Ukinebo oversees the Edojobs initiative and the Edo State Skills Development Agency.
Coordinating efforts and implementing programs to fulfill the promise of His Excellency, Mr.
Godwin Obaseki, Executive Governor of Edo State to create 200,000 jobs in 4 years. With
her team, Uki implements innovative projects to create the demand for, and provide the
supply of highly skilled talent in Edo State. Over 150,000 youth have benefitted from the
State Governments job creation initiatives.

She has overseen the setup and running of Edo Innovates (an innovation cluster that is
upskilling youth, leveraging on technology to create jobs and incubate businesses, with
over 28,000 persons benefitted so far), Edo Food and Agricultural Cluster (with a target
to impact 8,000 farmers in rural communities each year with improved access to the market,
equipment, aggregation services, etc.), Edo Production Centres (which provides power
supply, shared factory facilities, and improves skills for artisans and small scale
manufacturers in the state) and other job placement and TVET programs.

Through the Edo State Government’s Skills Development Agency, Ukinebo brings her
experience of tackling unemployment from a Social Enterprise and Civil Society into
Governance. Her exploits in tackling the menace of unemployment in Edo State as the SSA to
the Governor on Skills Development and Jobs saw her appointed as the Managing Director
of the Edo State Skills Development Agency as soon as it was established by law.

Previously, Ukinebo had worked in multiple roles related to Skills Development and Job
Creation across Africa and over 35,000 youth have benefitted from employability
initiatives executed by Ukinebo and her team at Poise Graduate Finishing Academy (PGFA).
In 2015, she won the Ford Foundation Prize for Youth Employment at the Future Awards
Africa (2015) and she is credited for the execution of employability interventions projects
in partnership with organizations such as Oxfam International, SOS Kinderdorpen, Google
Nigeria, Microsoft Nigeria, Butterfly Works Netherlands, and so on.

She started her career in the Information Technology department of Oando Plc, Nigeria.
Her passion for people development then led her to set up PGFA in 2010 which achieved an
87% employment rate of its graduates and earned endorsements from the Nigerian
National Universities Commission and multiple reputable employers. She also served as
Programme Director of EkoBits which is part of a group of ICT and Digital Design
Academies across Africa. Through Ekobits youth from shantytowns and underserved
communities, without access to University education get training and jobs in the IT sector
as programmers, graphic designers, web designers, and so on.

In 2019 she was selected as an honouree by MIPAD100, recognizing her along with other
global leaders as one of the Most Influential People of African Descent under 40. She was

previously selected by the United States, Department of State as a 2017 Mandela
Washington Fellow for her work and has received many awards including the 2017 JCI Ten
Outstanding Young Persons Award for Personal Achievement, the BusinessDay, and Federal
Ministry of Trade and Investment 40 under 40 award and others. She has attended Benson
Idahosa University, Nigeria, the University of Bradford, UK, and Clark Atlanta University,
The USA.

She has written many publications including 40 First Jobs, Wake Up This is Your Life and so
on. She is also the author of ‘The Impact Blog’ a resource for people interested in learning
about effective job creation strategies for Africa.