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By Taiwo Babatunde
Oluchukwu Pearl Nwade has been named the 2025 Data and Engineering Innovator of the Year by Crest Africa.
The award recognizes her contributions to data infrastructure and analytics engineering, as well as her growing profile in the technology industry, as per reports.
Nwade is currently a Senior Data and Analytics Engineer at VALR (Pty) LTD in London. She is involved in the design and implementation of scalable ELT pipelines and the development of analytics systems. At VALR, she is also leading the pilot of a new ELT pipeline project.
Her entry into the technology sector began in marketing.
“I started out as a marketing intern,” she said. “Then I got a chance to do the same for a fintech company, and that changed everything. I realized I wanted to move to the backend, where the real magic happens.”
During the COVID-19 lockdown, Nwade taught herself Python and improved her SQL skills, transitioning into backend development and eventually into analytics engineering.
“I was looking for something that combined my love for data and software engineering. That’s where analytics engineering came in,” she added.
Nwade has worked at Binance and KoraPay prior to joining VALR. Her work has included building data pipelines, optimizing machine learning workflows, and using DBT to transform datasets. She has also led analytics initiatives aimed at improving decision-making within organizations.
In May 2025, she was invited to speak at her university and serve on a panel. She was also a featured speaker at TechSalesConnect 2025, where she gave a keynote address titled, “Beyond the CRM, Using Data to Drive Smarter Sales Decisions.”
In 2023, she led a capstone project titled “Sver,” which was featured on CoinGeek. She was the only woman in her project group.
“My proudest achievement? Just how far I’ve come. From printing my first ‘Hello World’ to now leading data infrastructure projects, it’s been a journey,” she said.
Nwade noted that her transition into tech came with challenges, particularly due to her non-technical background.
“The tech industry can be tough when you’re just starting. But if you’re willing to do the hard work, it’s incredibly rewarding.”
She also referenced a quote that continues to guide her career: “If you know what you want and you want it badly enough, you will find a way to get it.”
