African Workforce Summit equips Nigerian youth to close talent gap, accelerate SDG 8

The African Workforce Summit (AWS) is on a mission to equip Nigerian youth to close the talent gap, thereby accelerating the achievement of SDG 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth.

According to Moses Joel Babatunde, founder and convener of AWS, the initiative has a goal to “help people reskill, and upskill their personal development and help them get a job which is hinged specifically on SDG 8.”

Now in its second year, AWS alternates between Lagos and another African city annually, to maximise its continental impact.

Babatunde characterised Nigeria’s talent shortfall as premised on a very faulty foundation. He explained that graduates remain ill‑prepared by academia.

He said, “if you go back to the university today, you’ll still be taught the same thing you were taught when you were in school 10 years ago and they’re not in tandem with this age and time.”

He further lamented the scarcity of basic workforce skills. “You’ll be so shocked that a lot of people do not know how to operate a computer. Then you want to take it a notch higher, a chunk of people do not also know how to use ordinary Microsoft Office because they do not have those skills.”

Over two days of workshops, panel discussions and masterclasses, AWS provided young people with direct access to hiring managers, including on‑the‑spot interviews and CV reviews, and unveiled reskilling programmes.

Highlight sessions on salary negotiation and effective networking reinforced practical employability skills. “A job fair is not just a place where you go to scout for jobs; it’s a place where you’re scouting for jobs and at the same time getting taught how to stand out in those jobs,” Babatunde said.

Emmanuel Faith, a human resource expert, addressed salary negotiation and transparency, an area many young professionals struggle with. He underscored the importance of understanding total compensation, not just gross figures.

“It is very, very important that you ask for your net pay,” he said. “If they don’t tell you, reach out to your HR friend or your labour law person.”

He also challenged young job seekers to rethink their approach to pay negotiations, noting that assertiveness often unlocks better opportunities.

“As an employee or a job seeker, you should know that it’s not a battle between you and HR or you and the CEO. It’s a collaboration,” he added.

Babatunde also urged Nigerian communities to prepare for Africa’s demographic dividend. “In 2050, Africa is going to have the youngest generation in the world. If we don’t really pay attention to that and maximise it, we are literally going to be a picking spot for all of Europe,” he warned, adding that the continent must build the unicorns back here to ensure that people are proud to travel back to Africa.

With its combination of skills training, policy engagement and private‑sector collaboration, the African Workforce Summit aims not only to bridge today’s talent gap but also to lay the groundwork for sustainable economic growth across Nigeria and beyond.