Bringing together industry leaders, policymakers, and young professionals to redefine the continent’s role in the global economy such that moves beyond the export of raw materials to high-quality human talents, the premiere edition of the Jobberman Remote Work Fest 2025 held in Lagos recently harped on the urgent need for African talents to fill roles in aging global markets.
  
The event which was themed ‘Work Beyond Borders: Building Africa’s Global Remote Workforce’ was organised by Jobberman Nigeria and The African Talent Company in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.
  
The festival featured panel discussions and fireside chats designed to showcase the future of work, and how remote work is transforming how Africans learn, work, and earn. With Nigeria projected to become the world’s third most populous country by 2050, and with 80 per cent of its population currently under the age of 44, discussion at the festival centered on how to position African youth as the premier solution for the global workforce shortage, with 62 per cent of international companies already hiring from the continent.
 
Chief Marketing Officer of The African Talent Company, Gabriel Akan Gab-Umoden, said the idea behind the festival is to inspire young professionals to imagine careers that are flexible, fluid, and borderless.
  
Founding Partner of Future Africa, Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, who was represented by Cecil Jones, Head of Product at Itana, challenged the misconception around how remote work is “easy” or “lazy”. Jones said: “Remote work is not an easier way to work; it is probably the most disciplined way you can work. To survive the volatility of the global market, you must treat yourself as a service exporting to the world.”
  
Country Head of Programmes at Jobberman Nigeria, Olamide Adeyeye, presented a data spotlight revealing that 62 per cent of international companies are actively hiring young people from Africa.

He noted that while AI is expected to displace 92 million jobs globally by 2030, it will simultaneously create 117 million new roles, a net gain that African youth are uniquely positioned to capture if properly upskilled. “The world does not just want to hire what you know; they want to hire how you work. Employers rank communication and self-management as top priorities. It is no longer just about technical skills, but about the ‘soft skills’ that enable talent to slot easily into any company globally without friction.”