Africa Teens Career Festival is Happening in Lagos Tomorrow! Meet The Speakers

After excellently delivering the Africa Teens Summit Ghana, 2021, Africa Teens City is back with a first-of-its-kind event!

In a few days, Africa Teens Career Festival Nigeria will be happening in person in the city of Lagos. The career fair is aimed at equipping, educating, and training teenagers with the skill to be more. We believe that young people (teenagers) require capacity building, access to the right resources, access to the right mentorships and networks to allow them and their innovations to thrive.

That’s why Africa Teens Summit has collaborated with the Lagos State Technical and Vocational Board (LASTVEB) and the Government Technical College, Ikotun; to educate, inspire, and motivate 2000+ teenagers to drive change in their communities that will transform the continent of Africa positively. The goal is to see teenagers glean from the knowledge and experience of thought leaders in different sectors spanning from engineering, motor vehicle craft, business, real estate, computer craft, construction to fashion, arts, furniture crafts, and more.

This maiden edition is tagged Beyond Now and is happening Wednesday, 2nd March 2022. Speaking at this groundbreaking event, are experts and thought leaders in various fields who are ready to inspire and impact our attendees with their wealth of knowledge in what is possible in the different industry sectors now and beyond. Ranging from fashion, visual arts, to technology and business, the speakers include Kelechi Ekugo, Runor Jiroma, Julius Ilori, Ayo Akinkunmi, Mary Edoro, Imeh Akpan, and Julian Ojo.

To help ensure that the next generation is equipped with the right knowledge, Africa Teens Summit partnered with MTN Nigeria, BellaNaija, Learners Corner, Mecho Autotech, Golden Penny and TUROG. Trust us, it is going to be an unforgettable experience for everyone in attendance.

What is happening?: Africa Teens Career Festival.
When is it happening?: Wednesday, 2nd March 2022.
Where is it happening?: Government Technical College, Ikotun, Lagos, Nigeria.

Meet the speakers:

Kelechi Ekugo

Mr. Kelechi Ekugo was born in Germany, 40 years ago and is an indigene of Abia State, Nigeria. He currently serves as a Chief of Staff to the Minister of State for the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah. Prior to this, he was a Special Advisor to the former Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, 2017 – 19.

He attended Corona Secondary School, Agbara and the Federal Government College, Odogbolu, and then later got a National Diploma in Electrical Engineering at Epping Forest College, UK and
a BA (Hons) in Financial Services from the University of Derby, England. Kelechi’s career experience spans from being a Financial Analyst at Morgan Stanley investment bank in London and then later a 3-time Technical Adviser (Public Financial Management) to the Federal Ministers of Finance and Minister of Industry, Trade & Investment between 2009 – 2012.

He has sat on various technical committees such as the setting up of Nigeria Sovereign Wealth Fund, review of the FG’s recurrent expenditure, reforms of the downstream oil and gas sector amongst many others.

He is a director of the US Nigeria Business Council, Board of Advisor to the Africa Practice for McLarty Associates (Washington DC). Kelechi founded Lake Investment Partners Limited, an advisory practice that has served clients across the FMCG, Energy, Marine Logistics/Offshore support, Oil and Gas, Steel and Mines, Tech amongst so many other sectors. He is a 2020 recipient of the Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) in the category of Politics and Governance under 40.

Mary Edoro

Mary Edoro is a Fashion Journalist and Digital Media Strategist with over 8 years of experience. She is also the Head of Content for Africa's leading tech-driven fashion media platform, BellaNaija Style.

Mary’s initiatives, which leverage the power of digital media and technology to promote innovation in the African fashion industry, reflect her enthusiasm for growth and creativity in Africa.

Through strategic partnerships, Mary has led successful campaigns for BellaNaija Style with top international companies including MAC, Darling Nigeria, TECNO, SUNLIGHT among others,
making her a key figure in both editorial and content marketing.

One of her latest achievements is championing the Declutter & Donate Campaign focused on encouraging Conscious Consumption and Sustainability in fashion. She has been listed on Y! Naija’s New Establishment List and BellaNaija Style’s 29 African Creatives List.

She was also quoted in an article in the New York Times that tackled “Cultural Appropriation/Appreciation” and more recently interviewed Naomi Campbell where she sparked serious conversations about the fashion industry in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

Ayo Akinkunmi

Ayo Akinkunmi is an Automobile Engineer with 10 years of experience. He founded Ayoola Autocare Services in 2015, a vehicle maintenance outfit based in Lagos where he introduced the concept of doorstep services, mobile mechanics, training/orientation of drivers and vehicle owners on how to maintain their vehicles.

