The Brain Builders Youth Development Initiative (BBYDI) has intensified efforts to spread artificial intelligence education across Nigeria, leading a two-day AI Literacy Workshop in Osun State that brought together teachers, parents, youth influencers, and top government officials.
The programme, supported by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation (PJMF), is part of BBYDI’s broader campaign to equip schools and communities with the digital skills required for the future of work and safe technology use.
Officials from the Osun State Ministry of Science, Innovation and Technology and the Ministry of Education attended the sessions and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to preparing its citizens for an increasingly AI-driven world.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Technology, Mrs. O. B. Jolayemi, described AI literacy as essential for promoting curiosity, creativity, and adaptability among young people. She stressed that artificial intelligence should not be perceived as a threat but as a tool that enhances human capability.
A similar endorsement came from the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Mr. M. A. K. Jimoh, who attended the workshop and praised the depth of content delivered by BBYDI. He noted that the practical demonstrations held during the sessions aligned with Osun State’s ongoing reforms in digital and innovation education. He expressed interest in expanding the programme to more schools, adding that the state had already trained over 5,000 teachers in related initiatives but required deeper community-focused capacity building.
One of the strongest outcomes of the workshop was the realisation among participants that artificial intelligence already shapes many aspects of their daily routines.
Teachers disclosed that they rely on AI tools frequently, sometimes without recognising it, for drafting lesson notes, generating exam questions, marking essays, preparing letters, and creating timetables. Many said the training helped them understand how to use these tools more efficiently and responsibly.
Parents and youth influencers also shared their experiences, noting that they use AI for health enquiries, farming research, video enhancement, personal writing tasks, and educational support for their children. These exchanges underscored that AI is not an abstract technological concept but a practical resource embedded in everyday life across professions and households.
Despite this familiarity, many parents voiced concerns about the risks associated with increased AI adoption, particularly for children. Some expressed fears that children were becoming overly dependent on technology, while others worried about misinformation, harmful content, and unsafe online behaviour.
In response, a significant portion of the training focused on digital safety. Participants were guided on recognising false information, setting digital boundaries at home, monitoring children’s use of AI-powered applications, and establishing safe device-use routines. The training reassured many parents who said they now felt better equipped to supervise their children’s digital interactions.
A defining moment of the workshop came during a prompting exercise, where two volunteers attempted the same task but produced different results based on the quality of instructions given. The demonstration helped participants understand that AI performs best when users provide clear, contextual prompts, an insight that many teachers said would immediately improve their classroom work.
Participants described the workshop as highly practical and transformative. Teachers experimented with tools like Gemini and NotebookLM, produced lesson notes within minutes, summarised long documents, and created school timetables. Parents and youth influencers explored voice-enabled AI tools and learned how to apply AI to daily tasks such as budgeting, report writing, and research.
Several attendees shared how the training had boosted their confidence. A teacher from a public secondary school said the session had “opened a new chapter” in her understanding of digital tools, adding that she now felt better prepared to guide her students. A youth advocate described the training as “a timely intervention” that clarified misconceptions about AI and strengthened his professional skills.
Speaking during the workshop, BBYDI’s Communication’s Director, Sanni Alausa-Issa, emphasised that AI literacy must extend beyond classrooms into homes, workplaces, and community institutions. He noted that BBYDI has developed innovative educational tools, including AI flashcards and storybooks, to help children understand artificial intelligence from an early age.
“Our goal is simple,” he said. “We want communities, teachers, parents, and young people, to understand the technology shaping the world around them and to use it safely, responsibly, and creatively.”