By: Ochi, Maduabuchi
The SkilledforNow 2.0 In-Person Workshop, which aimed to prepare recent graduates and final-year students for the future of work, took place at the Infinix Student Resource Center, University of Ibadan, on 21st June, 2025.
The initiative was sponsored by the European Union in partnership with Global Youth Mobilisation.
The event began with participants filling out a survey designed to help the organisers understand their current knowledge and expectations in order to serve them better. The survey captured information including their names, email addresses, the aspects of the workshop they were most interested in, and their reasons for attending the event, among other details.
This was followed by an address delivered by the project lead for SkilledforNow 2.0, Oyindamola Osinubi.
“It’s an initiative to bridge the gap in youth unemployment in Nigeria,” she stated, noting how the educational system had failed to prepare youths for the 21st-century workplace.
She went on to highlight the internship opportunities provided by the initiative, which allow some participants to work in various businesses across different industries and apply the knowledge and skills they gained from the workshop and virtual bootcamp.
The first speaker, Kehinde Adebayo, spoke on ‘Green Economy and the Future of Work’. She addressed the concept of the green economy. “It is about incorporating greenness. It is not greenwashing,” she said.
She warned against conflating the green economy with greenwashing, which refers to vaguely identifying with green principles without real effort. A true green economy, she said, includes things that drive economic growth, such as renewable energy and green transportation.
The second speaker, Adetola Omolewa, spoke on ‘Navigating Career Transition: From Campus to Corporate Life’, in which she highlighted the expectations placed on workers to deliver excellence at their jobs. Expectations that stand in stark contrast to the more relaxed nature of university life.
“When opportunity meets you prepared, you’ll do much better,” she noted as she addressed the participants.
Her session was followed by a panel discussion in which the first two speakers answered questions from the audience. The panel session also featured a spoken word performance by Onyekachi Gbaruko, who goes by the stage name Kachi Fire.
The third speaker, Emmanuel Ogundare, tackled the topic ‘Leveraging Tech to Solve Local Problems and Create Opportunity’.
“We are all using these things, and people are still suffering,” he said in reference to the widespread use of technologies like mobile phones and social media. He emphasized the importance of digital skills in Africa, such as unlocking innovation and solving local problems, citing examples like mobile banking, educational platforms, and fintech startups.
Peace Oyerinde, the fourth speaker of the day, addressed the topic ‘Chasing Passion, Telling Stories, Building Brands and Earning Income’. The final speaker, Oyindamola Osinubi, returned to speak on ‘Staying Ready and Relevant in the World of Work’.
Speaking with IndyPress, Oyindamola Osinubi, the project lead of SkilledforNow, said, “It was refreshing to see young people not just consuming knowledge, but actively co-creating it. The energy, the connections, and the intentionality were truly remarkable. We’re proud to be building a future-ready community.”
“Plans are being made for a third edition, which will incorporate feedback from this edition to improve on,” she noted.
