For the third consecutive year, Africa Code Week’s AfriCAN Code Challenge (ACC) continues to grow in popularity and reach. The winner of this year’s ACC 2022 edition was handed to the Ravinalo Project developed by Henintsoa, Warren and Shekinah from Madagascar.

“From start to finish, this has been one of the most exciting editions of ACC. The youth of Africa have yet again proven their talents and strong 21st century skillset with creative and conceptual games delivered,” says Olajide Ademola Ajayi, SAP ACW Global Coordinator.

AfriCAN Youth rise for the coding challenge

The AfriCAN Code Challenge is a coding contest that spans across Africa, inviting all-young individuals from different walks of life from 8 - 16 year to develop a game using the Scratch programming language.

This year’s competition saw thousands of entries from more than 30 countries spanning as far as South Africa and Ethiopia. In September 2020, SAP Africa Code Week launched the challenge with support from partners such as UNESCO, Irish Aid, and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA).

Over the years, the competition has evolved into an annual event that celebrates the creativity and technological skills of African youth. For the 2022 challenge, youths were called upon to develop a multiplayer game that proposes a sustainable solution for protecting life. Thereafter, they were asked to create and share a 3-minute YouTube video that details how their game works, the coding techniques used, and how it aligns with the theme and evaluation standards.

The winners of the AfriCAN Code Challenge were selected by a distinguished panel consisting of Africa Code Week delegates, SAP employees, and STEM education specialists.

This year’s Top 3 winners:

First place: Madagascar - Ravinalo by Henintsoa, Warren, and Shekinah
Second place: Mauritius - Mission Reboot by Nikhil, Mithil, Seeya, Grace, and Kesha
Third place: Nigeria - Chase 'N' Recycle by Team Techlite

Followed by:

4. Sao Tome & Principe - Saving the World
5. Morocco - Golden Planet
6. Ethiopia - Mission Re
7. Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe's Heros
8. South Africa - Eco World
9. Cameroon - Reboisons Notre Terre
10. Gabon - Ntoutoume Evan

Beyond AfriCAN Code Challenge

Research shows that the digital participation could assist in driving the economic growth and development of Africa. This suggests that increased investment in digital infrastructure and skills could have a significant impact on the continent's economic development.

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Senior director of EMEA and MEE Corporate Social Responsibility and Co-founder of Africa Code Week at SAP says, “ACW is currently in a transition period where we will be transferring the ACW curriculum to the ministries of Education to assist in the integration of coding into school curricula. Once they introduce coding into schools, we look forward to seeing sustainable growth in the number of participants in the AfriCAN Code Challenge as ministries will have a wider reach and access to more young people.”

For more information about SAP Africa Code Week and the AfriCAN Code Challenge, or how you can get involved, visit www.africacodeweek.org or connect and follow on social media @AfricaCodeWeek.

To commemorate Cameroon’s annual Youth Day on 11 February 2023, thousands of young people took to the streets to celebrate through parades, cultural dances, singing, and sporting events. As part of the festivities, over 100 young people marched across two different locations, Yaounde and Maroua, carrying the Africa Code Week (ACW) banner.

The importance of equipping young people with digital skills in Cameroon

Recent figures suggest that the youth unemployment rate in Cameroon has remained nearly unchanged at around 6.64 percent for over two years. However, according to projections, Africa’s digital economy will reach $180 billion by 2025 and $712 billion by 2050.

Commenting on the job opportunities created by digital advancements, Claire Gillissen-Duval, Senior Director of Corporate Social Responsibility EMEA MEE at SAP and co-founder of ACW says that Cameroon cannot afford to have young people missing out due to the lack of necessary skills for the digital economy.

 

ACW’s big plans for Cameroon and Africa

Towards the end of 2022, ACW, in partnership with the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), hosted a three-day event with a number of African governments in Morocco.

Africa Code Week is proud to announce that not one, but six ACW ambassadors and implementing partners have been selected to join an education and development program by the world’s largest free coding platform, Scratch. Siyafunda Community Technology Centre (South Africa), Girls in STEM Trust (Zimbabwe), MindSet Coders (Uganda), Creativity Lab (Rwanda), OIC Foundation (Nigeria), and Webfala Digital Skills for all Initiative (Nigeria) are part of the 91 other organisations from across the globe joining the 2022-2024 Scratch Education Collaborative program (SEC).

The program will include a series of collaborative learning experiences co-developed and co-facilitated by Scratch and partner organizations. Over a period of two years, the organisations will work to create a self-sustaining community of practice and establish models for equity-centred creative coding resources.

Bridging the skills gap in Africa

“Africa is burdened by a massive digital skills gap, which according to the World Economic Forum, is diluting economic opportunities and development. ACW and its partners cannot close this gap alone,” says Olajide Ademola Ajayi, Africa Code Week’s Global Coordinator. “Collaboration is key and seeing ACW ambassadors nominated to join such a big global program means we could accelerate closing Africa’s digital skills gap faster.”

Ahmed Ismail, Founder of Siyafunda Community Technology Centre, a South African non-profit organization and one of the ACW implementing partners, says being selected for this program means we can help shape the future of Scratch education in South African classrooms and across the continent. “We plan on incorporating this milestone by further advancing South African Basic Education by working with educators to improve the quality of the local curriculum.”

He adds, “We will also work to increase access to digital education for South African children, especially girls. We believe that education is the key to improving the lives of people in underserved locations, and we will do everything to help make it a reality for more people.”

Building on the ACW foundation

Since 2015, ACW has reached millions of African teachers and children and plans to partner closely with policymakers and governments to help transform Africa’s education agenda by including digital literacy in the national curricula.

Valentine Masicha, founder of MindSet Coders in Uganda and an ACW ambassador, says joining the SEC program means building on foundation blocks laid by ACW. “This will enhance the already existing knowledge from ACW and open our eyes to the opportunities available to build learning resources.”

She adds, “We would like to enhance creative computing for learners in and out of schools with a special focus on differently-abled children.

Digital skills for Africa and beyond

According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, over 200 million jobs across the continent will require some level of digital skills by 2030. Beyond Africa, there are approximately 97 million new jobs could emerge from the introduction of machines and algorithms by 2025, according to the World Economic Forum.

Victoria Nxumalo, the Executive Director of Girls In STEM Trust in Zimbabwe and one of the ACW ambassadors joining the SEC programs, will enable global opportunities. “Girls In STEM Trust is thrilled to be part of the SEC cohort 2 as it allows us to collaborate and network with like-minded organisations across the globe to learn best practices for advancing technology education in Zimbabwe and Africa. This will also allow us to work directly in the development of Scratch as a critical educational tool for both educators and learners.”

Nxumalo concludes, “It is 21st-century digital skills that ensure the youth are able to compete on an international scale for technology careers and opportunities and feed into the global talent pipeline.”

Scratch is one of the world’s largest free online learning platforms designed to empower children, young adults and teachers with coding skills. The program allows young people to create their own interactive stories, games, and animations. In 2021 alone, more than 200 million children interacted with Scratch. Click here to apply and stand a chance to be part of the SEC for the 2023 – 2025 Cohort. Deadline February 28, 2023!

ACW’s Women Empowerment Program - Empowering Female Teachers to Lead Africa's Digital Revolution

Back by popular demand, Semester 2 of Africa Code Week's Women Empowerment Program (WEP) officially kicked off this October. This Continuing Professional Development (CPD) program equips African female teachers and educators in Computer Science and STEM with the skills and knowledge they need to successfully teach, inspire, mentor, and prepare girls for tomorrow’s tech workplace. The WEP thereby supports ACW’s ambitious plans to transform the continent’s education system by including digital literacy in national curricula – in line with the work of UN SDGs 4, 5 and 17.

Female teachers’ role has never been greater.

Research suggests that female teachers increase girls’ test scores and their likelihood of staying in school. Beyond academics, female teachers can also heighten girls’ aspirations and lower their likelihood of being subject to violence. The WEP was first launched in 2019 by SAP, UNESCO, Irish Aid, the Moroccan Ministry of National Education, and Camden education as a joint response to bridge the digital gender gap and related pressing issues across Africa. The program actively supports female teachers on their leadership and mentoring journey while providing a safe learning platform for them to explore current barriers to girls’ education. They also develop innovative ideas to overcome these barriers, honing a wide array of tools and skills along the way - from Design Thinking and storytelling all the way to animation and digital tools.

Taking place over six weeks with live interpretation in English and French, the ACW WEP workshops also involve global advocates for girls,  policymakers, scholars, pedagogues, and change-makers from organizations such as SAP, UNESCO, DCU, Global Partnership for Education, Innovation Academy and many more. These expert speakers unpack multiple ways to transform learning through virtual and digital tools. Two weeks ago, the program welcomed Vanessa Sinden, an award-winning film producer from the Cape Town based Triggerfish animation studios, for one inspiring ‘Storytelling and animation in the classroom workshop.

Innovation in Education : tackling Africa's unemployment challenges

Recent studies also show that animation strengthens learning and makes the teaching–learning process fun. Educating students through moving motion pictures and drawings can significantly enhance their performance, reducing failure and other challenges such as the high dropout rate. The introduction of animation in learning could also trigger interest and passion for animation early in a pupil’s life, stimulating it as a viable career opportunity across Africa. As a result, this could potentially curb the continent’s high unemployment rate, with the African animation market growing by around 7% during 2015-2020 and is expected to boom post the COVID-19 pandemic.

WEP 2022 Semester 2 participants presented their team projects on Girls' Health Education and well-being supporting SDGs 3, 4 & 5at the November 10th graduation ceremony,  in front of the WEP Alumnae and a high-level panel with:

• Claire Gillissen-Duval, CSR EMEA Senior Director and Co-founder of ACW at SAP.
• Ilham Laaziz, GENIE Program Director, Ministry of National Education, Morocco.
• Carol Hannon, Development Specialist, Department of Foreign Affairs, Ireland.
• Jackline Oluoch-Aridi Director of the Nairobi Global Centre, Notre Dame International, University of Notre Dame.

After graduation, the WEP journey continues as each participant is invited to grow further through a structured leadership and upskilling pathway, from first-time participant all the way to program co-moderator. With over 450 alumnae from 40 countries, the WEP continues to strengthen and support ACW’s mission of reaching all corners of Africa, ensuring that no child is left behind in the digital era.

To learn more about Africa Code Week and the Women Empowerment Program, visit www.africacodeweek.org or read WEP’s latest news on LinkedIn.

Jokkolabs: 8 hubs for digital innovation in West Africa

Did you know that Jokkolabs is a pioneer in open innovation, digital transformation and social entrepreneurship in Africa, and works to structure an ecosystem where collaborative dynamics bring about change? Its vision is to create a digital innovation ecosystem, leading to new ways of collaborating, experimenting and creating with the aim of achieving shared prosperity. There are 8 Jokkolabs hubs located in Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Gambia, Senegal, Cameroon, France, and Burkina Faso.

Since 2018, Jokkolabs Executive Director, Fatim, has served as Africa Code Week (ACW)’s Francophone Africa coordinator, helping to build capacity in communities to expand digital education across the continent and equip young people with the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century. We sat down with her to discuss her ACW experience.

Could you please outline the role Jokkolabs plays in the Africa Code Week initiative?

Jokkolabs is the implementation partner for ACW in francophone Africa, coordinating the actions of the ACW ambassadors in Ivory Coast, Gambia, Togo, Benin, Senegal, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger and the Republic of the Congo. We are proud to be involved in supporting youth on their coding journey.

