Bunmi Banjo

Bunmi Banjo is a technology leadership and future of work speaker and adviser. She is also the founder and CEO of Kuvora Inc. [1] Bunmi was previously responsible for Google's Brand and Reputation in Africa where she led the company's effort to provide digital skills to millions of youths across the continent.[2][3]

Bunmi Banjo
Born
Olúbùnmi Bánjọ

Charlemagne, Quebec, Canada
NationalityCanadian, Nigerian
Alma materKellogg School of Management, University of Toronto
OccupationBusiness executive, writer
EmployerGoogle

Early life and education

Bunmi was born in Canada to Nigerian parents from Ijebu, Ogun State, Nigeria, and is the eldest of three children. She attended the Federal Government Academy, Suleja where she was a member of the inaugural class of Nigeria's secondary school program for gifted and talented pupils.

Bunmi attained a Bachelor's degree in Psychology in 2000 from The University of Toronto and an MBA in 2007 from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Work experience

Bunmi's early career work included stints at Chevron Corporation, Discover Financial Services, and TD Canada Trust.

In 2012, she joined Google where she currently leads the company's effort to train millions of people through Google's Digital Skills for Africa programme.[4][5][6]

Bunmi has also been widely quoted by the media including CNN,[7] Al Jazeera network, CNBC Africa, Financial Times, This Day, The Punch, and The Guardian (Nigeria) newspapers.[8]

Bunmi is listed as one of the co-founders and CMO of an entertainment booking platform called Fezah.[9]

Google's Digital Outreach in Africa

At a press conference in Johannesburg in April 2016, Google announced plans to train 1 million Africans in digital skills within one year.[10][11] Through a partnership with Livity Africa's "Digify Africa" programme, plans were put in place around the continent to identify relevant populations for training and support, delivering "practical learning experiences that lead directly to in-demand jobs in the digital economy, or help launch small enterprises."[12]

Bunmi is the head of the program across the continent, and had this to say about the experience: "People across Africa are thirsty to explore how to take better advantage of the internet and the opportunities it offers."[13]

In March 2017, Google met its goal[14] and committed to training one million more.[15] For this Google intends to "add countries and regions to Digital Skills for Africa" and include "more offline versions of online training materials for low net access areas". The program will also be offered in "new languages, such as Swahili, IsiZulu, and Hausa."[16]

See also

References
  1. "Bunmi Banjo | Les débats du Monde Afrique". Les débats du Monde Afrique (in French). Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  2. Banjo, Bunmi (September 14, 2016). "Charting a digital future for Nigerian youth". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  3. "How Google is helping young entrepreneurs in Nigeria expand their businesses by putting them online; watch this video". CPAfrica. August 29, 2012. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  4. NAN (November 7, 2016). "Google prepares African youths for future online jobs". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  5. Al Jazeera English (August 27, 2012), Google gives assist to Nigerian businesses, archived from the original on February 16, 2017, retrieved February 15, 2017
  6. "Google to train 400 000 Nigerian youths". CNBCAfrica.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  7. "Bunmi Banjo: Giving one million Africans a digital future". CNN. Archived from the original on June 14, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  8. "Bunmi Banjo | Africa Com AHUB Speaker". tmt.knect365.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  9. "Fezah – Venture Capital for Africa". VC4A.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  10. "Google to train 1 million people in Africa in digital skills | IT News Africa – Africa's Technology News Leader". www.itnewsafrica.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  11. "INTERVIEW: Google Nigeria to train 1 million people on digital skills – Country chief – Premium Times Nigeria". Premium Times Nigeria. January 21, 2017. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  12. "Livity Africa Home Page – Livity Africa". Livity Africa. Archived from the original on November 24, 2016. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  13. "Google's #DigitalskillsforAfrica: Over 500,000 trained – The Nation Nigeria". The Nation Nigeria. October 26, 2016. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  14. "Q&A: Google's Bunmi Banjo chats Africa's digital skills growth – Memeburn". Memeburn. March 15, 2017. Archived from the original on March 15, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  15. Bright, Jake. "Google expands its African initiatives". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  16. Bright, Jake. "Google expands its African initiatives". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
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