The people behind CEID Hub.

Olushola Fadairo is a university lecturer, researcher and consultant in sustainable rural development, agricultural extension, climate finance, governance and policy in rural communities and agriculture, with over 12 years of experience. His major research and consultancy areas of expertise and interest include process documentation of community development interventions with a focus on social inclusion and sustainability indicators; transparency in the governance of climate funds in forest communities; and outcome mapping of rural and agricultural development projects, including policy.

In recent years, he has provided consultancy services to two World Bank-assisted projects on process documentation study and beneficiary impact assessment of their micro-projects in Nigeria, and for IITA on its Cassava and Maize Value Chain projects.

Academically, Olushola holds a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria, and master’s and PhD degrees in Agricultural Extension and Rural Development from the University of Ibadan. He was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Cape Town, South Africa in 2016, where he researched climate finance flows and the REDD+ project in beneficiary (forest) communities of Nigeria. As a fellow of the United Nations University (UNU-ESDA) knowledge exchange programme, he has been researching climate change adaptation and livelihood impacts in various forest ecologies of Nigeria for the last seven years.

Olushola now works as a Senior Lecturer and graduate programme coordinator in the Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, University of Ibadan, and serves as a board and faculty member at the UI Centre for Sustainable Development. He is a member of the Agricultural Extension Society of Nigeria (AESON), the Rural Sociological Association of Nigeria (RuSAN), the Society for Climate Action in Nigeria (SCAN) and the International Society for Development and Sustainability, Japan. He has published widely in refereed academic journals and conference proceedings, including blog articles and opinion editorials for his non-research audience.

I have spent my career asking a simple question: how do we help people and institutions become everything they were created to be? My work sits at the intersection of healthcare, education, leadership, strategy, and human development.

As an Emergency Physician, Medical Educator, and simulation-based learning advocate, I have spent almost two decades helping develop healthcare professionals and advancing innovative approaches to medical education across Africa. Through teaching, curriculum development, faculty development, simulation, and educational leadership, I have been privileged to contribute to the growth of learners, educators, institutions, and healthcare systems.

Over the past nine years, I have built and led Rêve Core, a leadership and capacity-building platform dedicated to activating dreams, building capability, connecting resources, and catalyzing meaningful impact. I am also the Founder of Med-Ed Consult, a healthcare education and innovation consultancy focused on advancing medical education, simulation-based training, faculty development, curriculum design, leadership development, and healthcare workforce capacity across Africa.

What connects all of my work is a deep belief that talent is rarely the problem. Many capable people and institutions remain stuck not because they lack intelligence or potential, but because they lack clarity, alignment, capacity, systems, or support. My life’s work is helping people and institutions build those missing bridges.

My areas of interest include medical education and simulation, leadership development, capacity building, organisational development, strategy and execution, professional and career growth, healthcare innovation, thought leadership, and purpose, fulfilment and human flourishing.

My personal mission is simple: to beam light into darkness, share a load in weariness, give hope in despair, leave a legacy of love, and give wings to people’s dreams.

I am a Circular Economy, Resource Efficiency and Sustainable Finance trainer for enterprise development. The focus is on developing enterprise resource efficiency and circular economy capabilities in exploring business models that enhance their bottom line while preserving natural capital and environmental services.

In addition, I run a creative and circular design studio working to create urban regenerative vertical food gardens within informal settlements by employing sustainable and circular design principles.

As we create our food, herb, and ornamental gardens, we apply sustainable, holistic and circular design principles in order to ensure sustainable provision of nutritional foods, and engage communities in psycho-social support through creative thinking and design processes in waste recovery, gaming, among other design processes.

As the MD/CEO of SouthWest Innovation & Tech Co. Ltd since December 2024, I lead efforts to identify and invest in innovative, sector-agnostic solutions that enhance human dignity and prosperity in Africa. Collaborating with cross-functional teams, we focus on sustainable strategies that deliver value to communities and secure strong returns for Odu’a Investment Corporation, an A+ rated institution.

With over a decade of experience in entrepreneurship development, my work has supported startups and initiatives in innovation management, startup support, and blitzscaling — including four African unicorns. I am dedicated to fostering impactful ventures and creating a legacy of sustainable growth that uplifts communities and empowers businesses to thrive.