What is your favourite part of ACW?

I would say that it is the impact on young people at an early age and having the opportunity to empower teachers. This we achieve through the provision of continent-wide coding workshops to children between the ages of 8 and 16, as well as via our Train-the-Trainer (TTT) sessions where we upskill teachers.

How is ACW helping to prepare children across the continent for the future?

It helps their creativity. For instance, with the AfriCAN Code Challenge which is a pan-African coding competition that forms part of ACW, children are tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to help address societal issues. This is a more efficient way for kids to educate themselves and society. ACW also gives them the opportunity to become producers and not only consumers. It enables them to develop a very critical mindset and helps pave the way for their futures.

In what ways have you had to adapt due to the impact of COVID-19?

Thanks to the support of the SAP team and its partners, we were able to deliver online sessions which also provided a new perspective on the way we deliver training. Although the infrastructural challenges remain, we are still confident that they will fade away going forward as online learning is the future of education.

What are you looking forward to the most about ACW 2022?

I am hoping for greater ownership of the program by local authorities who can introduce coding to the school curriculum. Coding is crucial for young people as this helps them develop problem-solving abilities, improves creativity, and enhances performance in reading, maths, and science. Plus, it equips them for a world transformed by technology.

 Albert Nsengiyumva from the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) shares his thoughts on the past two years of Africa Code Week and the role digital skills play in preparing African youth for the future

What do you love about Africa Code Week?

I love how the program is free to learners and teachers across Africa and that it offers them an opportunity to enhance their digital skills. Coding and computational thinking are so important for Africa’s youth. Without them, young people won’t be ready for the jobs of the future in which humans will work alongside machines through artificial intelligence. One of the other things I love about Africa Code Week is its focus improving digital education for girls.

What role does ADEA play?

The Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) partnered with Africa Code Week in 2020, joining UNESCO and Irish Aid to provide the expertise and government relations. As the Executive Secretary of ADEA and official ACW Patron, I see our role as fighting for quality, inclusive education in Africa that is relevant to the needs of business and industry in the 21st century.

How is Africa Code Week helping prepare children across the continent for the future?

Because Africa has the youngest population in the world, it’s important that we give African youth a ladder to climb their way out of poverty. In my view, this can only be done through education and through events like Africa Code Week which provide young people with valuable coding skills. Coding is a language and if young people are fluent in it, they will be better prepared for the digital world.

In what ways has Africa Code Week had to adapt due to the impact of COVID-19?

In 2020, Africa Code Week pivoted from in-person events to holding most events online. Surprisingly, these virtual events had a much greater reach and were able to be enjoyed by students and teachers in many more African countries. For instance, in 2020 we successfully reached 1.5 million youth, of which nearly half were girls. Over 10,500 workshops were held across 43 countries and 21,000 teachers participated in Train-the-Trainer sessions. This is a real accomplishment and something to be proud of.

Looking ahead, what are your plans for Africa Code Week?

Our goals remain the same: to empower young Africans with digital literacy skills. How we do it may change, as evidenced by the evolution to virtual training sessions due to the global pandemic and the launch of the smartphone app in 2020. What I would really like to see are more African governments pledging to offer coding as part of their national school curriculum. So far, through the efforts of Africa Code Week, nine countries have already done so. I’d like to see a whole lot more!

Albert Nsengiyumva is the Executive Secretary of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa, one of the key partners for Africa Code Week, along with SAP, UNESCO, and Irish Aid. 

Back by popular demand, our Africa Code Week Women Empowerment Program continues to grow in acclaim and success. Since 2019, this unique Continuing Professional Development (CPD) program has been equipping African female educators with the skills and knowledge they need to successfully teach, inspire and prepare girls for tomorrow’s tech workplace.

Our aim is to close the digital gender gap and help ensure that everyone plays a role in shaping Africa’s future in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. To do this, we bring together teachers to foster an educational, collaborative, and innovative environment that supports the Sustainable Development Goals 3 (Good Health and Well-being), 4 (Quality Education), 5 (Gender Equality) and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).

Research captures evidence of panellists sharing digital expertise, and Research provides evidence of the use of the event / workshop methodology and group work to support educators address ‘health, community, education, technology and policy’ barriers to girls education, with educators using the program as a platform to amplify their stories and experiences.

Improving digital skills one teacher at a time

During COVID-19, teachers around the world had to adapt to new circumstances and technology. But most teachers in Africa found that technology was the biggest barrier they faced when it came to teaching their students online. This is because before COVID, many African teachers had received little or no technology training. As a result, they had to adapt and innovate to support learners, parents and caregivers so that learning could continue, despite the uncertainty caused by the virus.

At Africa Code Week, we seek to ensure that the advantages of the global digital economy are available to all, and female teachers are the gateway to this. Our program improves their digital skills, which is vital especially as digital learning is here to stay. This, in turn, will support female teachers to ensure that their students get the education they need to take on 21st century jobs. For instance, WEP participants are applying digital skills and using the design thinking process to create projects that respond to SDG 3, 4 and 5 challenges.

A strong progression model

Research also revealed that the ACW WEP provides an accessible online context for female educators to continue in their professional development during a period of significant educational change, and uncertainty, due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. In other words, we are making waves and we are not slowing down. Following the 2021 program, 295 graduates are now part of our community of female leaders across 38 African countries.

To keep the momentum, the first seven-week series of 2022 kicked-off in February, bringing together 70+ African women teachers and leaders to share best teaching practices, learn new skills, and create an ongoing community of practice. The program also provides high-level professional development for participants in the areas of leadership, communications, digital skills, design thinking, global citizenship, and resilience. This season, participants leveraged the WEP methodology and group work to address the ‘health, community, education, technology and policy’ barriers to girls’ education’ while learning how to amplify their stories and experiences.

Lastly, from participant to country host, the ACW WEP offers a progression model that provides a structured leadership pathway for every participating teacher.

Building female leadership in African education

Our acclaimed WEP panel discussions provide a platform for intelligent discussion and open debate. Global advocates for girls, policy makers, scholars, change makers: this season brought together high-level experts from SAP, Irish Aid, the Global Partnership for Education, the Moroccan Ministry of National Education, Deloitte, and Maynooth University.

Equally famous is the WEP Teachers’ Corner, where the most inspiring stories can be heard from heroes working wonders on the field: female teachers who inspire generations of girls to become more than they thought they would be. This year again, their voices were heard on social media and they even got to take part in a short-story-telling challenge for International Women’s Day.

We look forward to elevating the role of women in digital education, innovation, and mentorship in Africa this year and beyond!

March 10th Ceremony: Expert Panelists Claire Gillissen-Duval (SAP), Carol Hannon (Irish Aid), Ilham Laaziz & Amal Hassoun (Moroccan Ministry of Education) with WEP 2022 Co-Moderators (Vickie Nxumalo, Hafida Essardi, Nadine Ferris-France and Hala Ali).

ENDS

Returning for the second year, the Africa Code Week AfriCAN Code Challenge presents their top 10 winners with Devansh and Darshika from Mauritius as the Pan-African competition winners!

An annual celebration of coding throughout Africa

The AfriCAN Code Challenge is a pan-African coding competition where youth aged 8 - 16 were tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to address the theme that was determined by the Africa Code Week team. This competition was launched by SAP Africa Code Week and partners UNESCO, Irish Aid and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) in September 2020, and since then has become an annual celebration of youth and innovation in Africa.

The rationale for chosing this year’s superheroe theme was to allow children to unleash their creativity and express themselves freely on issues they feel are important to them. Davide Storti, Coordinator of the YouthMobile Initiative at UNESCO, says: “The post-pandemic education recovery starts with allowing our children to regain confidence and hope, and with us adults reopening spaces, although virtual, for them to access their fullest potential."

To take part in the AfriCAN Code Challenge, youth were able to enter alone or in teams of up to five people, and entries featured a three-minute YouTube video showcasing how their game works and why it should be considered a winning entry. The unique initiative and entry mechanism called upon the children’s ability to design a project that would solve a community-issue, code it, and communicate it.

The winners of the AfriCAN Code Challenge 2021

During the opening rounds of the challenge, participation reached across 40 countries and featured 102 project video clips, only the top three entries from 36 countries made it into the continental final, followed by 20 countries in the final judging stage.

Selected by a high-level jury comprising key Africa Code Week delegates and STEM education experts, the top three winners of the AfriCAN Code Challenge are:

The top 3

First place: Mauritius – Super Recyclers, by Devansh and Darshika
Second place: Nigeria – The Carbon Man, by SUPER GAMERS
Third place: Ethiopia – Kids Academy, by Natnael Kedir

Followed by:

4: Niger - Rayuwa
5: Sao Tome & Principe - Helper intrigue
6: Tunisia - Le toucher du bonheur
7: Capo Verde - Change the World with US
8: Morocco – Super hero
9: Seychelles - The Prodigies
10: Madagascar - Pensons civisme

The 2021 edition of the AfriCAN Code Challenge was quite unique, as for the first time, hearing-impaired students participated in the competition proving once again that coding is the language of inclusivity and creativity.

Irish Minister of State for overseas development aid and diaspora Colm Brophy T.D, who attended the Rwanda AfriCAN Code Challenge national awards ceremony says, “Africa Code Week unlocks the potential in young people who otherwise may not have considered building their digital skills”

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Director of EMEA Corporate Social Responsibility and Co-founder of Africa Code Week at SAP adds, “The  return of the AfriCAN Code Challenge was awaited by our incredible SAP volunteers who took part in the first line of jury. The presence of hearing-impaired students demonstrates the power of inclusivity that resides in digital literacy, in its capacity to build bridges and connect children of an entire continent, regardless of gender, age or ability.”

For more information about SAP Africa Code Week and the AfriCAN Code Challenge, visit www.africacodeweek.org

Calling all coding enthusiasts: did you know that more children in Africa are likely to have access to a smart phone than a computer? Here’s five reasons to download the Africa Code Week app and put those 21st century skills to practice!

Boost digital skills

The ACW app allows you to progress your skillset according to your ability and level. Available in 4 languages (English, French, Portuguese, and Arabic) with more than 30 coding lessons based on MIT’s Scratch, the app is accessible for all to improve their digital knowledge.

Prepare for 21st century jobs

Every future job will at some stage require digital skills! You may dream of becoming a lawyer or a doctor one day, but whatever profession you choose, digital skills are imperative. For example, if you become a surgeon, you’ll likely rely on computer systems to perform intricate procedures and monitor the well-being of your patients. If you become a lawyer, artificial intelligence (AI) may help you understand previous cases in order to build your own strategy when you defend your client in court. The clock is ticking!

Teachers can be inspired too

If you’re a teacher, the ACW app will help you prepare your own coding lessons. Many teachers feel daunted by coding and may not understand it. The app not only helps to get ahead and grasp the basics of coding, but teachers can also explain the subject with more confidence.

Teachers can upskill themselves

In learning how to code and how to teach coding, teachers will be able to prepare their students for the future, as well as future-proof their own careers. Rather than feeling threatened, teachers can embrace new technology and the creative possibilities that it holds for their students.

Join a community of like-minded people across Africa

The wonderful thing about technology is how it can transcend borders and unite people. One of the niftiest benefits of the app is how it can find and reach similar people and interest groups who share the same passion for coding. Who knows, you could even collaborate on an interactive game that will be the next winner at the AfriCAN Code Challenge!

