Lagos, Nigeria — Eighteen years after she walked the grounds of Holy Child College in Lagos, Nigeria, as a student, Adesuwa Dickens Ijewere, the Regional Head of Africa Expansion at EchoHouse Africa, returned to her alma mater not just as an Old Girl of the 2008 set, but as a trailblazing Pan-African marketing executive.
Serving as the Special Guest Speaker for the school’s Speech & Prize Giving Day, Adesuwa delivered a powerful and highly nostalgic address centred around the theme, “The Future of Education in Nigeria: Adapting to a Changing World”.
For the students, staff, and proud parents gathered in the school hall, it was a profound full-circle moment. Adesuwa, who once served as Chapel Prefect and Chief Sacristan, stood at the podium to share the extraordinary trajectory of her life. “Because many years ago, I sat exactly where some of you are sitting now—in this very school hall, in these very classrooms—learning, growing, sometimes daydreaming, sometimes worrying about exams, and occasionally wondering what the future would look like,” she reminisced. Her presence was evidence of the school’s enduring legacy of nurturing young women into formidable leaders.
The Shifting Paradigm of Education
At the heart of Adesuwa’s keynote address was a critical message for the next generation, noting how the world is changing at an unprecedented pace, and why education must rapidly evolve to keep up. She noted that while the traditional rules of studying hard, passing exams, and securing a stable job worked for previous generations, the current landscape is vastly different.
“Artificial intelligence is transforming industries. Technology is reshaping how we work,” she told the attentive audience. “Jobs are being created that did not exist ten years ago. And some jobs we once thought were permanent are disappearing”.
Adesuwa stressed that the future of education in Nigeria can no longer be solely about memorisation or what students know. Instead, it must be deeply rooted in how students learn, adapt, and think. She challenged the educators and policymakers present to move education beyond textbooks and examinations, advocating for the intentional development of crucial soft skills. Creativity, adaptability, emotional intelligence, digital literacy, creative thinking, and leadership are the indispensable tools that will shape the next generation of Nigerian leaders.
An Unconventional Journey: From Campus to Continental Impact
Adesuwa’s own career path served as the perfect case study for adaptability and continuous learning. As a teenager leaving Holy Child College, she did not have a perfectly clear roadmap. Her original ambition was to become a bold, on-the-field journalist, inspired by the reporters she watched on Al Jazeera. This dream led her to the University of Ghana in 2008, where she pursued a combined major in English Language and Theatre Arts, along with a year of Sociology.
However, life had other, grander plans. During her first year at university, she joined the Echo Campus team at Legon. At the time, EchoHouse was merely a youth-focused magazine run by a passionate group of young people publishing articles and photos every semester. Adesuwa had no prior knowledge of marketing agencies, nor any academic background in the field. Yet, as the magazine transitioned into a comprehensive creative marketing agency, she found a way to grow alongside it.
Her journey at EchoHouse is nothing short of remarkable. Starting professionally as an Account Manager, she curated creative marketing solutions for various brands. By 2018, Adesuwa took on the monumental challenge of leading EchoHouse’s first expansion outside of Ghana. She relocated to Liberia, where she built a new team from scratch, executed the first-ever Tidal Rave Festival – Africa’s biggest beach festival – outside Ghana, and curated the MTN Liberia Music Awards (MLMA), which changed Liberia’s event landscape.
Today, she is a powerhouse in the creative marketing industry, leading expansion efforts across multiple African nations, including Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Botswana, and South Africa. “But that journey did not happen because I had everything figured out,” Adesuwa admitted to the school girls. “It happened because I kept learning. I adapted. I stayed curious. And I was not afraid to grow beyond what I originally imagined”.
Technology as a Tool, Values as the Anchor
Addressing the common anxiety surrounding the rise of artificial intelligence and digital tools, Adesuwa offered a refreshing perspective. “Many people worry that technology is replacing human potential. I disagree,” she stated. “Technology is simply a tool. The real question is: Who will use it wisely?”.
She urged the integration of digital learning, global collaboration, and innovation into Nigeria’s educational framework. However, she was quick to emphasize that technology must always be guided by strong moral principles. She noted that the core values instilled by institutions like Holy Child College remain constant and vital.
Adesuwa paid glowing tributes to the teachers who shaped her character, vividly recalling the voices of past educators who taught her discipline, posture, and diligence. She reminded the students of the school’s powerful motto: Facta Non Verba—Actions, Not Words.
“Those words are not just a school slogan. They are a life philosophy,” she declared. “They remind us that true leadership is not about titles. It is about action. It is about the courage to make a difference”.
Redefining Success for the Next Generation
In one of the most poignant moments of her speech, Adesuwa addressed both the high-achieving prize winners and the rest of the student body. While congratulating the awardees on their dedication and discipline, she cautioned that winning a prize is not the end of the journey, but merely the beginning. True success, she noted, is about consistent growth over time.
To the students who did not walk away with plaques, she offered a deeply personal encouragement. Revealing that she only ever received one award during her time at school—”Best Behaved Student in SS2″—she proved that a single result does not define a person’s future. “Some of the most extraordinary people in the world were not always the top students,” she shared. “But they were persistent. They were curious. And they never stopped learning”.
A Call to Shape Nigeria’s Future
As she drew her address to a close, Adesuwa painted a compelling picture of Nigeria’s potential, asserting that the nation’s future will not be shaped by politicians alone, but by the educators, innovators, entrepreneurs, and problem-solvers sitting in that very hall.
She left the girls with three guiding principles for their journey ahead: to stay curious and never stop learning, to stay courageous and take bold steps, and to remain grounded in their values, especially respect. “Because knowledge will open doors. But character will determine how far you go,” she affirmed.
Adesuwa Dickens Ijewere’s return to Holy Child College was a masterclass in resilience, continuous learning, and visionary leadership. By sharing her unconventional journey from a campus magazine volunteer to a Pan-African marketing executive, she effectively bridged the gap between traditional education and the dynamic demands of the modern workforce.
As the students of Holy Child College step out into a world driven by AI and rapid technological advancement, they do so armed with Adesuwa’s ultimate reminder: “The future is not something that will happen to you. It is something you will create”. And for these young women, equipped with curiosity, courage, and the indelible values of Facta Non Verba, that future is undeniably bright.