U.S. Consulate, YABATECH train over 300 staff on AI
By Sanusi Opeyemi, YABATECH No fewer than 300 participants drawn from staff, students, and alumni of Yaba College of Technology converged on Yusuf Grillo Hall on Tuesday for a one-day
By Sanusi Opeyemi, YABATECH
No fewer than 300 participants drawn from staff, students, and alumni of Yaba College of Technology converged on Yusuf Grillo Hall on Tuesday for a one-day intensive training on the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), organized by the U.S. Consulate General Lagos in collaboration with the institution.
Declaring the training open, the Rector, Dr. Ibraheem Adedotun Abdul, described the initiative as timely and strategic, noting that artificial intelligence has become a defining force in education, governance, business, and everyday life.
He expressed appreciation to the U.S. Consulate for what he termed a “visionary partnership” aimed at advancing technological education, innovation, and ethical practices in Nigerian institutions.
“This collaboration underscores our shared belief that knowledge in emerging fields like Artificial Intelligence must be harnessed responsibly to benefit society, drive sustainable development, and open new frontiers of opportunity for our youth,” the rector said.
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The highlight of the event was a keynote session delivered by Ms. Omoju Miller, Chief Executive Officer of FIMIO and a globally recognized technology expert, who challenged participants to move from being mere consumers of foreign technologies to active creators in the unfolding AI revolution.
According to her, Africa—and Nigeria in particular—has a unique opportunity to play a significant role in shaping the future of AI, given its youthful population, talent pool, and growing digital ecosystem.
“We are in the most profound global revolution yet—the AI revolution. This is our opportunity to be participants, not just consumers,” she said, urging young Nigerians to embrace what she described as “main actor energy” in global technology development.
Miller emphasized that many AI models are now available through open-source platforms, making innovation “permissionless” and accessible to young developers and researchers without prohibitive costs. She encouraged students to leverage tools such as Python, Jupyter Notebooks, Kaggle, and other open repositories to build solutions tailored to local challenges.
Beyond technical skills, the training focused heavily on ethics and responsibility. Key learning areas included responsible AI tools and decision-making, ethical applications in teaching and research, cyber safety and data privacy, preventing AI misuse and plagiarism, and exploring career pathways within the AI ecosystem.
The rector stressed that YABATECH’s vision goes beyond producing skilled technologists to nurturing responsible innovators and global citizens.
“At Yaba College of Technology, we are committed to digital transformation and international partnerships that position our graduates at the forefront of emerging technologies, while upholding integrity, inclusivity, and societal good,” Abdul said.
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Miller warned participants against the misuse of AI in academic work, describing it as counterproductive.
“Don’t let AI do your homework for you. Use it to teach you, to expand your understanding, to generate practice questions, and to improve your mastery. If you cheat with AI, you are only cheating yourself,” she cautioned.
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She also highlighted the risks of bias in AI systems, explaining that algorithms trained on limited or skewed datasets can exclude or misrepresent certain communities. She called on Nigerian researchers and students to contribute local data, languages, and cultural contexts to global datasets to ensure fair representation.
Drawing an analogy between microwave cooking and Michelin-star cuisine, she urged participants to pursue mastery rather than shortcuts in their engagement with AI.
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“You don’t want the microwave version. You want to understand how to build, evaluate, and responsibly deploy systems. That is how we move from consumers to builders and owners,” she added.
The event concluded with a call for grassroots innovation within the institution, encouraging students and staff to design AI-driven solutions to challenges within their immediate environment, test them responsibly, and share findings to strengthen global safety frameworks.
Certificates of participation were issued to attendees, underscoring the institution’s commitment to lifelong learning and responsible digital innovation.
With the training, YABATECH reaffirmed its leadership role in technological education, positioning its community to harness the transformative power of artificial intelligence while safeguarding ethical standards and societal values.