The Africa Code Week smartphone app is designed to make teaching and learning material about coding accessible to everyone. Available on the Google Play Store, it is easy to use for both teachers and students. Let the code (and fun), begin!

Returning for a second edition, the AfriCAN Code Challenge is a pan-African coding competition where youth aged 8 to 16 were tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to show how they would change the world with their superpowers. Youth were able to enter alone or in teams of up to five people, tapping into a wide range of essential skills from problem-solving and coding all the way to teamwork and communications. Each entry had to include a three-minute YouTube video showing how the game works and why it should win.

In total, 40 countries participated, with over 100 project videos submitted. The top three entries from 36 countries made it into the continental final, with 20 projects making it to the final judging stage!

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De retour pour la deuxième édition, l'AfriCAN Code Challenge est un concours de codage pour les jeunes de 8 à 16 ans. Leur mission : programmer un jeu en utilisant le langage de programmation Scratch sur le thème : « Change le monde avec tes super pouvoirs ! » Les jeunes pouvaient participer seuls ou en équipes de cinq personnes maximums, en faisant appel à un large éventail de compétences essentielles - de la résolution de problèmes à la programmation en passant par le travail d'équipe et la communication. Chaque participation devait inclure une vidéo YouTube de trois minutes montrant le fonctionnement du jeu.

Au total, 40 pays ont participé, et plus de 100 vidéos de projets ont été soumises. Les trois meilleurs projets de 36 pays ont été retenus pour la finale continentale : sur ces 36 projets, 20 projets ont été retenus pour la dernière phase!

Here are the 20 projects that made it through to the final round / Voici les 20 projets finalistes :

Ivory Coast:  Mégaménage
Niger:  Rayuwa
Gabon:  Stop Déchet
Djibouti: Ecole Excellence
Madagascar: Pensons civisme
Tunisia: Le toucher du bonheur
Nigeria: The Carbon Man
The Gambia: Quiz Game
Rwanda: Master Jump Game
Uganda: Save Planet Earth Project
Ethiopia: Kids Academy
Mauritius: Super Recyclers
South Africa: Eco friendly game
Zimbabwe: Recycle it
Sudan: Saving Children
Seychelles: The Prodigies
Capo Verde : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_i1RC73Cmk 
Sao Tome & Principe: Helper intrigue
Morocco: Super Hero 
Libya: https://youtu.be/9sYZNsYEjFs

Despite the dual challenges of low internet penetration and a switch to virtual teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers in Ghana have embraced the opportunity to learn 21st century digital teaching skills during this year’s Africa Code Week Train-the-Trainer campaign.

Ghana's population growth: a challenge and an opportunity

Ghana has a fast-growing population that more than doubled from 14.2 million people in 1989 to 28.8 million people in 2017. Nearly 39% of the population is under the age of 15, a demographic dividend that the Ghanaian government aims to harness through improved education opportunities for all its youth.

Speaking at the launch of last year’s Train-the-Trainer activities in Ghana, Minister of Education, Hon. Dr. Yaw Adutwum, said: “Coding is not just a skill. It’s a different way of teaching and a different way of learning that puts the student at the centre of the learning process.”

More than 39 000 teachers in 37 countries were mobilised during the 2019 Africa Code Week. This year, with both a virtual and a hybrid format due to the impact of the pandemic, Africa Code Week is taking place in all African countries, including a month-long series of virtual coding sessions that took place across the continent from October until December.

Teachers embrace digital learning opportunity

Francis Ahene-Affoh, SVP at the DreamOval Foundation, says there was a high level of interest in the Train-the-Trainer sessions this year despite the challenging conditions of the pandemic.

A survey conducted by the DreamOval Foundation of participating teachers revealed many would choose to continue with online learning in future. “While the majority of participants at this year’s Train-the-Trainer sessions were from the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions, this year’s virtual learning model also enabled teachers from every part of Ghana to participate,” says Ahene-Affoh. "We believe this indicates a need for virtual teaching to continue even when the pandemic subsides, as the travel to attend training sessions in person can be an obstacle to teachers' participation.”

Internet connectivity continues to be a challenge in Ghana, and few teachers have access to laptops. “Despite not having resources, more than half of teachers surveyed joined the sessions via their mobile phones. This level of commitment and passion for teaching and digital skills development is hugely encouraging as we work to prepare the country’s youth for participation in the digital economy,” says Ahene-Affoh.

Mobilising youth in continent-wide coding challenge

A recent addition to Africa Code Week activities is the AfriCanCode Challenge, a continent-wide coding challenge calling on youth aged 8 to 16 to compete in a competition. The competition was launched in September last year in partnership with SAP, UNESCO YouthMobile and Irish Aid.

According to Mustapha Diyaol Haqq, Africa Code Week’s 2019-2020 youth ambassador in Ghana, interest in the AfriCanCode Challenge has been high among Ghanaian youth. “Despite low levels of internet penetration in Ghana, young aspiring coders from across the country have taken up the challenge. Through teamwork, problem-solving and newly-developed coding skills, youth are putting forward their vision for what the future of education holds for the continent."

Cathy Smith, Managing Director at SAP Africa, says:

About SAP

SAP’s strategy is to help every business run as an intelligent enterprise. As a market leader in enterprise application software, we help companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: 77% of the world’s transaction revenue touches an SAP® system. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP helps give people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want – without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables business and public customers across 25 industries globally to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

Despite Covid-disruption, SAP Africa Code Week hosts Train-the-Trainer sessions in Libya, Mauritania with educators showing strong interest in digital literacy
Collaboration with Ministries of Education aimed at building sustainable skills development capacity

Digital literacy amidst conflict and pandemic

Two countries in the north of Africa affected by recent or ongoing conflict may be turning the corner on digital skills development for youth and teachers in 2021. Despite the challenges with internet access, lack of access to technology and ongoing conflict, interest in digital skills is high among learners and teachers alike in both Libya and Mauritania.

Dorsaf Benna Chelly, SAP Africa Code Week coordinator in North Africa, is upbeat about the interest shown by educators – including the Ministries of Education – in both countries.

Building blocks of a brighter future for Libya’s youth

Did you know?

• Libya is in a state of civil war as rival factions seek control of the government. The World Food Programme estimates that 435 000 people have been displaced by the conflict.
• When the pandemic emerged in early 2020, it prompted school closures across Libya, leaving 1.3 million learners suddenly out of school. The Libyan government worked with local television stations to broadcast compulsory lessons for middle and secondary school children. 
• The Libyan Ministry of Education also partnered with UNICEF to support digital teaching platforms, provide technical supplies such as tablets and computers, and improve internet connectivity. 
• According to World Bank data, only 22% of the population in Libya had access to the internet in 2017. 

Dr Muna Naas, Africa Code Week coordinator for Libya and member of the Libyan Ministry of Education, says:

Last year a total of five Train-the-Trainer sessions were held in the country in September and October, with 67 teachers taking place. Twelve of the teachers were female. In 2021 this figure is set to increase during the months of October to December.

“For many of the teachers, this was their first contact with coding,” says Benna Chelly. "We have also mobilised support among teachers for the AfriCAN Code Challenge, a relatively new initiative at this year’s Africa Code Week that seeks youth aged 8 to 16 to foster a wide range of essential skills, from coding to problem-solving and teamwork, and compete in a competition to help unleash their super powers through coding creativity.”

Scaling teaching impact in Mauritania

Despite constant government investment in the education sector, Mauritania has not yet achieved universal primary school enrolment. According to the World Bank, the country’s learning outcomes remain low, partly due to teachers’ limited qualifications and skills. 

In addition, only one in five people in Mauritania have access to the internet according to 2017 data. This adds further complications to the provision of digital learning in the country. 

According to Cheikh Konaté, Member of the National Assembly of Education in Mauritania, improving the quality of education is critical to the country’s economic growth and human capital development efforts. “As the gatekeepers on knowledge and learning, teachers are invaluable in helping us prepare our youth for the future. With the support of our public and private sector partners, hundreds of teachers participated in the first-ever Train-the-Trainer workshops in our country, and gained first-hand experience with new digital learning and teaching schools.”

Benna Chelly points to the ongoing interest in ACW Train-the-Trainer sessions among educators in Mauritania.

More than 39 000 teachers in 37 countries were mobilised during the 2019 Africa Code Week. This year, with an all-virtual format due to the impact of the pandemic, Africa Code Week is taking place across all African countries, with a month-long series of virtual coding sessions taking place across the continent during October to December.

Hicham Iraqi Houssaini, Managing Director of SAP Francophone Africa concludes:

For more information about Africa Code Week, please visit www.africacodeweek.org

About Africa Code Week

Since 2015, SAP Africa Code Week (ACW) has been creating free opportunities for young Africans to learn coding skills and for teachers to be trained on digital learning curricula. Strong partnerships with the public, private and civil society sectors across 54 countries are driving sustainable impact by building teaching capacity and supporting the adoption of coding into national curricula in support of UN Sustainable Development Goals 4, 5 and 17. Join SAP and partners by visiting www.africacodeweek.org to find out more.

About SAP

SAP’s strategy is to help every business run as an intelligent enterprise. As a market leader in enterprise application software, we help companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: 77% of the world’s transaction revenue touches an SAP® system. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP helps give people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want – without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables business and public customers across 25 industries globally to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

The DreamOval Foundation in partnership with SAP, UNESCO YouthMobile, and Irish Aid, organized an inspiring award ceremony last week for Ghanaian students who have played an active part in this year’s Africa Code Week (ACW) AfriCAN Code Challenge competition.

The event was a joyful ceremony involving school authorities, Metropolitan assembly officials, chiefs, and parents from the winning school to showcase the hard work and efforts of local youth in line with the Government's agenda towards improving 21st century learning. Prizes included laptops, tablets, mobile handsets, and book vouchers and were handed to country winners from Nii Boye Town SDA Basic School, Martyrs of Uganda and Accra, and Sweet Code. 

Ghanean students rise above Covid challenges

Speaking about the awards ceremony, Francis Ahene-Affoh from DreamOval adds, “Despite the global pandemic and today’s disruptions to learning, Ghana received both innovative and creative competition entries. We selected the best three to represent our country for the continental challenge and look forward to seeing our local talent showcased with Africa’s top students.” 

The AfriCAN Code Challenge is an exciting pan-African competition that invites youth aged 8-16 years to program a Scratch game aligned to the 'Change the world with your Superpowers' theme. Participants are invited to compete individually or in teams of up to five people to test students’ ability to write basic code using the scratch language and to show their level of competence in a 2min video which is reviewed by a panel of judges. 

Speaking at the event, Chief of Nii Boye Town, Nii Ayi Mensah 1, acknowledged the students and their hard work and the importance of key influencers and local ambassadors in fostering digital education in the community. He also highlighted the importance of digital learning and education while referencing the students from SDA who were shining examples with their winning creations in the AfriCAN Code Challenge. 

Francis from DreamOval echoed Nii Ayi Mensah 1’s words at the event by celebrating the students’ tenacity and dedication, but also encouraged them to take digital learning and coding seriously as a ‘transformative journey’ that will change their lives and make them competitive in the global economy. 

Ghana helps conquer Africa’s digital divide  

During 2021 alone, more than 621 teachers have been trained in Ghana during Africa Code Week’s Train-the-Trainer (TTT) sessions during the month of August thanks to the implementing partner, DreamOval Foundation. 

