Ayeni Oluwatobi Dorcas, a Nigerian tech content creator, has championed untapped business potential in youth-led tech at UNESCO-UNEVOC Global Forum.
Dorcas, known in Africa’s digital circles as ‘Misstechy,’ calls for investment in AI-enabled skills development at the 10th anniversary of World Youth Skills Day.
She viewed youth as beneficiaries, positioning them as builders of the next wave of digital economies while making a business case and a reality check for global stakeholders eyeing Africa’s fast-growing tech landscape.
The theme of the UNESCO-UNEVOC global forum is ‘Youth Empowerment through AI emphasises the critical role of discernment in the AI era. Drawing from her experience with content creation.
Ayeni highlighted the monetisable risk of misinformation and the growing difficulty in distinguishing real from AI-generated visuals on social media.
Equip young people with digital literacy and critical thinking not just as life skills, but as economic assets, she stated.
“AI is here to support us, not to take our place,” she said. “But it’s the human spark that drives innovation. If we invest in that, the returns will be exponential.”
While speaking about Nigeria’s youth-driven creator economy, she recalled how building her first AI-generated video wasn’t easy.
“It was frustrating,” she admitted. “But learning by doing and joining online communities transformed the process into growth.”
She called attention to the changing learning appetites of Gen Z. “They don’t want hour-long lectures, they want snackable content they can use now. That’s why TikTok isn’t just entertainment; it’s a micro-learning platform.”
“To unlock Africa’s AI dividend, we must empower youth not just as users but as creators and innovators.”