He is also a writer on Automobile maintenance. Since 2015, he has shared his wealth of experience by giving daily vehicle maintenance tips to learn more about how our vehicle works. He doubles as a consultant for Automobile repairs, troubleshooting, and diagnosis, etc. He also created the platform where most of the “Uber”/ E-hailing drivers discuss repairs, servicing, and complaints about their vehicles online.

He is presently the Co-founder(COO) of MECHO Autotech a platform that connects vehicle owners with vetted mechanics spare parts vendors via our app for efficient vehicle repairs and maintenance services. MECHO Autotech platform presently holds the largest network of certified technicians across the country.

Julian Ojo

Julian Ojo is a management operation professional with over 10 years of experience in HR, Business development & operations. She is a people watcher who loves to see growth in the people she comes across.

Her passion for people’s development has enhanced her skill for problem-solving, talent acquisition, and organizational people management. She is currently the Chief Operating Officer at Bella Online Media/BellaNaija, Africa’s leading media-tech company based in Lagos, Nigeria.  Fun fact about Julian, she is a people watcher.

Imeh Akpan

Imeh Akpan is one of the Directors and founders of Multiserve Limited, a Water Engineering company in which he is actively involved in its operation. He built the company from scratch to a multi-billion Naira company that has worked with Shell, NLNG, Julius Berger, Dangote Refinery Dangote Sugar, Brass LNG, and many other reputable companies.

Imeh holds a BSc and MSc from the Chemical Engineering Department of the University of Lagos. Furthermore, he is a Postgraduate Diploma degree holder from the Water Engineering; Development Center, Loughborough University, Loughborough, England. He is also a graduate of the acclaimed Lagos Business School. Imeh is married with 2 children. He is very passionate about young people making a success of their lives.

Runor Jiroma

Runor Jiroma is a Visual & Interaction Designer, Visual Artist, and Digital Collage Maker. He currently leads the design team at Bella Online Media. When he is not working, he spends his time reading a book or two; watching documentaries, and experimenting with his art–as a form of self-expression.

Mercy Akamo

Mercy Akamo is the founder of Africa Teens City. She is a communications specialist with years of experience in the media and experiential industry. She doubled as the Head of Content and Innovation at Bella Online Media (BellaNaija Weddings) – Africa’s No 1 digital destination for entertainment, lifestyle, and weddings content.

As an Editor, Mercy oversaw editorial operations and content for BN’s largest brand – BellaNaija Weddings which has over 200+ million monthly impressions and manages a community of over 5 million people. Her industry experience across digital marketing, content creation, insight & intelligence gathering, media reporting, and monitoring makes her an industry leader in Africa.

Mercy has worked in Africa's largest conglomerates – Dangote Industries Limited and has built her career over the last 8+ years working in leading media corporations. Mercy is a TEDx Ambassador in Africa and the convener of TEDxLagos – Africa’s leading TEDx conference that promotes ideas from the continent.

She is also a Skoll World Forum Fellow and she is also the 2021 Class of the Most Influential People of Africa Descent Under 40, Global 100 List. As an avid education advocate, she co-founded an NGO which helps build libraries and computer labs for children living in underprivileged communities.

Julius Ilori

Julius Ilori is the founder and executive director of two youth development organizations: Learners Corner and Save Africa Future Leaders Initiative (SAFLI). As director of Learners Corner, he develops and executes programs to reduce the growing number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

He is doing this by leveraging the use of technology to democratize access to education and also empowering the teacher workforce in Nigeria through our 21st-century teachers’ program.

This Initiative was borne from a genuine concern to stem the upsurge of the number of school children which was further compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic and to ensure everyone has access to quality education no matter their status.

Julius Education tech solution has supported over 3000 secondary school students in Nigeria. He has trained over 150 teachers on how to navigate change and uncertainty. Julius teacher’s
welfare program has provided food items to 500 teachers who lost their jobs or haven’t been paid salaries due to the negative economic effect of the Covid-19 Pandemic.

He has been featured severally on Television and radio programs where he speaks on issues affecting the Youth Population in Nigeria. He is a recipient of the Civil Society SDGs Awards, GSFEN- Africa awards, YALI leadership award, and so on.

Julius currently sits as a co-chair on the USAID SCALE project in Nigeria. He hopes to reduce the rate of out-of-school children in Nigeria by 30% in the year 2025 by providing technologically-
driven innovations and alternative forms of learning with content that will prepare the students for the future of work.

In addition to the impactful conversations by our speakers, there will be an innovation showcase where a selected number of students of the technical showcase their inventions. And it is tagged Beyond Now!