Due to COVID-19 and to support health and safety regulations, the training was scheduled online and created an opportunity for teachers to register from all corners of the country. “Ghana has recorded impressive results over the years during the TTT sessions, and this year was no exception,” concludes Francis Ahene-Affoh. 

To find out more information about Ghana’s continued support in Africa Code Week or to get involved, contact the DreamOval Foundation or send an email to Francis. 

Version française ci-dessous

After a rigorous round of judging for this year’s AfriCAN Code Challenge, SAP Africa Code Week’s top 10 winners were announced and special highlights include the top 3 being all-female, aged 10 - 16 years, with Soliyana, 10 years old from Ethiopia as the Pan-African winner of the competition.

"Despite the COVID disruption for schools which impacted hundreds of millions of youth across Africa, children from more than 54 countries stepped-up to share their vision of the future of education,” says Africa Code Week’s Global Coordinator, Olajide Ademola Ajayi.

Ajayi continues to say that the youth engagement throughout the challenge was incredibly inspiring, “While there can ultimately be only one winner, the quality of entries at the inaugural AfriCAN Code Challenge encouraged hope and confidence for Africa's future, shaped by the largest youth population in the world."

Launched by SAP Africa Code Week and partners UNESCO, Irish Aid, the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) and Jokkolabs in September 2020, the AfriCAN Code Challenge is a pan-African coding competition where youth aged 8 - 16 were tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to answer the question: "How will your tech change the future of education?"

During the AfriCAN Code Challenge youth were able to enter alone or in teams of up to five people, and entries featured a two-minute YouTube clip showcasing how their game works and why it should be considered a winning entry. The unique initiative and entry mechanism called upon the children’s ability to design a project that would solve a community-issue, code it, and communicate it.

During the opening rounds of the challenge, participation reached across 40 countries and featured 100 project video clips, only the top three entries from 36 countries made it into the continental final, followed by 22 countries in the final judging stage.

Selected by a high-level jury composed of key Africa Code Week delegates and STEM education experts, the top three of the AfriCAN Code Challenge is:

Followed by:

4th: Mauritius – Mr. E-Bin
5th: Nigeria – I-Learn
6th: Tunisia – Warrior
7th: Morocco – Abdelilah Hashas
8th: Zimbabwe – HeadStart Game
9th: Rwanda – Math Puzzles for Kids
10th: Ivory Coast – Easy Preterit

The jury also awarded two superior prizes for ‘Outstanding Government Support’ to Morocco and Nigeria, where the competition was implemented by the Ministries of Education, and received strong institutional support.

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Director of EMEA Corporate Social Responsibility and Co-founder of Africa Code Week at SAP celebrates the joyous occasion, “The all-female top three proves that the future of tech cannot be envisioned without girls. Once again, this year’s ACW initiative increased its female participation and these incredible achievements highlight the massive strides that SAP, partners and the ACW programme continue to make in closing gender gap and build an all-inclusive digital world.”

“In addition to the winners, we also give thanks to the ongoing support from Government, who join us on our digital journey and believe in the importance and relevance of 21st century learning for the development of native African excellence. The solid base of our partnership with the Moroccan and Nigerian Ministries of Education is the foundation of a successful model which we wish to replicate throughout Africa, to encourage governments to include computer coding in their national curricula.”

Gagnantes du concours AfriCAN Code Challenge : quand les filles utilisent la technologie pour changer l'avenir de l'éducation

Les jurés du concours ont finalement tranché : les 10 meilleurs projets du concours AfriCAN Challenge 2020 sont désormais connus! Les trois grandes gagnantes sont des jeunes femmes âgées de 10 à 16 ans, Soliyana en tête. A 10 ans, cette jeune Éthiopienne est la lauréate du concours à l’échelle panafricaine.

« Malgré les conséquences du COVID sur les écoles, touchant plusieurs centaines de millions de jeunes à travers l'Afrique, des jeunes d’une quarantaine de pays ont répondu à l’appel et nous ont fait part de leur vision de l'éducation de demain, » a déclaré Olajide Ademola Ajayi, Coordinateur mondial d’Africa Code Week. » Pour lui, l'implication des jeunes à chaque étape du concours est une grande source d’inspiration : « Bien qu'il ne puisse y avoir qu'un seul gagnant, la qualité des contributions à cette toute première édition du concours redonne espoir et confiance en l'avenir de l'Afrique, façonné dès aujourd’hui par la plus grande population de jeunes au monde. »

Lancé en septembre 2020 par SAP Africa Code Week et ses partenaires (l'UNESCO, Irish Aid, l'Association pour le développement de l'éducation en Afrique (ADEA) et Jokkolabs), l'AfriCAN Code Challenge est un concours de codage pour les jeunes de 8 à 16 ans. Leur mission consistait à programmer un jeu à l’aide de Scratch pour répondre au thème : "Comment ta technologie va-t-elle changer l'avenir de l'éducation ?

Les jeunes pouvaient participer seul ou en équipe de cinq personnes au maximum. A l’aide d’un clip YouTube de deux minutes, ils devaient expliquer le fonctionnement de leur jeu et en quoi il se démarque. Cette initiative unique fait ainsi appel à un large éventail de compétences, de la capacité des enfants à concevoir un projet et à résoudre un problème communautaire en passant par la programmation et la communication.

Des milliers de jeunes issus de 40 pays ont participé au premier tour, donnant lieu à une première sélection de 100 projets vidéo. Seuls les trois meilleurs projets de 36 pays ont été retenus pour la finale continentale, puis de 22 pays lors de la grande finale.

Sélectionnées par un jury de haut niveau composé de responsables SAP Africa Code Week, de partenaires et de pédagogues experts, les trois grandes gagnantes à l’échelle panafricaines sont :

Suivies de :

4ème: Maurice – Mr. E-Bin
5ème: Nigéria – I-Learn
6ème: Tunisie – Warrior
7ème: Maroc – Abdelilah Hashas
8ème: Zimbabwe – HeadStart Game
9ème: Rwanda – Math Puzzles for Kids
10ème: Côte d'Ivoire – Easy Preterit

Le jury a également décerné deux prix spéciaux intitulés "Soutien exceptionnel du gouvernement" au Maroc et au Nigéria, deux pays où le concours fut déployé par le Ministère de l'Education, bénéficiant ainsi d'un soutien institutionnel important.

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Directrice de la Responsabilité sociétale des entreprises pour la région EMEA et co-fondatrice d'Africa Code Week chez SAP, se félicite de cette réussite : « le palmarès féminin de ce concours prouve que l'avenir de la technologie ne saurait être envisagé sans les filles. Africa Code Week a de nouveau augmenté son taux de participation féminine cette année et ces incroyables réalisations soulignent les progrès considérables accomplis par SAP et ses partenaires dans le cadre d'Africa Code Week pour combler le fossé numérique et bâtir un monde numérique ouvert à toutes et à tous. »

« En plus des gagnants, nous tenons à remercier les gouvernements pour leur soutien sans faille. Partenaires de notre voyage pédagogique, ils croient comme nous en l'importance et la pertinence de l'apprentissage du XXIe siècle pour l'essor de l'excellence autochtone africaine. La solidité des partenariats que nous avons noué avec les ministères marocain et nigérian de l'éducation sont le fondement d'un modèle de réussite que nous souhaitons reproduire dans toute l'Afrique, encourageant les gouvernements à faire de l'informatique un pilier durable de leurs programmes scolaires. »

Launched by SAP Africa Code Week for the first time this year, the AfriCAN Code Challenge is a pan-African coding competition where youth aged 8 to 16 were tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to answer the question: “How will your tech change the future of education?” Youth were able to enter alone or in teams of up to five people, tapping into a wide range of essential skills from problem-solving and coding all the way to teamwork and communications. Each entry had to include a two-minute YouTube video showing how the game works and why it should win.

Bezalel Magede to represent Rwanda in the pan-African finals

In total, 40 countries participated, with over 100 project videos submitted. The top three entries from 36 countries made it into the continental final, with 22 projects making it to the final judging stage! According to Claire Gillissen-Duval, Director of EMEA Corporate Social Responsibility and Co-founder of Africa Code Week at SAP, “African youth are highly creative and community-oriented, and have a key role to play in building a safer and better future for the continent. By encouraging learners to innovate at an early age, we hope to inspire them to become change-makers and help find solutions to challenges in their communities, nations and beyond.”

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Lancé par SAP Africa Code Week pour la première fois cette année, l'AfriCAN Code Challenge est un concours de codage pour les jeunes de 8 à 16 ans. Leur mission : programmer un jeu en utilisant le langage de programmation Scratch sur le thème : "Comment ta technologie va-t-elle changer l'avenir de l'éducation ?" Les jeunes pouvaient participer seuls ou en équipes de cinq personnes maximum, en faisant appel à un large éventail de compétences essentielles - de la résolution de problèmes à la programmation en passant par le travail d'équipe et la communication. Chaque participation devait inclure une vidéo YouTube de deux minutes montrant le fonctionnement du jeu.

 
Les gagnants du Cameroun

Au total, 40 pays ont participé, et plus de 100 vidéos de projets ont été soumises. Les trois meilleurs projets de 36 pays ont été retenus pour la finale continentale: sur ces 36 projets, 22 projets ont été retenus pour la dernière phase! Selon Claire Gillissen-Duval, Directrice de la Responsabilité sociétale d'entreprise EMEA et co-fondatrice d'Africa Code Week chez SAP, "Parce qu'ils sont extrêmement créatifs et soucieux des besoins de leur communauté , les jeunes Africains ont un rôle majeur à jouer dans la construction d'un avenir meilleur et plus sûr pour le continent. En encourageant les élèves à innover dès leur plus jeune âge, nous espérons les encourager à devenir de véritables acteurs du changement pour trouver des solutions aux grands défis locaux, régionaux, nationaux et au-delà."

Here are the 22 projects that made it through to the final round / Voici les 22 projets finalistes:

1. Algérie: The Best School
2. Botswana: OK Zoomer
3. Cabo Verde: Caça Tecnofasma
4. Cameroun : Grazerty
5. Côte d’Ivoire: Easy Preterit
6. Djibouti : Groupe Etoile
7. Ethiopia: Mathstainement
8. Ghana : Body Quizz by Nathaniel Aloriwe
9. Kenya: Augustin Agaba’s project
10. Malawi: Love Math
11. Maroc: Hashas Abdelilah
12. Mauritius: Mr. E-Bin
13. Niger: Brain Test
14. Nigeria: I-Learn
15. République du Congo : Une fille et son chien
16. Rwanda: Math Puzzles for Kids
17. São Tomé & Principe: Africa Jungle Quizz
18. Sénégal: Bat School
19. South Africa: Space Quest
20. Tanzania: Animal Name Game
21. Tunisie: Warrior – Ahmed Antit
22. Zimbabwe: Headstart Game

Awards Ceremony in São Tomé and Príncipe

Teaching really is a work of heart, and this year’s Africa Code Week Women Empowerment Workshop couldn’t be better suited. The first pilot program officially commenced last year, and little did the organisers know what a great success it would be. This year, the Women Empowerment Workshop returns for its second edition and will host more than 70 women from across Africa.

Organized by SAP, UNESCO, Irish Aid and the Moroccan Ministry of National Education the unique digital event will provide female teachers with the opportunity to meet, collaborate and connect on best teaching practices and new 21st century skills. The Women Empowerment Workshop will also provide a space for teachers to discuss online learning and gain understanding of the issues related to virtual classrooms; such as cyberbullying and internet safety.

