In the bustling heart of Lagos, a fresh story is unfolding—one that sees young Nigerians stepping off the sidelines of technology and into its driving seat. CIHAN Digital Academy recently brought together over 130 senior secondary-school students from five distinguished schools in Lagos State, equipping them with hands-on artificial-intelligence (AI) training and charting a course from merely using tech to truly creating it.
Held at Reagan Memorial Baptist Girls’ Secondary School in Sabo-Yaba, the workshop marked the first milestone in the Academy’s ambitious vision: to train 50,000 African teenagers in AI skills within one year.
The vibe in the hallways was unmistakable: energy, hope, and a sense of possibility. For many of these youths, the term “AI engineer” may have once sounded distant and reserved for elsewhere—but now it was within their reach. The Academy emphasised not just theoretical instruction, but stepping into certification pathways, including prompt engineering, positioning the students to become global tech-creators.
Practical Training, Real Schools, Real Teens
This initiative didn’t just pick a few names at random. The cohort drawn from schools like Reagan Memorial Baptist Girls’ Secondary School, Sabo-Yaba; CMS Grammar School, Bariga; International School of Lagos, Unilag; Baptist Girls’ Academy, Obanikoro; and Baptist Academy, Obanikoro, all in Lagos State, lent credibility and scale to the project.
It’s significant that the training was offered free of charge via the Academy’s own platform—QuestAI Kids. The platform is designed to be youth-friendly and accessible, grounding AI concepts in real scenarios rather than abstract theory.
From the organisers’ vantage, this kind of initiative is less about token gestures and more about building foundational capacity. Dr Celestine Achi, CEO of CIHAN Digital Academy, described it as part of a broader mission to “close the digital divide” and transform young people from passive technology consumers into active creators.
A memorable moment came when the ICT Prefect of the hosting school, Angel Achi, spoke of how the idea began with her classmates’ desire to learn and build. “Standing here today… is proof that when you have passion and persistence, dreams do take form,” she remarked.
Why This Matters — and What Is at Stake
In Nigeria—and across Africa—the push to equip young people with digital and emerging-tech skills is no longer optional. It’s essential. As global industries evolve, the jobs of tomorrow demand knowledge of artificial intelligence, machine learning, prompt engineering, and other cutting-edge fields. Without access to these, talented youths risk being left behind.
By focusing on AI literacy early, the CIHAN Digital Academy initiative gives Lagos teens the chance to build skill-sets that are increasingly rare yet in high demand. It’s not simply about learning to code—it’s about understanding how AI can be shaped, governed, and deployed for local problems, such as traffic management, environmental monitoring and digital entrepreneurship.
Furthermore, the ambition to train 50,000 teens across Africa within a year speaks to the scale of demand and potential impact. Dr Achi described strategic school partnerships, online engagement and community-led workshops as the means to reach this target.
From a personal vantage, imagine a young lady in Bariga who might otherwise have limited exposure to high-tech environments. Within this framework, she’s not just a user of smartphone apps—she’s a prompt engineer in the making, she’s creating, she’s shaping the technology. That shift in mindset makes a world of difference.
What’s Next – Scaling Up and Sustaining Momentum
The initial training at Reagan Memorial Baptist Girls’ Secondary School is only the beginning. With the platform in place and feedback already positive, the real challenge lies in scaling that success.
CIHAN’s plan includes:
- Deepening partnerships with more schools across Lagos, and eventually Nigeria and beyond.
- Exploiting online platforms (like QuestAI Kids) to reach students in more remote regions.
- Hosting community-led workshops so that the training becomes sustainable and peer-driven.
- Tracking certification outcomes (prompt engineer credentials, AI mastery certifications) to measure real pipeline success.
Sustaining momentum will also require support from the government, private sector and philanthropic partners. For example, schools working in tech-poor settings may need equipment, internet access, and infrastructure support—challenges common across many parts of Nigeria. There is also a need to ensure that once trained, students can access internships, mentorships, and real projects to apply their skills.
From the student side, grassroots enthusiasm needs nurturing. When Angel Achi’s initiative (the school’s ICT Prefect) kicked things off, it showed the power of student-leadership. Amplifying such voices will be key in making creativity and ownership central rather than peripheral.
For Lagos and Nigeria more broadly, this represents an opportunity to turn a youthful populous into a competitive digital workforce. If done well, the dividends could ripple across sectors—education, manufacturing, services, agriculture—everywhere technology is a lever.
Conclusion
The story of over 130 Lagos teens gaining practical AI exposure through CIHAN Digital Academy is more than a headline—it’s a narrative of empowerment, transformation and possibility. It reminds us that with the right platform, the right training, and the right momentum, the next generation in Nigeria can not only participate in the digital economy—they can lead it.
As I spoke to one of the participants quietly in the corridor, the excitement was palpable. She said, “Now I don’t just want to use apps—I want to build them.” That single thought captures the shift at hand.
The key for all stakeholders now is to keep the flame alive—make sure the training isn’t a one-off event but a springboard, that certification becomes career paths, and that Lagos’ young tech talent has the infrastructure, mentoring and opportunity to flourish.
In simple terms: this is what happens when ambition meets action. And Lagos is watching, learning—and creating.
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