In the quiet corners of Southwest Nigeria, innovation doesn’t always wear a lab coat or pitch in glass towers. Sometimes, it wears a secondhand uniform, sits barefoot behind a dusty desktop, and types the first line of code with trembling fingers. She may not call it innovation. But we do.
At The Sapphires Development Initiative (TSDI), we have journeyed with girls who were never told they were inventors. Never told their ideas mattered. In fact, most were never told much at all. That’s why the International Day of Innovation and Creativity isn’t just a date on our calendar, it’s a declaration. A declaration that every girl deserves the chance to step out, take up space, and innovate on her own terms.
We remember the first day of the SustainHERbility Tech Academy. Forty girls from underserved communities in Ibadan and Oyo State walked in unsure, unseen, and unheard. Most of them had little knowledge about what a computer can do. But what they carried within them was potential. Fierce, unfiltered, and waiting to be unlocked.
Weeks later, those same girls were building mobile apps to solve real challenges . They didn’t build for applause. They built to survive. To be heard. To create the world they wanted to live in. That’s what stepping out and innovating looks like raw, radical, and rooted in resilience.
Let’s be clear: innovation is not a luxury. It’s not reserved for start-ups or shiny campuses. It’s a right. And too often, it’s denied through lack of access, resources, or belief. Innovation isn’t always about the next big thing it’s about the next brave step. It’s a girl saying “yes” to her first tech workshop. It’s her pitching an idea she once kept to herself. It’s teaching her classmates, leading a club, daring to take up space.
At TSDI, we’ve seen Canva and Capcut unlock confidence in our workshops. We’ve seen coding apps on shared smartphones spark unimaginable creativity. These aren’t small wins. These are seismic shifts.
This year’s theme “Step Out and Innovate” calls on us to move. To act. To build spaces where girls can explore, express, and experiment. Because when we invest in creative equity, we fuel sustainable futures.
So here’s our call:
Let’s step out of comfort zones and into communities.
Let’s step out of boardrooms and into classrooms.
Let’s step out of assumptions—and listen.
Because when a girl steps out to innovate, she doesn’t just solve a problem. She becomes the solution.
This is an amazing piece, very inspirational. Thank you, TSDI! 👏
This is amazing 😍
Definitely worth reading
Innovation is definitely beyond the Laboratory
Thank you TSDI🤗🥰
Definitely worth reading 💯💯
I really agree with this thoughtful blog post that highlights the vital link between girls’ empowerment and innovation.
This piece is a powerful reminder that innovation thrives when girls are given the chance to lead, learn, and create.
It’s inspiring to see how access to STEM education can transform not just individual lives but entire communities. Let’s continue to break barriers and build bridges for every girl with a dream💪💪