Taking place from November, seven interactive workshops will be scheduled each week and highlight different themes and topics relevant to Africa Code Week’s key enabler. Fun, engaging and collaborative, expert speakers will present in both English and French.

With 1 out of 3 children missing out on remote learning because of today’s unprecedented challenges, the role of the teacher in community-based societies is central and reinforcing teacher leadership is crucial. Adding to the importance of advancing women in today’s modern teaching space, Africa Code Week Co-founder and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) at SAP EMEA, Claire Gillissen-Duval adds, “We are incredibly excited to welcome our second edition of the Women Empowerment Workshops! Last year’s pilot program was a great success and we received positive feedback from all participants. Through our webinar series, we aim to close the digital gender gap and help ensure everyone can play a role in shaping Africa’s future in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).”

Last year’s group of 28 female teachers attended the workshop in Morocco and came from +14 African countries. Over the course of four days, female participants attended training sessions that focussed on computational and design thinking agendas. After getting to grips with the technologies sitting at the heart of the 4IR, participants also shared best practices on girl mentoring, capacity-building strategies and imparting digital skills to students. And this year’s event promises to be even better!

Let’s show our ACW support as our female participants engage in this important learning process to help conquer Africa’s digital divide. We invite you to leave comments here and to help spread the message using #WEW2020.

(Version française ci-dessous)

Joining forces with SAP as part of Africa Code Week (ACW) for the fourth year running, Google is expanding opportunities for youth to learn critical digital literacy and coding skills through the funding of 55 non-profit partners in 18 countries. The partnership sees Google supporting the SAP-led Africa Code Week by making available micro grants that empower local non-profits to increase their impact during this year’s ACW.

The awarding of the ‘Grow with Google’ micro grants form part of Google’s commitment to preparing 10 million people in Africa for the future workplace. Since the start of the partnership with SAP in 2016, Google micro grants have enabled 154 organisations across 18 countries to bring digital literacy and coding skills to more than 200 000 youth, with the micro grants acting as important catalysts in expanding access to ACW workshops to more youth. The far-reaching impact of Google grants over the past few years speaks volumes about the importance of public-private partnerships on capacity-building strategies in the digital era.

"In our ambition to train 10 millions Africans in digital skills by 2022, partnering with SAP and UNESCO on Africa Code Week is highly strategic," says Mojolaoluwa Aderemi-Makinde, Head of Google Brand and Reputation in Africa. "The goal of this is to help the next generation learn and develop the skills to be safe and successful online. As part of this effort, investing in Africa Code Week, spearheaded by SAP, enables us to contribute to young students being able to create with technology and bring coding and digital literacy to everybody in a fun and engaging way. We are thrilled to see this program grow from year to year thanks to the excellent work of the local organizations we support."

Now in its fifth year, SAP Africa Code Week has introduced more than 4.1 million youth in 37 African countries to basic coding and digital skills through a continent-wide network of workshops that are held during the month of October. This year, ACW aims to bring free workshops to 1.5 million youth, and its more than 130 public, private and non-profit sector partners playing a vital role in driving the reach and impact of ACW across the continent.

Below you will find the list of Google grant recipients as part of ACW 2019, along with their respective stories at the time of their grant application.

ACW 2019 : Le partenariat entre SAP & Google permet de financer 55 organismes à but non lucratif sur 18 pays africains.

En s'associant à SAP dans le cadre d'Africa Code Week (ACW) pour la quatrième année consécutive, Google offre aux jeunes la possibilité d'acquérir des compétences essentielles en matière de culture numérique et de codage grâce au financement de 55 organismes à but non lucratif (OBNL) dans 18 pays africains. Par ce partenariat, Google soutient ainsi l'initiative dirigée par SAP en offrant des micro-subventions qui permettent aux OBNL locaux d'accroître leur impact lors de l'édition 2019 d’ACW.

L'attribution des micro-subventions "Grow with Google" s'inscrit dans le cadre des engagements pris par Google pour préparer 10 millions d’Africains au marché du travail de demain. Depuis le début du partenariat avec SAP en 2016, les micro-subventions Google ont permis à 154 organisations d'équiper plus de 200 000 jeunes de 18 pays des compétences en codage et culture numérique ; les micro-subventions jouant un rôle de catalyseur pour ouvrir les ateliers ACW à toujours plus de jeunes. L'impact considérable des subventions Google au cours des dernières années en dit long sur la capacité des partenariats public-privé à renforcer les capacités pédagogiques dans l'ère numérique.

"Pour former 10 millions d'Africains aux compétences numériques d'ici 2022 conformément à nos ambitions, le partenariat avec SAP et l'UNESCO dans le cadre d'Africa Code Week est hautement stratégique", déclare Mojolaoluwa Aderemi-Makinde, Directrice Brand and Reputation pour Google en Afrique. "L'objectif est d'aider la prochaine génération à acquérir, à développer les compétences dont elle a besoin pour réussir en ligne, en toute sécurité. Dans cet effort, investir dans l'initiative Africa Code Week menée par SAP nous permet d'aider les jeunes à créer grâce à la technologie tout en leur ouvrant les horizons du codage et de la culture numérique de façon amusante et interactive. Nous sommes ravis de voir ce programme grandir d'année en année grâce à l'excellent travail des organismes locaux que nous subventionnons."

Depuis son lancement par SAP en 2015, Africa Code Week a permis d'initier plus de 4,1 millions de jeunes Africains au codage et aux compétences numériques. Cette année, ACW verra des milliers d'ateliers d'initiation gratuits organisés sur 37 pays africains pour 1,5 million de jeunes, avec l'aide de plus de 130 partenaires publics, privés et associatifs.

Vous trouverez ci-dessous la liste des bénéficiaires des subventions Google dans le cadre d'ACW 2019, ainsi que leur histoire au moment de leur demande de subvention.

