Odu’a Investment reaches 4,500 Southwest students through coding clubs
By Adejayan Gbenga
Odu’a Investment Company Limited says its Byte Busters Coding Clubs have reached more than 4,500 students across 20 centres in 18 local government areas in Southwest Nigeria, as part of efforts to expand digital education and promote youth empowerment.
The company disclosed this at the second edition of the Byte Busters Showcase 2026, held on Friday at the University of Ibadan International Conference Centre, Ibadan. The event featured students presenting technology-driven projects designed to address real-life challenges.
The showcase was organised under the Digital Education for Innovation and Economic Development (DEFINED) Project of the Odu’a Investment Foundation. Speaking at the event, the Group Chairman of Odu’a Investment Company, Dr Tola Kasali, said the company’s responsibilities extended beyond business performance to include sustainable development and community empowerment across its six owner states.
Kasali said equipping young people with digital skills was essential to the economic growth of Southwest Nigeria. He added that digital education should promote critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and practical problem-solving rather than focus only on basic computer literacy.
Similarly, the Group Managing Director of Odu’a Investment Company, Abdulrahman Yinusa, said the foundation was established as the company’s corporate social responsibility vehicle, with interventions in education, healthcare and youth development. He explained that the Byte Busters programme operates after-school coding clubs in public secondary schools across the six Southwest states, exposing students to coding, artificial intelligence and computational thinking.
The DEFINED Project Director, Professor Seun Kolade, said the initiative had grown from its inaugural showcase, which featured about 100 pupils from nine centres, to 20 centres across 18 local government areas. He added that more than 4,500 learners had been reached, while over 220 pupils were expected to participate in the 2026 showcase.
Kolade said students presented projects addressing challenges in agriculture, education, accessibility, commerce and public safety. The innovations included an artificial intelligence-powered computer-based testing platform, an emergency response system, a sign language application, a digital marketplace for local traders, a tool to reduce post-harvest maize losses and a Yoruba-English translation application.
He also said the foundation’s Digital Literacy Training for Teachers programme complemented the coding clubs, with 72 teachers participating in its first cohort and 67 completing the training. The programme aims to train 3,000 teachers by the end of 2026. Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Odu’a Investment Foundation Advisory Council, Ambassador Dr. Olatokunbo Awolowo Dosunmu, and the foundation’s Acting Executive Secretary, Mrs Abiola Ajayi, called for stronger support from governments and corporate organisations to expand digital learning opportunities to more underserved communities.
