As Africa confronts a growing wave of digital transformation, experts have urged young people across the continent to rise to the challenge of the 7 million annual job creation gap by cultivating essential digital skills that will not only make them globally competitive but also position Africa as a nucleus of tech talent in the ongoing Fourth Industrial Revolution.
This call came during the Digital Skillfest, a capacity-building event organised by Incubator Hub, a tech-based innovation and learning centre in Nigeria. Held under the theme“The Fourth Industrial Revolution: Positioning Africa as the Global Talent Hub,” the event brought together thought leaders, technology practitioners, and aspiring professionals with a shared vision to shape the continent’s digital future.
Delivering a keynote address, Olugbenga Omojola, managing partner at First Excelsia, emphasised Africa’s most pressing labour market challenge as its greatest untapped advantage.
“Africa’s biggest challenge is also its biggest opportunity. Each year, 10 million young Africans enter the workforce, but only 3 million jobs are created. That’s a 7 million job creation deficit compounding annually,” Omojola said.
He noted that it may seem like a challenge, but youth should see it more as an opportunity. “And the way you look at it, the way you prepare for it, will determine what you drive from it and what you get from it,” Omojola added.
Citing insights from the World Economic Forum’s 2023 report, Omojola explained that by 2027, the global workforce will undergo a massive restructuring, with 83 million traditional jobs expected to disappear, while 69 million new roles, many rooted in technology, will emerge.
“The Fourth Industrial Revolution is not coming; we are already in it. But your response to it will determine if it is good news or bad news,” he said.
He added that the technological shift is accelerating so rapidly that 65 percent of children starting school today will eventually work in roles that don’t yet exist. Fields like data science and robotics are only the beginning, he noted. The more urgent question for Africa is whether its youth will be prepared to fill emerging roles or be left behind in a tech-driven world.
According to him, Africa is the world’s youngest continent, with over 60 percent of its population under the age of 25. Omojola noted that unless this youthful energy is backed by digital competence and entrepreneurial drive, the continent could miss its moment.
“We must focus on developing not just technical skills, but employability competencies that make African people resilient, relevant, and prepared for the future,” Omojola stated.
He explained that these competencies go beyond technical knowledge, encompassing essential soft and strategic skills needed to access, retain, and grow within digital opportunities or better still, to create them.
Emphasising the need for personal responsibility, Omojola warned against an overreliance on governments or external institutions to solve the employment crisis. “There will be support,” he acknowledged, “but the responsibility lies with those of us in this room. You are job creators. Even if you are currently looking for a job, that’s okay. But begin to see yourself as someone capable of creating opportunities.”
He identified five key competencies that African youth must acquire to thrive in the digital age. Chief among them is digital literacy and technical fluency. Foundational skills in areas such as coding, cybersecurity, cloud computing, and data analytics are no longer optional. An understanding of emerging technologies has become essential, even for roles that are not directly technical, like product management.
Omojola also underscored the value of problem-solving and critical thinking, as well as the need for strong communication and collaboration skills. While individuals can achieve limited progress on their own, he stressed that long-term impact requires collective effort. “You can go fast alone, but to go far, you need to go together,” he said.
Adaptability and a growth mindset, he noted, are no longer optional but essential. He pointed out that the era of guaranteed job security is over. Continuous learning, he emphasised, is the only path forward. The ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn is now a defining quality of those who wish to remain employable.
In addition, Omojola highlighted the importance of entrepreneurial thinking and creative problem-solving. With formal employment opportunities still limited across the continent, the future, he said, belongs to those who can create value and build ventures. “We must raise job creators. The future is for you to create jobs—not wait for them,” he said.
For Africa to rise meaningfully, Omojola stressed that the solutions must be rooted in local realities. He cautioned against the impulse to replicate models from Silicon Valley or other tech hubs abroad. Instead, he advocated for leveraging Africa’s own unique strengths—its people, creativity, natural resources, and socio-economic context.