	Bénin
AIESEC			En partenariat avec le comité de coordination Africa Code Week au Bénin, le projet vise à former le corps enseignant du primaire au développement d'applications de jeux à partir du logiciel Scratch - à raison de deux professeurs par école et de plusieurs jeunes bénévoles, pour un total de 10 écoles avec 45 élèves par classe et une participation des filles de 60%.
	Botswana
Dream Factory Foundation			ACW Francistown seeks to empower 1000 young people with basic coding skills through 90-minute digital learning workshops using Scratch.
The Clicking Generation			The Clicking Generation will run training workshops in Maun and Gumare regions for students in primary and secondary schools. The organisation aims to train students from 10 schools in Maun region and 10 schools form Gumare regions.
Ngwana Enterprise			This project aims to introduce coding to 40 schools in Kweneng District. The program would target 25000 learners and 1000 graduate teachers.
	Cameroon
The Bros Enterprise			The Bros Enterprise is developing the minds of the young to embrace the opportunities IT and computer technology has to offer, through workshops, talks and hackathons.
Institut Salomon			ITenager est un programme de formation pour apprendre aux jeunes issus des zones rurales à maîtriser l'outil informatique par le d’ateliers pratiques.
Genius Centers			Tout commence par un rêve. Nous sommes en 2040. En groupe de 3 à 4 (au minimum 1 fille par groupe), utilisez scratch pour créer une application, un jeu ou un dessin animé pour nous permettre de nous promener dans votre univers. Cette compétition se déroulera dans 10 écoles du Littoral et du Centre. Les 5 premiers groupes de chaque école iront en finale. Les 3 premiers groupes sur le plan national recevront des trophées et des kits de robotique.
Club Programmation			La sous-représentation des filles dans les domaines de l'informatique et du génie informatique est un problème majeur en Afrique, et il touche tout particulièrement le petit village d’Emana au Cameroun. Or en donnant envie aux filles de ce village de s’impliquer dans ce secteur, Code for Girls permettra aux innovations technologiques d’être conçues en réponse à leurs besoins.
	Côte d'Ivoire
Jokkolabs Côte d'lvoire			« Cød’ivoire » est un programme qui vise à promouvoir l'informatique tout en permettant aux citoyens d’en apprendre la langue dès le plus jeune âge. Les objectifs du programme sont de former 500 élèves au code informatique, de susciter l'engouement des jeunes pour l'informatique et de promouvoir son enseignement à l’échelle nationale et continentale.
COPAJE-AF/COTED'IVOIRE			P.A.L est un projet de formation et d’assistance au développement qui a pour objectif de promouvoir le leadership et l’entreprenariat chez les jeunes.
	Ethiopia
Walta Mothers and Children Health Care Organization			The organisation has selected 16 schools for Africa Code Week from Wolayta Zone of SNNPR, Ethiopia that have taken computers from Camara Education Ethiopia. Accordingly, a total of 5000 students (3000 male / 2000 female) will receive training during this year’s ACW.
	The Gambia
Give1Project Gambia			The Given 1 Project will introduce and train more students on different coding languages. It will introduce more beginners to coding. Beginners will receive an introduction to coding, while the more mature students will be given community problems to provide solutions to using the different coding languages. There will also be robotics sessions for some students.
	Ghana
Ghana Code Club			During Africa Code Week 2019, Ghana Code Club is organising hands-on code-alongs that promote and reinforce computational thinking using CS-first curriculum to 500 students in Accra. Boys and girls will learn to remix start-up projects to create animation, interactive arts and computer games.
ZongoVation Hub			'Zongo Kids Can Code' seeks to empower 1000 young people between the ages of 11 and 18 years with basic coding skills using Scratch.
iSpace Foundation			Code For Impact is a three day training program, ending with a two day hackathon where children will get to demonstrate what they have learnt. As part of the program, iSpace alongside partners will have a three day follow up exercise, where participants will get to further demonstrate their skills.
	Guinea
Cetradis Sarl			L’objectif est de renforcer les capacités d’enseignement numérique en Guinée grâce à des formations pour les enseignants dans le cadre d’Africa Code Week 2019.
	Kenya
Sote Information and Communications Technology (Sote Hub)			The Sote Hub brings training company experience to students in rural Kenya, enriching their creativity, critical thinking and practical life skills for future careers through ICT Clubs. Through its Sote ICT clubs for high school students in Taita Taveta County in Kenya, kids will learn skills in coding using MIT App Inventor and coder dojo.
Pwani Teknowgalz			Mombasa coding workshop is a project implemented by Pwani Teknowgalz and supported by Grow with Google that introduces 300 primary school kids aged 11 to 13 from marginalized communities in Mombasa Kenya to Scratch programming.
Modcom Limited			Modcom is reaching out to youth in Garissa County, where ICT education is not accessible and girl child education is not a priority, as part of its ACW activities.
EldoHub			EldoHub is a tech innovation hub that supports kids and teenagers through a coding bootcamp program. During Africa Code Week, Eldohub will organise 3-hour CS training workshops for 360 boys and girls aged between 11 and 18 years across four counties in the North Rift, Western region of Kenya. The main focus of learning will be Scratch, HTML5/CSS3 and design thinking activities. Half the participants are expected to be girls.
	Lesotho
Science and Mathematics Educators Federation			Africa Code Week is initiative that is instilling digital literacy and coding skills in the young generation. If Africa is to make it in the future generation, its children should have skills that will help them survive in the age of Automation, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning hence Africa Code Week with introduction of Scratch program and Joomla Content management system (CMS)
Soofia International School			Soofia is committed to raising a platform for the young minds so they can realize their dreams and be positive contributors in the era of Industry 4.0. This is not only to those learning at Soofia or those studying Computer Science.
	Malawi
mHub			mHub aims to train about 1500 girls by conducting lessons in both rural and urban areas.
		Namibia
Dream Factory Foundation Namibia			ACW Namibia Village Outreach seeks to empower 600 young people with basic coding skills through 90-minute digital learning workshops using Scratch. This initiative seeks to inspire and introduce youth residing in rural communities to the digital skills they need to make their dreams come true in this digital age.
	Nigeria
Bodex ICT			CodeUp Osun is a workshop that is created to empower between the ages of 9-16 with basic computer and coding skills in the remote and underserved areas of Osun State, Nigeria.
Online Hub Educational Services			One Student - One Skill is an ongoing initiative of Online Hub Educational Services born out of the need for students to become skilled, employable and self-reliant in the Nigerian ecosystem.
Coderina Education and Technology			The aim of the Future Proof program is to introduce 500 kids in two undeserved areas - Oshodi and Ikeja in Lagos State - to foundational and life-long learning transferable skills using technology.
Webfala Digital Limited Digital Skill Institute (WDLDSI)			The Computer Literacy for All project is designed to reach out to those students – especially female students - who do not have access to computer science at all, such as remote areas in Kwara, Nigeria.
Striving for Greatness Edtech Initiative			Teens Programming Lab (TPL v4.0) is a skills development program committed to impacting 2000 young students aged 8-16 years across 3 states in Nigeria. TPL aims to identify young children and teens, equip them with basic programming skills, ignite their passion for Computer Science and subsequently prepare them to be knowledgeable professionals, who can lead and positively influence their immediate communities and country at large.
Skyline Futuristic Eco West African Academy			Kickstart is an intensive, hands-on coding workshop for high school students in underserved areas, with the goal to empower them; by demystifying the myth in coding and computer science in a fun and exciting way, leveraging Scratch programming and CS-Unplugged.  Skyline Futuristic Eco West African Academy is also hosting Coding Workshops for 2500 learners to write at least a line of code during Africa Code Week 2019. Most of the students trained will be from underprivileged backgrounds and a minimum of 45% of children trained will be young females to ignite their passion for computer science. The program will target various rural and suburban areas of Enugu State, Nigeria.
Soparkids International			Soparkids aims to introduce coding to 7000 children, youth and first-time learners using Scratch, Cs First, CS unplugged and Web Design.
Saveup Yung Dev			Code Titans is a practical digital literacy program geared towards creating students with a foundational knowledge in computer science and programming within areas that lack computer science impact. Training will be conducted for a period of 10 days at the organisation’s learning centre, with 100 students trained daily.
Rugged Steps Foundation For African Youth Development			RSFAYD Africa Code Week 2019 is a 3-days training workshop for kids aged 11 to 18 years across Port Harcourt City, Rivers State, Nigeria. The main focus of learning will be based on CS-Unplugged and Scratch coding.
Women in Technology in Nigeria (WITIN)			WITIN is hosting after-school 10-hour CS workshops spread across five days using CS-First online curriculum. Twenty schools in Kano State will be involved, with 20 students and 2 teachers per school. Most importantly, the CS-First curriculum is expected to continually be used by the school even after Africa Code Week is concluded to meet local needs.
Codekajola			CodeKajola ACW 2019 is a 3-days training session for the kids between ages 8 and 18, of which 60% are girls, held across 10 local government areas in Oyo State, Nigeria.
Greatness Achieved Through Excellence (GATE Academy)			GATE Academy is hosting a workshop for secondary school students over a one-week period. Each student will have two hours of uninterrupted training time. The week-long program will involve 30 students each from 10 secondary schools in the lower suburbs of Lagos in which each student will be exposed to 2 hours of uninterrupted CS knowledge using Scratch and materials from the ACW website. The training will run simultaneously across two different schools every day for five days.
NACOSS SOUTHEAST			Nacoss Southeast is focusing its ACW activities on targeting rural community students in public and less standard schools in Enugu and Abia State. Learners, many of whom have no experience with computers or the internet, will get first-hand experience in coding, computers and internet, and will be mentored on choosing careers in computer science.
TechQuest STEM Academy			TeachAKid2Code is a community-driven STEM engagement and impact program that is aimed at exposing and educating kids in STEM at scale through technology tools, volunteer efforts, and community support. With the support of Africa Code Week, the organisation will be reaching 1500 students in 60 schools across 12 states in Nigeria. TeachAKid2Code will be joining hands with the Cape Town Science Centre to drive sustainable learning impact across Africa, instilling digital literacy and coding skills in the young generation.
Youth for Technology Foundation (YTF)-NIGERIA			During ACW 2019, #NaijaGirlsCode2019 aims to reach 800 girls, 80 from each of its 10 partner schools, teaching basic coding skills using scratch in an effort to empower girls in the digital century and foster gender equality in African ICT education. The aim is to overcome the gender digital divide and contribute to improved digital skills and employment perspectives for girls and women in emerging and developing countries such as Nigeria.
Start Innovation Hub Technology Foundation			Start Innovation Hub will organise a workshop that will run after-school activities for four weeks between Oct 2-26, 2019, using the Scratch Curriculum on the CS First website to train youth on Art, Unusual Discovery, Storytelling and Game Design.
RAD5 Tech Hub			TeenHack is a social & non-profit STEM project that is providing an all-inclusive coding workshop to 500 students and 50 ICT teachers across 3 disadvantaged communities in Abia State.
Premier Hub Innovation Center			Code for All provides basic programming training for young people between the ages of 8 and 18 in Akure, Nigeria who have never written a line of code. The training will be held at Premier Hub Innovation Centre with the aim of training a total of 1,000 participants in 10 working days.
Initiative For The Development of The Next Generation			The Initiative For The Development of The Next Generation will be making magic at the Africa Code Week in Awe town with Scratch and CS-First. We will bring together about 1000 students to learn the Google CS First curriculum for the first time while equipping teachers with relevant materials to enable continuity of what was learnt during the event. The program is also designed to encourage kids to choose a career in line with computer science or coding as the learning will be mixed with fun and engaging activities.
InnoSoft Technologies			InnoSoft Technologies aims to introduce 5000 youths/students to coding from age 6-11, 12-16, and 17-22 in 3 states in Nigeria, of which 50% will be girls as part of the organisation’s support of the next generation of coders in Nigeria.
KYM Signature Media			Codedication seeks to teach coding to thousands of youth and spread the good news of coding and CS Education to regions where it has never been heard before.
Megatronic Network Solutions Limited			Evolution Hack is set to provide young learners and students in Nigeria with more passion for computer science and programming. This year, the organisation will be working with more secondary institutions to train and introduce over 2500 young learners to coding skills and programming.
Megatronic Network Solutions Limited			Megatronic Network Solutions Limited will be hosting a two-hour workshop and 1-hour hackathon during ACW.
	South Africa
ICT CLUB MPUMALANGA			ITC Club Mpumalanga is hosting Train-the-Trainer workshops of two hours each at three events. They will also host seven sessions of two hours each to learners during ACW.
The KZN Science Centre			The KZN Science Centre is offering coding to learners, educators and the public through a programme that will teach participants how to code using the Scratch 2.0 program. During the course, participants will be introduced to the software with an introduction as well as an advanced coding session.
Dream Factory Foundation			ACW with Dream Factory Foundation SA seeks to empower 1000 young people with basic coding skills through 90-minute digital learning workshops using Scratch. The initiative seeks to inspire and introduce youth residing in township communities in KZN, Eastern Cape and Western Cape to the digital skills they need to make their dreams come true in this digital age.Dream Factory will see 500 young people empowered with basic coding skills through 1.5-hour digital learning workshops using Scratch. This initiative seeks to inspire our youth to hone the digital skills they need to make their dreams come true in this digital age.
Sci-Bono Discovery Centre			Code Titans is a practical digital literacy program geared towards equipping students with foundational knowledge in computer science and programming within areas that lack computer science impact. Training will be conducted for a period of 10 days at the organisation’s learning centre with 100 students trained daily.
Isisombululo Community Improvement Programme			The Isisombululo Community Improvement Programme aims to introduce children to coding through the introduction of Scratch, an application that combines youthful creativity and curiosity with school subjects such as mathematics and art. This creates a vibrant digital environment that allows children to become adept at computer coding in a short period of time.
The Library Project Trust (t/a The Bookery)			The Bookery works with schools across the Western Cape to revive the culture of STEAMAC and get learners to write their first lines of code. The organisation will offer 60-minute sessions of Scratch coding to learners, and 90-minute sessions to teachers as part of its involvement with Train-the-Trainer).
GirlCode			GirlCode runs the GirlCoder Club, a nationwide network of free, volunteer-led, weekend coding clubs designed for primary and high school girls who want to have a strong foundation in basic programming skills.
Fundanii			Fundanii is a digital learning project based in South Africa, with the aim to introduce various edu-learning platforms to underprivileged learners in the township of Mdantsane. The organisation exposes learners to a series of projects that range from basic coding to 2D animation.
Sakhikamva Foundation			With the support of Google, Sakhikamva Foundation will participate in Africa Code Week 2019 for the fourth consecutive year. The foundation aims to introduce 2000 youth to the exciting world of coding over a one-week period.
Siyafunda Community Technology Centre			The Siyafunda Community Technology Centres will be bringing 4IR coding to communities and schools across the country during this year’s ACW.
	Togo
ARLT (ASSOCIATION POUR LA REFONDATION LAIQUE DU TOGO)			ACW INCLUSIVE TOGO 2019 est un programme qui vise à constituer des labs informatiques mobiles avec des bénévoles formés en codage qui vont sillonner les localités reculées ne disposant pas de salle informatique dans les écoles. Une fois sur place, ils initieront les élèves et les enfants de ces localités défavorisées au codage informatique.
	Tunisia
MentorNations			MentorNations will help young students learn about IoT using very basic skills, with a focus on undeserved communities. The organisation’s goal is to help youth to increase their potential.
	Uganda
Youth for Reconciliation and Leadership			During the 2019 Africa Code Week, CSRS coding workshops will reach out to five new schools to train teachers and students and launching new computer science clubs in those schools.
		Zimbabwe
Girls in STEM Trust			The Girls in STEM Trust is hosting digital and coding skills training for beginner to intermediate levels to ensure basic computer literacy and computational and digital skills for girls and young women.

Self-taught coder develops model for diagnosing breast cancer; looks to solve some of the continent’s biggest challenges and inspires youth across the continent as Africa Code Week Youth Ambassador for 2019.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — July 1, 2019 — “It takes a village to raise a child”: as the Fourth Industrial Revolution sweeps across Africa and more of its youth develop coding and other digital skills, there may come a time to update this old saying to: “It takes one child to raise the prospects of a village.” And based on the quest of one young man from a village in Ghana to solve some of the major problems faced by his community, this saying could become commonplace as more young innovators enter the fray.

Inspired by global technology success stories, Mustapha Diyaol Haqq, a 19-year-old from Kumasi in Southern Ghana, realised he too could deliver innovation where it was most needed, starting with his very home town. “Seeing how the big tech companies used innovation to solve some of the world’s biggest problems made me realise how important it is to learn to code,” says Haqq. “I looked online for any free courses that could help me develop coding skills and completed as many as I could.”

> Continue to story on SAP News

Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) supports Africa Code Week for third consecutive year.

