and his wife, Preba, live in the city of Port Harcourt. He supports The Rotary Foundation with a named endowment and as an Arch Klumph Society member. A trustee of ShelterBox UK, he is a recipient of the Africa Centennial Heroes Award, the Regional Service Award for a Polio-Free World, the RI Service Above Self Award, and The Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service.
Larry Lunsford,
President Elect Rotary International
Larry A. Lunsford, a certified public accountant, is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Bernstein-Rein Advertising, Inc. in Kansas City, Missouri. A recipient of bachelor’s and master's degrees in accounting from Truman State University, he has served his alma mater on its National Alumni Association Board and its Foundation Board. His passion for Rotary and his invitation into the family of Rotary began during his college years, when in 1982, he was selected as a Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholar to Australia. Lunsford joined Rotary in 1991. He served RI as director, aide to RI President Mark Daniel Maloney, and as a trustee of the Rotary Foundation. In addition, he has served as RI president’s representative, zone institute chair, Rotary Public Image Coordinator, Rotary Foundation alumni coordinator, regional Rotary Foundation coordinator, training leader, International Assembly leaders’ seminar trainer, RI committee chair and member, and chair of the Rotary Peace Centers Committee of The Rotary Foundation. Lunsford and his wife, Jill are Major Donors, Benefactors, and Bequest Society members. He is a charter member of the District 6040 Paul Harris Society and Member of the District 6040 PolioPlus Society. He has been awarded the Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service, the RI Service Above Self Award, and recently received the Distinguished Service Award from The Rotary Foundation.
Brian Hall
Rotary International Director
Brian is a member of the Rotary Club of Covington, LA. He has served his club and district in many positions, including as District 6840 Governor in the 2014-2015 Rotary year. Brian was active with the Host Organizing Committee of the 2011 Rotary International Convention, where he served as the chair of the Technology Committee, and as a member the RI Promotions Committee for the 2019 Honolulu convention. He served Rotary Zone 31 as Assistant Regional Rotary Public Image Coordinator in the 2013-2014 year, as an Assistant Regional Rotary Foundation Coordinator in the 2016-2019 years, and as End Polio Now Coordinator from 2019 to 2022. Brian served as a Training Leader at the International Assembly in both 2018 and 2019 and a Training Leader Support in 2021 and 2022.
Brian is currently serving as the Chair Elect of the board of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Rotary Action Group and board member and past chair of the Past District Governors Fellowship. Brian is also serving as chair of the Joint Rotary International/Rotary Foundation Technology committee, reporting to the RI Board of Directors and The Rotary Foundation’s Trustees. Brian received Rotary’s Service Above Self award in the 2021-2022 Rotary year. Brian will be serving as a member of the Board of Directors of Rotary International in the 2025-2027 Rotary years from Zones 30 and 31.
Brian has been married to his wife, Lynn, for 31 years. They currently reside in Madisonville, Louisiana. They have two children, Keely and Patrick.
Brian was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. Brian worked as a CPA for several years before changing careers to become a computer programmer. In 1998 he and Lynn relocated to New Orleans, where Brian decided to merge his backgrounds and begin consulting with companies regarding business and financial systems. In 2000, he and three others formed AIM Technologies to provide information and business systems sales and consulting.