By Ibukun Emiola
Ibadan- Mr Temitope Waheeb, a Nigerian geospatial developer and 2026 Esri Young Scholar, has urged young geospatial professionals in Africa to move beyond using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools to developing technologies that address local challenges.
Waheeb stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan on Monday while reflecting on his transition from a geology graduate and GIS analyst to a geospatial developer and advocate for Geographic Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI).
He said his career journey began after he discovered that many of the jobs he wanted required skills in programming, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), databases, deployment and software architecture.
“While my university training equipped me with the skills to analyse geospatial information, it did not sufficiently prepare me to build the systems that processed and delivered such information.
“There is a huge difference between reading a map and building the system that makes one,” Waheeb said.
He said that realisation prompted him to learn programming and other computational skills, describing the transition as challenging but transformative.
The ESRI Young Scholar noted that the growing application of GeoAI had made the combination of geographical knowledge and computational skills increasingly important.
“GeoAI combines geography, data science and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to analyse spatial information and support applications such as satellite imagery analysis, environmental monitoring, risk prediction and disaster response,” Waheeb said.
He said Africa could particularly benefit from GeoAI because many of its pressing challenges, including flooding, food insecurity, urban heat, erosion, deforestation and climate vulnerability, had strong geographical dimensions.
Waheeb, however, identified unreliable electricity, poor connectivity, limited access to computing resources, inadequate local datasets and gaps in technical training as some of the challenges limiting African innovation in the sector.
He stressed the need for greater African participation in designing technologies and systems that use African data.
“When we cannot build these systems ourselves, they get built elsewhere. And we are left collecting data for products designed without us,” he said.
The geospatial developer said indigenous technology development should not be interpreted as rejection of global innovation but as an opportunity for Africans to become active participants in technological development.
He said communities often possessed valuable knowledge about their environments that could improve the design of geospatial systems when combined with technical expertise.
“My interest in developing local capacity led to the creation of GeoDev Lab Africa, a free, peer-led programme designed to help GIS analysts, students and young professionals transition into geospatial development,” Waheeb said.
He said the programme takes participants through areas including Python programming, databases, application development and, eventually, GeoAI.
According to him, the initiative was inspired partly by his own experience of learning to code without sufficient mentorship or technical support.
“People do not always quit at a concept. Sometimes they quit at an error message, with nobody to ask,” he said.
Waheeb said GeoDev Lab Africa therefore emphasised peer learning, collaboration and practical projects rather than relying solely on conventional classroom instruction.
He disclosed that the programme attracted 563 participants from 24 countries across five continents within two weeks of its launch, despite having no marketing budget.
He said the response demonstrated the demand among young geospatial professionals for opportunities to develop technical and software engineering skills.
Waheeb, who benefited from ESRI’s education support to University of Ibadan, said access to professional geospatial technology had contributed to his development in research, programming and geospatial application development.
His achievements later earned him recognition as the 2026 ESRI Young Scholar for Nigeria, as well as a role as an ESRI Young Professionals Network content and community ambassador.
He urged young professionals to focus on solving real problems with technology rather than pursuing certificates alone.
“Do not just use technology. Build with it,” he said.
Waheeb encouraged young innovators to learn the principles behind the tools they use, understand data and programming, identify problems within their communities and develop practical solutions that could be tested, shared and improved.
He also called on universities to expand geospatial education beyond conventional GIS analysis by introducing programming, databases, cloud infrastructure, AI and software development.
He urged governments to improve access to useful local data while encouraging industry to provide African developers with opportunities to design and build solutions.
“There are relatively small interventions, including access to software licences, datasets, mentors, computers and experienced developers, and these could significantly change the career trajectories of young people,” he said.
Waheeb said his ultimate ambition was to help create a generation of African geospatial professionals capable of moving from data collection and analysis to system design and technology development.
He said such a shift would enable Africans to have greater influence over how technologies were designed, the problems they addressed and the intelligence generated from African data.
