Int’l Youth Day: How EdoInnovates is Building Global Tech Talent, Young Founders

In Nigeria, when you think about tech talent, the temptation is to limit your gaze to Lagos with its thriving tech ecosystem and other institutional structures that prop technology innovation and talent development. However, the trend is shifting as new entrants such as Edo State are now showing promise and creating the right environment to nurture globally-relevant tech innovators.

Under Governor Godwin Obaseki, the state government sought a piece of the pie in Nigeria’s growing tech space, running with a vision to position the state to take advantage of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This led to the setting up of Edo Innovates, a technology hub located in the heart of Benin City that serves as a platform to nurture talents in technology innovation and build a thriving community of talents, start-ups and innovators.

Initially an iteration of EdoJobs, a skills development agency of the government, EdoInnovates pivoted to become a platform for tech talent development, providing bespoke training in collaboration with global companies such as ALX, Udacity, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Decagon, among others.

Today, EdoInnovates boasts of a talent pool of over 50,000 trainees since 2018 across various aspects of technology including software development, robotics, data science, artificial intelligence, User Interface and User Experience (UI/UX) and product design, among others.

Speaking on the impact of its activities in the last seven years, Executive Director of EdoInnovates, Asemota Izoduwa, said that the hub has remained one of the most ambitious projects of the Governor Obaseki-led administration.

According to him, “As we celebrate the International Youth Day today, we look back at the impact of EdoInnovates on youths in the State. It has been a thrilling journey with Edo Innovates so far. One thing that has stood us out over the last couple of years is our ability to turn out good quality talents that are globally competitive. Some of our trainees have gone to work for Microsoft while others have founded their own businesses.

“For us, EdoInnovates is a one-stop shop for all technology-enabled businesses in Nigeria. We have a world-class training faculty, co-working space, start-up incubation and funding support and lots more that stands us out. We have trained over 50,000 youths in EdoInnovates and they are ready for work.”

He noted that EdoInnovates recently on-boarded 50 start-ups which were provided with funding and support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and CcHub.

Izoduwa added, “As we celebrate the International Youths Day, we are excited to have provided a new lease of life for youths in Edo State providing them with relevant skills and preparing them for the challenging world of work.”

One of the success stories of the EdoInnovates is Japhlet Nwamu, who is now a Developer Advocate with Microsoft. He had trained at EdoInnovates and worked with Coven Works out of the hub.

After being trained, he ran Data Science and AI bootcamps, which built the capacity of over 250 participants to become Junior Data Analysts and Scientists. He also led an agile team that mentored over 600 secondary school students during Africa Code Week in 2018 and trained over 1500 in Edo State during Google’s CSFirst 2019.

Another product of EdoInnovates is Co-Founder, Paywise, Kelvin Odionwe, who started his tech journey from the Edobits programme, an entry level training programme at the hub. He grew through the ranks and built his FinTech start-up out of the hub.

He believes he would not have been in the tech scene if not for the support from EdoInnovates, noting that the guidance and capacity building opportunities were instrumental to his success as a founder. He adds that the hub also serves as a veritable source for talent as it trains young people in key tech disciplines for the global workplace.

The Partnerships Lead, EdoInnovates, Efosa Iguodala, said that the hub has thrived on partnerships, noting that the youths in the state are able to acquire globally-relevant skills through an extensive partnerships network that includes ALX, Udacity, among others.

He said: “We have achieved a great deal working with local and international partners who have continued to deepen the talent at EdoInnovates. These partnerships have been beneficial because it has ensured that we train people who are able to stand shoulders high with their peers across the globe:”