The Bunmi Adedayo Foundation marked its 10th anniversary recently with a conference on education and awards for individuals and organisations that have supported the foundation’s initiatives.

Delivering the keynote address at the event, the Special Adviser to the Minister of Education, Dr. Adetola Salau, said Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) must become the driving force of Nigeria’s education system if the country is to remain competitive in a rapidly changing world,

Salau noted that STEM is no longer just a group of subjects but a critical way of thinking required for the future.

“STEM has become a way of thinking. It is a way of thinking; of being curious always, experimenting, problem solving and iterating solutions endlessly.”

She noted that global economies are being shaped by innovation and technology, warning that Nigeria’s classrooms must evolve to keep pace.

“We are living in a rapidly changing world which is being defined by technology, innovation, and constant disruption,” she said, adding that “the jobs of tomorrow are evolving faster than our classrooms.”

Salau criticised the current learning model, saying it still rewards “memorisation over understanding, routine over curiosity, and conformity over creativity,” stressing that “This must change.”

She emphasised that STEM education goes beyond producing scientists, explaining that “STEM education is not about producing more scientists alone. It is about raising a generation of thinkers.”

The Chairman of the Executive Council of the Foundation, Professor Wọle Atoyebi, reflected on a decade of impact by the organisation.

He said the foundation had strengthened schools, supported teachers and created enabling environments where children can thrive.

“From the establishment of libraries that nurture a culture of reading to ICT hubs that expand access to knowledge, and programmes that enhance teaching and learning, each initiative has contributed meaningfully to improved educational outcomes,” he said.

Also speaking, the Director of Strategy at the Foundation, Mrs. Oluwayemisi Adedayo, said the vision behind the organisation remains rooted in the passion of its late founder.

She said her husband, Bunmi Adedayo, was deeply committed to education, noting that the foundation’s work over the past decade reflects his ideals.

According to her, the foundation has reached more than 550,000 learners and empowered 7,800 teachers across Lagos, Ogun, Osun and Rivers States, with a strong focus on early education as well as digital and ICT learning.

Dignitaries at the event included philanthropist, Senator Daisy Danjuma, Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Ọmọtọṣọ, and publisher, Mr. Dele Momodu