U.S. Department of State Launches a LIONS@FRICA Partnership to Teach Coding Skills to Africa’s Youth

News provided by

U.S. Department of State's Global Partnership Initiative

Dec 13, 2013, 09:00 ET


Washington, DC (PRWEB) December 13, 2013 -- In recognition of Computer Science Education Week, the LIONS@FRICA partnership in coordination with the U.S. Department of State’s Global Partnership Initiative and CoderDojo launched a new initiative today called afriCoderDojo to teach youth in Africa 21st century computer technology skills.

afriCoderDojo is a pan-African effort to teach young people the ability to understand and build fluency in coding, and learn the computer languages that are used to develop websites, mobile phone applications, computer programs, and electronic games. Based on the global open-source CoderDojo movement, afriCoderDojo will rely on a volunteer network of implementers and experienced coders located across Africa to run the two-month learning program.

“What’s so exciting about this partnership is that it promotes hands-on, world-class coding skills to Africa’s next generation of innovators,” said Andrew O’Brien, Special Representative of the Global Partnership Initiative at the U.S. Department of State. “We are proud to be part of an initiative that will go a long way toward ensuring young people have the necessary skills, education, and drive to compete in tomorrow’s integrated marketplace.”

afriCoderDojo aims to provide young people with the basics of coding through a fun and motivating curriculum. Guest lecturers, local technology entrepreneurs, and U.S. Embassies across Africa will also be invited to participate in the learning program to highlight and showcase career opportunities in the field of internet technology.

The inaugural afriCoderDojo clubs are due to launch in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania and Lagos, Nigeria in January 2014. The groups will be sponsored by the Dar Teknohama Business Incubator – a national incubator for technology businesses – in Tanzania and Oando Foundation – a charity established by Oanda PLC, Africa’s largest integrated energy company– in Nigeria.

For more information about afriCoderDojo, please go to http://www.africa.co/africoderdojo or follow us on Twitter @afriCoderDojo. If you are interested in hosting an afriCoderDojo in your community, please email partnerships(at)state(dot)gov.

Maura Hogan, U.S. Department of State's Global Partnership Initiative, http://africa.co, +1 (202) 647-9268, [email protected]