OREROKPE/Nigeria: Senator Ede Dafinone has urged young people in Okpe to look beyond the traditional pursuit of white-collar jobs, saying university qualifications should not prevent graduates from exploring entrepreneurship, technology and other areas where their talents can create economic opportunities.
Dafinone gave the advice on Saturday at the Okpe Youth Council (OYC) World Youth Conference 2026, held at Edion Hall, Orerokpe, Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State, where he challenged participants to adapt to rapid changes in technology and the world of work.
The senator, who chaired the conference themed “Okpe Youths and the 21st Century Challenges,” also received an Outstanding Leadership Award from the OYC for his service and leadership.
He said the changing employment environment required young Nigerians to develop practical skills and identify opportunities outside the conventional career paths associated with their university degrees.
According to him, graduates should examine their talents, interests and hobbies and consider how those abilities could be developed into businesses or other productive ventures.
Dafinone cited former Senate President Bukola Saraki as an example of how an academic qualification does not necessarily have to determine an individual’s entire career. Saraki trained as a medical doctor before moving into banking and subsequently serving as governor of Kwara State, senator and President of the Senate.
The senator also placed Artificial Intelligence at the centre of his advice to young people, saying the technology was already becoming relevant across professional fields and would increasingly influence how decisions and businesses are conducted.
“AI today already is an essential tool in every profession. Nobody should say that they don’t understand AI,” Dafinone said.
He urged young people to begin learning and applying AI tools rather than waiting until technological changes have substantially altered their areas of work.
“The world is changing very quickly, and our young ones must change with it. If, at my age, I’m studying AI, I don’t know why any young person should not also pick it up and become a master in it,” he said.
Dafinone linked the need for new skills to unemployment and the changing structure of the global economy, saying young people could no longer rely exclusively on the expectation of securing conventional salaried employment after graduation.
He said digital tools were also reducing some of the difficulties previously associated with starting businesses, including access to information and the preparation of preliminary business assessments.
Using feasibility studies as an example, he encouraged prospective entrepreneurs to learn how to find, assess and apply information before committing resources to a business idea.
He further pointed to automation as one of the technological developments already changing manufacturing and other sectors, arguing that continuous learning, creativity and adaptability would become increasingly important.
The senator therefore encouraged Okpe youths to make greater use of online learning platforms and other accessible resources to develop digital, entrepreneurial and practical skills.
Dafinone’s comments on youth skills formed part of a wider discussion at the conference on the challenges facing young people in the 21st century. The emphasis on AI and entrepreneurship provides a different focus from reports published on the event that have centred primarily on his comments about continuity in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reform programme.
Speaking separately on the national economy, Dafinone said he believed the Federal Government’s reform programme should continue rather than be abandoned midway. He argued that the Tinubu administration had undertaken significant reforms during its first three years and needed time to consolidate them.
“The roadmap for development is very clear. Equally, at the national level, our President has executed an enormous amount of reforms, given his just three years in office,” he said.
He added that Nigeria still had further reforms to undertake and expressed concern that a new administration could decide to begin the process afresh.
“A possibility of a new team coming on board that will start from scratch again is not what Nigeria needs,” Dafinone said.
His comments on continuity are his stated political position and should be understood as such, rather than as an independent assessment of the effects or performance of the Federal Government’s reforms. The Tinubu administration has itself described its policies as a programme of economic restructuring, while critics and opposition figures have offered different assessments of the reforms and their effects.
Dafinone commended the OYC for convening young people to discuss contemporary challenges and urged participants to translate the knowledge gained at the conference into practical steps that could improve their individual prospects and contribute to the development of their communities.
Earlier, the National President of OYC, Comrade Moses Newcome Odiete, led the council in presenting the leadership award to Dafinone in recognition of his leadership in the Senate and his support for Okpe and Urhobo youths.
