More than 3,800 children, parents, teachers and STEM enthusiasts participated in the 2026 edition of STEM Africa Fest, an initiative aimed at promoting practical learning in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
The sixth edition of the festival, held on July 18 at the Landmark Event Centre, Lagos, featured 46 exhibitors and participants from more than 119 schools.
Held under the theme, “Building Future Innovators,” the festival provided participants with practical learning opportunities in robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), coding, engineering, science, drone technology and entrepreneurship.
Unlike conventional classroom learning, the event allowed children to build, test and solve problems through hands-on activities designed to demonstrate how STEM concepts could be applied to real-life situations.
Mrs. Jadesola Adedeji, Co-founder of STEM Africa Fest, said the festival was created to provide children with opportunities to explore and discover STEM concepts beyond the classroom.
“Children are naturally curious. We simply asked ourselves what learning would look like if they had the chance to explore, build and discover things for themselves.
“We felt there had to be a better way to bring STEM to life beyond the classroom, and that’s the thinking that has shaped STEM Africa Fest from the very beginning,” she said.
Adedeji said the festival was designed to encourage children to develop curiosity, creativity and problem-solving skills through practical experiences.
The festival featured STEM laboratories, coding boot camps, drone demonstrations, engineering challenges, AI storytelling and science experiments.
Other activities included the Young Innovators Showcase, Adire innovation workshops, Chess in Slums Africa, Abacus Mental Mathematics and a STEM Trivia session organised in partnership with Maltina.
Mrs. Titi Adewusi, Co-founder of 9ijakids and organiser of the festival, said the initiative was aimed at helping children translate what they learnt in school into practical experiences.
“Children are already learning these concepts in school. Our goal is to help them experience them.
“If they’re learning about robotics, we want them to build one. If they’re learning about artificial intelligence or 3D printing, we want them to see what those technologies look like outside the pages of a textbook.
“Those experiences stay with children long after they leave the festival,” Adewusi said.
According to the organisers, STEM Africa Fest has reached more than 20,000 children, parents and educators in Nigeria and other African countries since its launch in 2021.
The organisers said the initiative was contributing to efforts to promote practical STEM education and expose young people to emerging technologies at an early age.
The 2026 edition received support from 9ijakids, STEM-METS, Golden Penny, Argentil Capital Partners, Access Bank, FirstBank, LEBARA, Nigerian Breweries, VDL Technologies, Iwosan Health Systems and other partners.
The organisers said the support reflected growing interest among stakeholders in expanding access to practical STEM education and encouraging the development of future innovators across Africa.