“Africa’s strength will not be found in mimicking Silicon Valley or Shenzhen. We must tap into our originality. That’s where true progress lies,” he said.
Omojola identified Africa’s large youth population as one of its greatest assets. According to him, By 2035, the continent is projected to have 1.1 billion people under the age of 30. However, he challenged the audience to consider whether Africa would have 1.1 billion talents.
There is a fundamental difference, he said, between population and competence. “The future belongs to those who shift from simply being part of the population to becoming part of the talent pool.”
He pointed to successful innovations rooted in African realities such as Flutterwave, Zipline, and FarmCrowdy as proof that the continent can generate globally impactful solutions. He also drew attention to Africa’s cultural capital, particularly in music and film, as well as its position as home to 30 percent of the world’s mineral resources, all of which provide a strategic advantage.
Rather than aim to compete with the West or Asia on their terms, Omojola urged African innovators to build from their own experience. “Let us not just compete. Let us create. Let us not merely imitate. Let us innovate from our identity,” he added.
He noted that Africa’s digital future would not be shaped in faraway innovation hubs but within the continent’s own cities and communities. “The future is in Aba, Accra, Addis Ababa, Kigali, Zamfara, Lagos, Ibadan, Kenya—and most of all, in Ekiti,” he said.
Omojola called on young Africans to act boldly without waiting for validation or permission. Citing the initiative of the Incubator Hub founder as an example, he illustrated what becomes possible when vision meets courage.
“Africa is no longer waiting for the future;it is designing it,” he said. That design, he stressed, must be original, intentional, and grounded in the lived realities of African people. “Innovation is the most important tool for transforming African economies—but it must be homegrown, authentic, and focused on solving real problems.”
Additionally, he addressed policymakers, industry leaders, and players across the innovation ecosystem, urging them to stop offering leftover solutions to young people and instead invest meaningfully in their growth. “Equip them with real opportunities, capital, and most importantly, mentorship,” he said. “I have yet to see anyone achieve lasting success without the guidance of the right mentors.”
Reinforcing calls for a self-sustaining African tech ecosystem, Shodipo Ayomide, head of developer relations at Nuklai Protocol,urged African tech innovators to draw inspiration from global ecosystems while committing to building homegrown solutions that reflect the continent’s realities.
Speaking during a panel session, Ayomide emphasised that one of the most consistent patterns in thriving tech ecosystems across regions like America, Europe, and India is that the key drivers founders, investors, and board members are often locals who understand the unique challenges of their environments.
Citing examples like India’s Paytm and Polygon—both led and funded by Indians Ayomide stressed that successful ecosystems thrive when natives take ownership. “Africans must build Africa. Nigerians must build Nigeria,” he said, urging founders to solve local problems with local insight and drive growth from within.
He encouraged Nigerian startups to embrace local funding, despite concerns about investor involvement, noting that such engagement often leads to better structure and accountability. He warned against building in isolation, sharing the story of a promising founder who collapsed under regulatory pressure due to lack of investor support and mentorship.
“Going it alone is risky. In the multitude of counsellors, there is safety,” Ayomide said, advocating for a collaborative approach to innovation that starts in Nigeria and scales across Africa.
In his opening remarks at the event, Olawale Olatujoye, senior manager at the Incubator Hub, underscored the urgency of embracing digital skills amid global tech disruptions.
He noted that while massive layoffs by tech giants like Google and Microsoft may cause fear, the rapid shift in the digital landscape also presents new opportunities.
“The future is no longer tech; the present is tech,” Olatujoye stated, adding that although AI is displacing some roles, it is also creating new ones.
He explained that the event was designed to celebrate individuals who have boldly chosen to adapt to this transformation and to provide a space for networking, knowledge-sharing, and direct engagement with industry experts.
Highlighting the inclusivity of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Olatujoye pointed out that access to the digital economy requires little more than a mobile device and internet connection. “We have no excuse,” he said. “The playing field is level. It’s time to move beyond learning to action.”
