The Fashioned and Made for Excellence Foundation (The FAME Foundation), a youth development-focused education nonprofit in Ibadan, Nigeria committed to nurturing the kind of leaders Nigeria needs, starting from secondary schools, successfully hosted the Ibadan Head Girl Conference 2026 at the Daylan Event Centre in Ibadan, Nigeria.
The highly anticipated conference brought together over 300 Head Girls from the 11 Local Government Areas in Ibadan, equipping them with the leadership skills, mentorship, and resources needed to excel in their current roles and grow into future changemakers. The event also served as part of the organization’s activities commemorating International Women’s Day 2026, reinforcing the importance of investing in girls’ leadership and education.
This year’s theme, “Let Girls Thrive; Be Her Champion,” underscored the importance of increasing investment in girls’ education as a pathway to unlocking their leadership potential. The conference highlighted how empowering girls with knowledge, confidence, resources and leadership opportunities can shape a future where every girl can be a changemaker and thrive while contributing to a more inclusive and equitable society.
“At The FAME Foundation, we are on a mission to develop the leaders we wish we had through secondary education, and the Ibadan Head Girl Conference is a strategic part of that journey,” said Raphael Stephen, Founder and Executive Director of The FAME Foundation.
“Research shows that girls who hold leadership roles in school are significantly more likely to pursue executive and public leadership careers. When a young girl is entrusted with responsibility early, she develops the confidence, voice, problem-solving ability, and decision-making skills that compound over decades. In nearly a decade, we have equipped more than 25,000 girls across over 500 secondary schools in Nigeria through our transformative leadership programmes. With increased investment in early-stage leadership development for girls, we can empower more young women to transform their lives and their communities.”
The Ibadan Head Girl Conference 2026 featured an impressive lineup of speakers who shared valuable insights from their leadership journeys. The speakers included accomplished leaders from education, public service, communications, and advocacy sectors who inspired the young leaders to break barriers, embrace service-driven leadership, and aspire to greater heights.
Distinguished guests and speakers at the conference included Dr. Adesina Adegunle, Chairman of The FAME Foundation Board of Trustees; Mrs. Bamidele Oyinloye, Permanent Secretary, Oyo State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; Professor Olayinka Olusola Omigbodun, Founding Director of the Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CCAMH) at the University of Ibadan; Mrs. Omowunmi Akingbohungbe, Executive Director of Women in Management and Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ); Dr. Oyeyemi Shadare, Principal of St. Louis Grammar School, Ibadan; and representatives of Airtel Nigeria and Starks Associates, Ayomide Omoyiola and Oluwaseun Adewale.
The conference featured a variety of engaging activities including inspiring talk sessions, leadership masterclasses, impromptu speeches, and networking designed to challenge participants to build lifelong relationships think critically about leadership, responsibility, and impact. Cash prizes and gifts were awarded to outstanding participants and participating schools, sponsored by Starks Associates, Nigerian Bottling Company, and The FAME Foundation.
Commenting on the initiative, Ayomide Omoyiola, Representative of Starks Associates, said:
“This is the third time Starks is co-sponsoring this strategic initiative. At Starks, we recognize that this is more than event sponsorship, it is an investment in early-stage leadership development. We believe in identifying the future early and investing in it. Women and girls are key drivers of a more prosperous and thriving continent, and supporting their education and leadership development is a long-term investment in Africa’s future.”
The 2026 edition of the Ibadan Head Girl Conference was sponsored by The FAME Foundation, Starks Associates, Nigerian Bottling Company, and Airtel Nigeria, with support from the Oyo State Ministry of Education and donors of the organization.
