Segun Idowu, Boston’s chief of economic opportunity and inclusion, is resigning effective Feb. 27, according to a statement provided to GBH News by the city Monday.
Mayor Michelle Wu, who hired Idowu early in her first term, offered glowing praise for Idowu’s service in the statement.
“Under Chief Idowu’s leadership, Boston’s neighborhoods have become more vibrant, inclusive, and connected,” Wu said. “Over the last four years, his efforts helped transform systems and make opportunities accessible to all, from filling vacant storefronts through innovative programs to support local businesses, to boosting supplier diversity in City contracting and bolstering wealth building and entrepreneurship throughout Boston’s neighborhoods and Downtown.
”His work has helped Boston rebound from the pandemic as a thriving city where companies and their employees want to work and live.”
Before joining the Wu administration, Idowu led the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts, or BECMA, an organization dedicated to closing Boston’s massive racial wealth gap. When she appointed him, Wu said Idowu would continue that work and lead the city’s economic recovery after COVID.
The city’s statement also included comments from Idowu, who said he’s been caring for his 98-year-old grandmother for the past four years and is resigning to care for her full time as her health declines.
“As a son of Boston, it has been the honor of my life to bring about the type of change I have wanted to see,” Idowu said. “Alongside the best team of public servants, I appreciated the opportunity to lead efforts to double the value of city contracts awarded to diverse firms, launch innovative programs like the ARPA-funded SPACE program, secure and disperse the largest amount of liquor licenses since Prohibition, establish the most expansive Legacy Business program in the nation, and play a role in attracting global companies like LEGO, Hasbro, and QBlox as new neighbors.”
Rahsaan Hall, the president and CEO of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, cited some of those same achievements when asked to evaluate Idowu’s tenure, identifying the increase in city procurements awarded to businesses owned by people of color and the SPACE Grant program, which helped small business set up shop in major business districts, as highlights of what Idowu accomplished.
“Initially, I didn’t want to see him take the position, because I valued his voice as an advocate in his role as the executive director and president of BECMA,” Hall told GBH News. “But ultimately I was glad to see the impact that he had in the role.
“I would like to see him use his voice and … public profile to continue to do that advocacy and be that spokesperson for economic development in communities of color more broadly, but in the Black community more specifically,” Hall added. “He is going to be a public figure that we will continue to be talking about, because of the impact that he has had and will continue to have.”
Nicole Obi, who currently leads BECMA, was also bullish on what Idowu accomplished during his years in City Hall.
“During his tenure, more than $35 million in grants were awarded to approximately 1,500 small businesses, with roughly 70 percent going to entrepreneurs of color, including many BECMA members,” Obi said in a statement. “His leadership extended beyond direct investment to structural reforms, including his partnership with BECMA and others to advocate for expanded liquor licenses in Boston’s diverse neighborhoods, a critical tool for business sustainability and wealth creation.”
Obi also urged the mayor to find a replacement for Idowu who brings a similar perspective to the job.
“[W]e hope the Wu administration continues to center equity and inclusion, building on the momentum Segun helped establish,” Obi said. “The next leader in this role should bring a strong perspective and lived experience that will further advance inclusive economic growth and wealth-building opportunities across Boston.”
In 2025, as Wu sought reelection, Idowu was involved in a scandal that began with a domestic incident involving two city staffers.
One of the staffers, Marwa Khudaynazar, subsequently told the Boston Globe that she and her partner, Chulan Huang, argued after Khudaynazar told Huang she had been propositioned by Idowu, who was Huang’s boss, at a bar in Back Bay.
Khudaynazar and Huang were subsequently fired for allegedly citing their roles with the city in an attempt to avoid arrest by Boston police. However, Khudaynazar has suggested the firings were aimed at protecting Wu and Idowu from any fallout over Idowu’s alleged behavior.
Both Khudaynazar and Huang were charged with assault and battery on a household member, and Khudaynazar was charged with assaulting a police officer. She denies doing so and has sued the city, Mayor Wu and an officer involved in her arrest.
For his part, Idowu emphatically denied doing anything inappropriate and suggested that the allegations against him were politically motivated. He was cleared of wrongdoing by both an internal city review and a subsequent external investigation.
