N3bn Hubs: Nigeria’s Future Depends On Homegrown Graduates, Says Eniolorunda

Co-founder and chief executive officer of Moniepoint Group, Tosin Eniolorunda, has said Nigeria’s future will, to a very large extent, be built by Nigerians trained in Nigerian institutions.

Eniolorunda disclosed this at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, when he recently announced that Moniepoint Group has launched N3 billion Innovation Hubs across some federal universities over the next three years to expand the tech talent pool and expand the digital economy in Nigeria.

Speaking at the launching and signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the institutions, Eniolorunda said, “When you look at the success of companies like Moniepoint, it’s easy to forget that it all started with the foundational training we received right here in Nigerian universities. This initiative is about paying that trust forward. Nigeria’s digital economy cannot run on potential alone; it requires immense, localised talent density. By launching these Innovation Hubs beginning with OAU, UNN, and ABU Zaria, we are intentionally anchoring world-class technical skills across the country.

“And this is just the first step as we look across other tertiary institutions. Before we built anything, universities like UNILAG and OAU built people like Felix and me, giving us our first formal training in the disciplines that became our careers. These three Hubs are my contribution to making that future credible by creating a solid pipeline for the emergence of great products and ideas. To truly scale our digital economy, we need high-density, industry-ready tech talent as a bulwark.

We are investing these billions of Naira to ensure our tech ecosystem is powered by sustainable, homegrown excellence.”

LEADERSHIP reports that the three institutions were strategically selected to scale the impact of the interventions across Nigeria’s geographic regions and to reflect a commitment to ensuring that opportunity is not concentrated in a single city or region but is proportionally distributed across the country, in line with Nigeria’s diversity and potential.

In his remarks, the Vice Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University, Professor Adebayo Bamire, stated, “Obafemi Awolowo University has always stood for excellence, and for the belief that knowledge must serve society. This partnership with Moniepoint Group is a powerful affirmation of that conviction.

“The Moniepoint Innovation Hub will not only expand what our students can learn but also transform what they believe is possible. We are grateful to Moniepoint for choosing to root this investment in our institutions, and we are committed to ensuring that every Naira translates into opportunity for our students and for Nigeria.”