“Where women and girls are able to change their opportunities and perspectives through ICT, their empowerment affects a wide range of outcomes, from ending poverty, to improving education and health, to agricultural productivity, and creating decent jobs*.” With 90% of future jobs requiring ICT skills, now is the time for private and public partners to join forces like never before so that SDG #5 on gender equality can be met by 2030.

Kenya

South Africa

Ghana

As current research by Accenture suggests, sparking the interest of girls at an early stage on their educational pathway and sustaining their interest in computer coding is a key challenge for teachers – hence the pressing need to support them at the grassroot level.

This is what brought the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) to launch the #eskills4Girls initiative as part of Germany’s 2017 G20 presidency, with a goal to tackle the gender digital divide in low income and developing countries. Endorsed by all G20 states and by SAP and UNESCO as part of Africa Code Week, #eskills4Girls is a global initiative bringing together governments, private sector, universities and non-profits across the continent to narrow the gender digital divide. In parallel, throughout the course of 2018, BMZ, UNESCO, SAP and the Camden Education Trust gathered pedagogues and experts to strengthen the gender component of Africa Code Week’s Train-the-Teacher curriculum.

Kenya

Burundi

As part of this 2018 edition, 20 BMZ grants were awarded to support digital literacy events and workshops across 15 African countries. Implemented by volunteer trainers and teachers within each grantee organization, these workshops introduced more than 13,791 women and girls to the basics of coding using Scratch, the globally-acclaimed programming interface designed by the MIT Media Lab. In some countries, participants were also able to learn mobile application development and software programming languages including HTML, CSS, Javascript and Java.

* Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UN Women. https://news.itu.int/reshaping-future-women-girls-icts/ 

List of 2018 #eSkills4Girls grantees:

• Access to Computer for Every Girl


• The Clicking Generation


• Ghana Code Club


• Impact Hub Harare


• Youth for Technology Foundation


• Soparkids International


• Pwani Teknowgalz


• WAAW Foundation


• Amazoon du web


• GEM Institute


• Burundi Innovation Hub (BIHUB)


• Code for Cape Town


• Kanori Initiatives


• Genius Centers


• mHub Malawi


• Girlhype Coders


• Apps and Girls


• MentorNations


• B2C-Coworking


• Sakhikamva Foundation


 

For the third year in a row, Google is supporting SAP Africa Code Week (ACW) as part of its own commitment to preparing 10 million people in Africa for tomorrow's workplace. During ACW 2016 and 2017, Google micro grants had already enabled 90 organizations across 10 African countries to expose 100,000+ youth to computer science (CS) and coding.

Joining forces again with SAP and ACW key partners in 2018 to build community capacity in ICT education across the entire African continent, Google has funded 53 organizations and grassroots groups across 11 countries. Grants awarded specifically supported the rollout of training sessions for thousands of teachers and actual CS and coding workshops for over 100,000 students during ACW 2018.

The far-reaching impact of Google grants over the past few years speaks volumes about the importance of public-private partnerships on capacity-building strategies in the digital era. Launched in 2015 by SAP, the initiative is now actively supported by UNESCO YouthMobile, Google, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), 28 African governments, over 130 partners and 120 ambassadors across the continent.

Below you will find the list of Google grant recipients as part of Africa Code Week 2018, along with their respective stories at the time of thei grant application.

	Botswana
NGWANA ENTERPRISES			Ngwana will facilitate the development of coding and digital skills for educators, children and youth across Botswana.
The Clicking Generation			A 2 days workshop for teachers from 20 schools selected from Ngamiland area which is in the North-West part of Botswana. These are schools in rural areas who are fortunate to have computer labs but no skilled teachers to teach the students. 5 teachers will be selected from each school to participate making a total of 100 teachers. 10 Primary schools and 10 Secondary schools to participate.
The Clicking Generation			Students will be introduced to coding using scratch. 20 schools will introduce coding to a minimum of 200 students from standard 1 to standard 6, with other classes with students with disabilities. Bana Ba Letsatsi are orphans which range from 5 years to 18 years. We would be concentrating on students at Primary and Secondary school and students for special education, as well as orphans in Maun and surrounding villages.
Dream Factory Foundation Botswana			ACW Matenge seeks to empower 1000 young people empowered with basic coding skills through 1.5-hour digital learning workshops using SCRATCH. This initiative seeks to inspire and introduce youth residing in rural communities to the digital skills they need to make their dreams come true in this digital age.
	Ethiopia
STUDIO SAMUEL			Studio Samuel empowers at-risk girls to create and develop coding projects that express their artistry, enhance their critical thinking, advance their computer skills, and encourage them to expand their education and share their knowledge with others.
	The Gambia
Give1Project Gambia			Let kids code will organize series of coding sessions in rural setups. Most of the children who will be enrolled in the program will be complete beginners. This event will help spark interest in participants to pursue a career in ICT and related studies. The ICT Gap in The Gambia is very wide especially among girls and such events will train more people in ICT in obtaining the sustainable development goals.
	Ghana
The Learn Again Foundation			Code Shuttle is a learning experience where students aged between 11-16 learn coding by signing up on Google CS First platform. These students will be shuttled to KNUST to use high speed Internet to learn coding.
iSpace Foundation			A Coding and Digital Skills Program for kids to begin experimenting with visual blocks, then progress to HTML and CSS as they design websites, build apps, and make incredible projects. Our goal is for each participant to feel confident in coding, and to be able to continue to learn on their own with tools and resources that are available to them.
	Kenya
Rekindle Learning			Rekindle Learning Kenya CS Workshop Africa Code Week 2018 for Rural Schools: an initiative that enables students to learn Computer Science and prepare for the 4th Industrial Revolution with special emphasis on girl empowerment.
Kiwimbi Kenya Ngo			Computa Funguo wa Maisha is a Google-Funded Kiwimbi Program that teaches coding to rural children and trains teachers in rural schools to teach children coding skills and to prepare them for further education and a future of employability.
The Africa Centurion Initiative			Kids Comp Camp is a program that seeks to ensure that underprivileged students between the ages of 8 and 18 from slum and rural backgrounds have the computing knowledge to afford them the same opportunities their peers in urban areas enjoy.
Modcom Ltd.			Modcom's "Coding4All” project will introduce participants in Nairobi to coding during the Africa Code Week. “Coding4All” project will allow inclusivity of all young people, with a major focus on marginalized kids and gender balance.
African Maths Initiative			African Maths Initiative will organise an innovative workshop for local teachers in Trans Nzoia County, Kenya. The main goal of the workshop is to set an agenda for initiatives to develop and improve computational thinking in schools and all participants are intended to play leadership roles.
	Lesotho
UNESCO-SMEF THAKAKHOALI			In 2018, UNESCO-SMEF Thakakhoali Mahlale mobile laboratory services will feature Africa Code Week on tour - using a mobile, solar-powered lab equipped with Android tablets so that kids in the rural and off grid areas of Lesotho are given the opportunity to code for the first time.
Soofia International School			Soofia International School will train 150 teachers minimum on Scratch and Web Development (HTML, CSS and Javascript). Courses will be provided by a team of master trainers who have already received training in Soofia.
	Malawi
mHub			mHub will be teaching basic coding skills using Scratch to 200 girls aged 12 to 18 during Africa Code Week 2018.
	Nigeria
InnoSoft Technologies			InnoSoft Technologies will be training teachers in coding skills so they can in turn train and mentor students in their respective schools.
Online Hub Educational Services			Online Hub plans to teach coding to 500 teachers from 500 community schools in Ogun State.
Dev's District			Dev's District will be organising "Code Hope", a program to introduce students in rural and low socioeconomic areas to computer science during Africa Code Week.
LearnFactory Nigeria			Learnfactory will be teaching coding skills to 1,000 children aged 10- 16 during Africa Code Week.
Be The Change Organization			Be the Change will be teaching students ages 14-18 years, within Suleja and Tafa Local Government of Niger State of Nigeria, an Introduction to Python.
Space Club FUTA			Based in the Federal University of Technology in Akure, Space Club FUTA will introduce the concepts of computer programming to 100 secondary school teachers in Akure. The hands on training and interactive lectures would ensure the teachers are well equipped to pass the knowledge onto their students during Africa Code Week.
Soparkids International			Soparkids International will introduce the language of coding with scratch, CS First & Robotics to children, giving them the awareness of computer science. The program will also teach them the importance of teamwork and collaboration to inspire them to become innovators.
Skyline Futuristic Eco West African Academy			Skyline Futuristic Eco West African Academy will be training 2100 children to write at least a line of code during Africa Code Week 2018. Most of the children trained will be from underprivileged backgrounds and a minimum of 45% of children trained will be young females passionate about Computer Science. The program will target Enugu South Local Government Area and its environs in Enugu State, Nigeria.
Greativation			Greativation will deliver a hands-on coding training organized to empower teachers of public secondary schools in the outskirts of Lagos and Ogun State with general basic Computing and Programming knowledge and to teach digital skills so that they can impact the knowledge and skill to the learners in the various schools they teach.
Bodex ICT Foundation			Bodex ICT Foundation will host a workshop to empower kids between the ages of 10-16 with basic computer and coding skills in the low socioeconomic area in Osun State Nigeria; to inspire creativity and to make them a better student in the real tech world and academics.
Curators Interactive			Curators Interactive will host a specially crafted STEM intervention program to help kids go beyond their regular school curriculum in preparation for the future workplace. Their focus will be on empowering students and teachers in Benin City, Edo State.
Codekajola			Codekajola ACW 2018 will train kids between age 11-18 years old across 4 local government areas of Oyo State, Nigeria. CodeKajola ACW 2018 will focus on training these kids Computer science learning activity. Main focus of learning will be based on CS-Unplugged and Scratch Coding.
Audax Solutions Limited			Audax will be hosting a free coding workshop for ages 9-18 to teach the fundamentals of computer programming.
KYM Signature Media			Code-dication seeks to teach coding to youth and spread the good news of coding to regions where it has never been heard before, beginning with Jos, Plateau State.
Initiative for the Development of the Next Generation			This group aims to train 120 teachers who can in turn impact over 2000 students within 4 months. At the workshop, teachers will learn the preliminary act of coding using Scratch and the Google CS-First curriculum with various video tutorials, PDF guide and online materials to aid self-development of participating teacher after the training.
Tych Zoe Global Network Ltd.			Tych Zoe Global Network is organizing an early child digital inclusion advocacy; equipping the students with skills that can solve problems using technology.
Euidem IT Solutions			For Africa Code Week, Euidem will be training 100 IT instructors across several Nigerian schools.
Imagine Tech Limited			YUNG coders is a practical coding experience organised by Imagine Tech Ltd. to empower kids/teenagers with basic computing and programming knowledge and to promote digital literacy within areas with little or no programming opportunities.
Codenonia Codecamp Series			Codenonia plans to utilize Africa Code Week by providing quality CS education to teachers, learners, and young ones in rural areas in Ekiti State.
Junior Achievement Nigeria			Equipping secondary school teachers with skills to teach coding in their respective schools, Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) is committed to raising a generation of young entrepreneurs equipped with relevant digital skills to thrive in a global economy. The goal is to get teachers excited about using coding to help students develop critical reasoning and design thinking skills that will prepare them for greater success in future.
Jaques Technology			An initiative to expose high school students in the rural area of Ogbomoso, Oyo State to the possibilities of computer science through storytelling, art, music, and sounds by leveraging CS First. In the end, students will have cultivated a creative mental state of approaching problems and will be ready to advance their knowledge in computer science.
Codespark Nigeria			Codespark Nigeria will deliver coding workshops to 2000 secondary school students.
TechQuest			TechQuest will deliver coding workshops to 3000 secondary school students across 6 states in Nigeria.
	South Africa
ICT CLUB MPUMALANGA			ICT Club will train teachers on Scratch coding in rural and township areas.
ICT CLUB MPUMALANGA			ICT Club will teach coding using Scratch (ncluding Scratch Junior for Grade 2-4) to learners in rural and township areas.
Dream Factory Foundation			Dream Factory will see 500 young people empowered with basic coding skills through 1.5-hour digital learning workshops using Scratch. This initiative seeks to inspire our youth to hone the digital skills they need to make their dreams come true in this digital age.
Code for Change			CodeJIKA will bring coding into over 500 secondary school students through student-run coding clubs.
Beautiful Gate SA			Beautiful Gate operates in a low socio-economic area in the townships outside Cape Town and will be introducing over 200 kids to coding.
ArcelorMittal Transformation Centre - Newcastle			ArcelorMittal will be running a program called Junior engineers in motion where 800 learners will learn about coding.
Sci-Enza Science Centre			Sci-Enza will host an Introduction to Scratch for learners from disadvantaged schools who are in Grade 7, 8 and 9. Learners will attend a 2-hour session each day at the University of Pretoria (Mamelodi Campus) from Monday to Thursday during Africa Code Week.
Fundanii			Unlocking Africa's future, one workshop at a time. Fundanii and Hudson Park Primary School are collaborating to bring coding and Computer Science to kids and their parents through a variety of one-hour workshops. The workshops will make use of Lightbot, Scratch, Sphero mini robots and even offline coding through dance choreography.
ORT SA CAPE			ORT SA CAPE will present Scratch coding workshops for underprivileged children aged 9 to 12 using Scratch and Lego WeDo robots.
Masana Social Innovations and Investments			The We Code program aims to make coding skills accessible and fun for youth in under-served communities to acquire relevant coding skills, that will enable them to also be self-sufficient and thus encouraging them to be coding entrepreneurs.
MOIPONE ACADEMY			Raising awareness and encouraging learners to pursue ICT careers.
MOIPONE ACADEMY			Deepening ICT understanding through coding.
Isisombuluo Community Improvement Programme NPC			Inkcubeko Youth and Science Centre are joining the Africa Code Week movement by introducing learners and teachers within the Eden district to coding using Scratch.
Siyafunda Community Technology Centre			SIYAFUNDA CTC plans to empower community centre trainers with coding skills enabling the centres to provide coding programmes to more than 50,000 learners at their centres during Africa Code Week.
	Togo
ARLT (ASSOCIATION POUR LA REFONDATION LAIQUE DU TOGO)			ACW INCLUSIVE TOGO 2018 is a program that aims to build mobile computer labs with trained coding volunteers. They will then travel to remote communities where there are no mobile labs in schools and introduce students and children from these disadvantaged communities to computer coding.
	Uganda
Youth for Reconciliation and Leadership			Previously known as IT4All, the Computer Science for Rural Schools is a project that was initiated to help rural students access skills in computer science. Working together with local rural schools, the project equips ICT teachers with the right skills in computer sciences. These teachers then pass on the skills to their teachers and keep supporting them throughout the year.

