EdTech school advocates STEM education as alternative to law, medicine

Product Hub Africa says it is out to teach science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to enable students to compete in the global innovation space.

Victoria Oladosu, founder of the education technology school, was at the 2025 STEM Conference at Nile University in Abuja on Tuesday.

She said the organisation is challenging the idea that success is limited to careers in law, medicine, or engineering.

“We want to take away the norm, the tradition of you having to be a lawyer, an engineer, a doctor,” Oladosu said.

“There are so many fields that young people can explore beyond the conventional paths, and that’s why we are pushing STEM.”

Oladosu said the organisation, through its project STEM-A-School, has visited several pre-tertiary institutions to introduce students to emerging technologies. 

She added that the programme has now expanded to include tertiary institutions.

“We’re sensitising the students in STEM courses, also providing them with STEM resources,” the founder said.

“They’re going to be listening to leaders in the STEM ecosystem, people who have built innovative solutions, and who they can learn from, and who they can even receive opportunities from.”

At the event, Joshua Abah, dean of the faculty of computing at Nile University, said there is growing fear that artificial intelligence will displace human workers.

He described these concerns as “misplaced”.

“What AI does is improve productivity and efficiency,” Abah explained.

“AI doesn’t have emotions. Emotion is an attribute of humans.

“Machines can mimic human behaviour to a degree, but they cannot think critically or feel.”

Abah said STEM could play a critical role in solving major challenges in Nigeria, especially in agriculture and rural development.

“People can’t go to the farm anymore in some northern communities due to cultural and security issues. But technology can address that,” he said.

“Plants don’t need rain, they need water. With precision agriculture and IoT, we can deliver water and nutrients in the exact quantity each plant requires.”

Joe Eze, founder and CEO of OmniPower Innovation Limited, said Nigeria must take the lead in Africa’s transition into the fourth industrial revolution.

“Africa must define its future. We cannot rely on the West to build solutions for us,” Eze argued.

“This is a turning point in our history. What we are doing today is laying the foundation for the next generation to use AI and robotics to solve African problems.”

Eze commended Product Hub Africa for organising the event, saying it marks a new dawn for tech-driven education on the continent.