Beyond the Degree

Doyin is a seasoned Software Product Manager at Moniepoint with over 5 years of experience driving high-impact digital solutions. With a career trajectory rooted in a deep understanding of the West African tech landscape, Doyin has consistently bridged the gap between complex software engineering and user-centric product strategy. Currently pursuing an international MBA at Rome Business School, Italy, Doyin holds a degree in Software Engineering from Benin Republic. This academic foundation, paired with years of hands-on leadership, has fueled a mission to empower the next generation of tech talent. As the Brain behind the Decode Benin initiative, and Convener of Decode Benin 1.0 (its flagship summit), Doyin is spearheading a landmark initiative designed to integrate students (Beninese and Nigerian) in Benin Republic into the global tech ecosystem. By leveraging strategic partnerships and a proven track record of product excellence, Doyin is dedicated to fostering innovation and creating sustainable career pathways for aspiring creatives, tech & non-tech talents and product leaders. Known for a meticulous approach to product growth and a commitment to community building, Doyin continues to be a pivotal figure in shaping the future of African technology.

Daniel Esuola is a Frontend Engineer and AI practitioner with over 4 years of experience building intelligent, user-focused web applications. He combines expertise in React, Framer, and generative AI to craft seamless digital experiences that merge design, functionality, and intelligence. His technical work spans from AI model fine-tuning to developing products that improve creativity and workflow efficiency, impacting over 3,000+ users and freelancers globally. As the founder of Provolo, Daniel leads the development of an AI-driven platform that helps freelancers write smarter proposals and optimize their profiles for better results. Beyond product building, he is deeply passionate about community development and mentorship. Serving as the Team Lead for Google Developer Groups (GDG) Ogbomosho, he has helped train and mentor over 15 developers, organizing tech events and workshops that inspire innovation and collaboration within the local ecosystem. Outside of his technical engagements, Daniel is a creative at heart. He enjoys art, video editing, and content creation, often using these mediums as an outlet to explore storytelling and design from a different lens. This creative curiosity complements his technical work, inspiring him to build digital experiences that are both functional and emotionally engaging. Driven by curiosity, purpose, and innovation, Daniel continues to explore how AI and human creativity can coexist to create better tools, stronger communities, and a more inclusive future for technology.

Glory Olaifa is a distinguished Mobile Engineer and tech community leader with over five years of experience in building high-performance, scalable applications. Currently a final-year student at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Glory has seamlessly balanced rigorous academic pursuits with a high-impact professional career, establishing himself as a prominent figure in the global tech ecosystem. His technical prowess is underscored by a remarkable track record in competitive engineering. Glory is a two-time hackathon winner and reached a career pinnacle as a Google Solution Challenge global winner. These accolades reflect his ability to architect innovative solutions that address real-world problems, blending sophisticated logic with intuitive, user-centric interfaces. His expertise spans the full mobile development lifecycle, with a particular depth in Android development, Kotlin, Flutter and Jetpack Compose. Beyond his technical contributions, Glory is a passionate advocate for community building and leadership. He has played a pivotal role in shaping the tech landscape, serving in leadership capacities for GDG Ogbomoso, Flutter Ogbomoso, and GDGoC LAUTECH. Whether he is managing Provolo to empower freelancers or writing expert-level deep dives on Android, he continues to push the boundaries of mobile engineering while mentoring the next generation of developers.

Damilola Opaniyan is the Brand and Communications Lead at TS Academy, a leading edtech company empowering African youth with in-demand tech and digital skills. She leads brand strategy, corporate communications, stakeholder engagement, and community building initiatives that connect aspiring tech professionals with transformative learning opportunities. With about a decade of experience in brand and communications strategy across fintech, financial services, and technology sectors, Damilola has developed integrated campaigns, managed media relations, and executed high-impact communication strategies for leading brands across Africa.

Chukwuemeka is a software engineer with a strong focus on systems design, infrastructure, and developer tooling. With extensive experience in building large-scale systems, optimising low-level performance, and architecting resilient backend infrastructures, he thrives at the intersection of reliability, scalability, and engineering efficiency. Chukwuemeka is also a co-lead of GDG Cloud Lagos, where he facilitates discussions on cloud-native technologies, DevOps, and backend engineering.

Samuel is a Google Developer Expert for Flutter and Dart, product engineer at Nexlab Studio and a senior mobile engineer at Busha. Samuel has over 8 years of experience in the software industry having worked in the banking sector, crypto, finance, mobility, to mention a few. He is a co-organizer of the Flutter Lagos and Flutter Akure communities, as well as the Google Developers Group Akure. Passionate about open-source technologies and building developer tooling, Samuel enjoys sharing knowledge through technical articles and speaking at events and conferences. Outside of coding, Samuel is an avid gamer, lover of anime.