And a special tribute and thank you to Google for supporting Africa Code Week again this year, empowering organisations across Africa with micro-grants so they can multiply computational thinking and coding activities all over Africa using Google CS First enrichment materials.

Félicitations aux bénéficiaires des micro-subventions accordées par Google pour l'édition 2016 d'Africa Code Week ! Tous nos remerciements à notre partenaire Google qui soutient l'initiative pour la deuxième année consécutive. Ces micro-subventions permettent à des dizaines de structures d'organiser des ateliers de pensée computationnelle et de programmation à travers toute l'Afrique par le biais des supports pédagogiques Google CS First.

En janvier dernier, Ilham laaziz, Directrice du c, recevait des mains de Franck Cohen, Président de SAP EMEA & MEE, le 1er prix Africa Code Week. Et pour cause : 33000 jeunes Marocains venaient d'écrire leurs premières lignes de code dans le cadre d' Africa Code Week Maroc 2015, grâce à l'implication active de nos ambassadeurs et au soutien sans faille du Ministre et des ses équipes de choc. Alors ce petit mot, c'est pour nous l'occasion de saluer Ilham et à travers elle, tous ceux qui travaillent dans l'ombre, le jour et parfois aussi la nuit, pour que le programme touche un maximum de jeunes.

Tout au long de l'année, Ilham remue ciel et terre pour multiplier les formations, afin que tous les enseignants soient formés sur Scratch et qu'ils puissent à leur tour l'enseigner à leurs élèves et susciter des vocations par milliers dans les écoles marocaines. Nul doute qu'Ilham est une source d'inspiration pour de nombreuses jeunes femmes, tant son leadership fait corps avec le feu qui l'anime : celui de la transmission du savoir à l'heure du numérique. Son cheval de bataille est un pur sang et les enfants marocains sont tous un peu les siens. Aucune contingence ne saurait l'éloigner de son but : permettre à tous les jeunes du pays, des milieux urbains et ruraux, d'écrire le scénario de l'Histoire dont ils sont les héros. 
Ilham, du fond du coeur, nous te disons merci.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5lVjupokDc 

..is a Loving Woman.

Director of CSR EMEA at SAP & Global Lead for Africa Code Week: most of you know her job titles already...it's time you knew the woman and the story behind the words. Africa Code Week was born in the warmth of Claire Gillissen-Duval's beating heart on a chilly November evening of twenty-fifteen. She and Bernard Kirk, Director of the Galway Education Centre, were reflecting on the success of Europe Code Week over a cup of hot chocolate. All could have remained quiet and still, but Claire couldn't keep it to herself any longer: “Bernard, I know it sounds crazy, but I’ll be straight to the point: I want the same Code Week but bigger, bolder, better…in Africa. Do you want to be part of the adventure?”

Of course he did, and so did Sunil Geness (Director of Government Relations & CSR for SAP Africa) and Julie Cleverdon (Director of the Cape Town Science Centre). The foursome have been breathing, thinking and living Africa Code Week ever since. Blame it on their unshakable joy to serve, but there's no mountain high enough for this dream team.

Claire is probably falling asleep in yet another plane as we speak, gazing at the horizon of her very own dream: empower 5 million young Africans with coding skills over the next 10 years. Carefully wrapped in her cabin luggage is Award #2 for SAP - Africa Code Week this year: the prestigious IIC Judges' Choice Award she just received from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Based in Paris, Claire has been working with SAP for the past 8 years. This "dream team machine" knows a great team member when she sees one, and should a sentence ever get close enough to describing her, Bill Johnson's would probably fit: "You know you have a renewed mind when the impossible starts to feel logical."

Over many action-packed decades, I have been lucky enough to have been part of some wonderful science technology educational initiatives; to have meet some inspirational heroic individuals; to have experienced fascinating peoples, cultures and places; to have been involved in many campaigns designed to improve the lives of grassroots communities, overcome discrimination and protect the environment. 

But Africa Code Week (ACW) truly stands out as a one-in-a-million lifetime opportunity to make a difference to people's lives on a vast scale. Its ambitious vision is nothing less than to up-skill the young generation of a whole continent in order to allow them create a better future. So over the last year I have been to Ethiopia, South Africa, Rwanda and Botswana with more countries to follow. Every trip fascinates me, every experience thrills me, every landscape excites me, every culture encountered energizes me. In the process I always learn more from the peoples I educate than they do from me. 

For instance on our present trip to Botswana, I and our ACW team were, thanks to the facilitation of local organiser Mooketsi Bennedict Tekere, given the opportunity to travel to the rural village of Mathangwane to meet the local chief and village council ('Kgotla') in order to explain and debate the merits of our programme. We were greeted with warmth and affection in the traditional African vibrant way, and we explained our mission to support local village development and enhance indigenous culture through exploiting web technologies. Chief (Kgosi) Lewanika Mpatane and two members of the 'Kgotla' expressed interest in being taught the basics of coding. The chief is a very cultured man who speaks many languages. His assistant Kennie (Lady K) has obtained a Commerce degree from Monash university in South Africa. But with limited infrastructure, low electrical connectivity, high emigration and rudiments of education, they were fully cognisant of the benefits of digital creativity. So under the shade of a giant tree - the traditional meeting place for an African 'Kgotla'- the chief and two volunteers from the village development council started coding eco-themed programs. 

We believe that Kgosi Mpatane is the first traditional rural chief in Africa to learn coding. So impressed was he by what he was able to achieve in such a short time frame that he promised to spread the word to his fellow chiefs across Botswana.

Huge thanks goes out to Claire Gillissen, Julie Cleverdon, Bernard Kirk, Kevin Conroy, Ibrahim Khafagy, Aphrodice Foyo Mutangana, Mooktsi Bennedict Tekere and the army of volunteers (including Ian MacDonald, Stefan Alexandru Florea, Nuala Allen, Véronique Desegaulx Kevin Morrissey Nshuti Gacinya Olivier, Hervé Rurangwa) involved. ACW is bringing digital literacy and skills as well as the potential of new sustainable jobs to the youth and communities across the length and breath of Africa.

The continent has a lot of challenges to overcome- unprecedented population growth, unplanned urbanisation, deforestation, habitat loss, extermination of species, pollution, ethnic conflicts, corruption, neo-colonialism and disparity of wealth distribution. But I know that education, especially in technology, can empower societies. Furthermore I have seen how Africa can teach the rest of the world how to do things better. Their indigenous music can be infectious; their traditional sense of community values totally uplifting. 

Let's remember Rwanda: in a nation that suffered from one of the worst genocides of the 20th century only two decades ago, strategies in grassroots development, conflict resolution, the introduction of local justice into the legal system and environmental protection are shining examples for us all to follow.

Africa has the largest and youngest workforce in the world, yet many companies present on the continent today are struggling to fill IT-related positions with local, qualified workforce. Currently, only one percent of African children leave school with basic coding skills. This is the reason why SAP and our partners launched the Africa Code Week initiative for the first time last year. Africa Code Week is a continent-wide initiative to foster digital literacy and to spark the interest of African children, teenagers and young adults in software coding.

I am proud that 89.000 young people across 17 African countries joined and received basic coding training during Africa Code Week in 2015. When I traveled to Nigeria in September, I joined a coding workshop at the Ojodu Junior Grammar School in the Ikeja Suburb of Lagos State and saw first-hand how quickly and skillfully the kids picked up the coding. I am convinced that coding is the pass to the digital world for young people in Africa.

This year we are even more ambitious. During Africa Code Week 2016, that will run from October 15 to 23, we hope to train more than 150.000 children and youth aged 8- to 24-years in 30 countries across Africa. The fact that Africa Code Week 2016 was launched today during The World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa in Kigali, Rwanda, shows how meaningful this initiative has become.

SAP and hundreds of partners spanning local governments, NPOs, NGOs, educational institutions and businesses organize the train-the-trainer sessions, coding workshops and online trainings. I truly believe that there is no better way for SAP to ‘give something back’ than to equip Africa’s rising generation with job-relevant digital skills.

Our ambassador in orbit just confirmed the news: Africa Code Week can now be seen from space :-) 

Notre reporter en apesanteur vient de confirmer la nouvelle : ‪#‎AfricaCodeWeek‬ est désormais visible depuis l'espace :-)

See for yourself!