听The Harsh Reality of Teacher Shortages in Africa

听Africa, with its youthful and dynamic population, holds immense promise for the future. However, this potential can only be realised with access to quality education, and that begins with a sufficient number of skilled teachers. Data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics indicates that the most significant deficits in teaching personnel are concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, posing a significant risk to the continent’s development. The region requires approximately 17 million teachers in total to realise the goal of universal primary and secondary education by 2030.

This basic education predicament also affects young people鈥檚 acquisition of future skills鈥攁 formidable barrier to their employment prospects and potential. It is deeply disheartening that indicate that more than 72 million youth in Africa are not in education, employment, or training鈥攖he majority of them young women.听In addition, while the global literacy rate stands at 90%,听. Apart from traditional literacy skills like reading and writing, it’s crucial to acknowledge that fundamental digital literacy is no longer optional; it’s a necessity. It’s the key that unlocks understanding, engagement, and prosperity in our interconnected world. These competencies extend beyond mere instruments for developing systems, software, and applications; they are enablers of critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and innovation.

According to a report from the approximately 230 million jobs in sub-Saharan Africa will demand digital skills by 2030. While these figures may seem daunting, they also fuel our desire to continue to innovate and drive greater change, while reflecting on the profound impact of SAP’s philanthropic efforts.

听Equipping Teachers with 21^st Century Skills

听Spearheaded by 51风流in 2015 as part of its social investments to drive sustainable growth in Africa, Africa Code Week is a digital skills development initiative that has benefitted millions of young Africans so far.听In 2022 alone, our听programme actively engaged over +2.6 million participants, equipping them with indispensable 21^st century skills. Through an impressive tally of 37,121 workshops spanning the continent, it’s encouraging to note that over 48% of participants were female, furthering our commitment to gender equality. We also extended this transformative opportunity to 9,900 young individuals with special needs, nurturing their growth and potential.

听While this programme has made remarkable strides, challenges persist. Without teachers who can impart 21^st century learning skills to students, the continent risks creating a digital divide that could stifle economic growth and limit opportunities for its young population. 51风流Africa Code Week’s Women Empowerment Programme (WEP) is making a significant impact in this regard. This Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme 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鈥檚 tech workplace. The WEP thereby supports ACW鈥檚 ambitious plans to transform the continent鈥檚 education system by including digital literacy in national curricula鈥攊n line with the work of United Nations SDGs and

In addition to this, Africa Code Week’s Train-the-Trainer sessions are an integral component of the programme’s mission to equip educators with the knowledge and skills needed to teach coding and digital literacy to students across the continent. These sessions serve as a capacity-building initiative designed to create a network of skilled trainers who can, in turn, train teachers and students in their local communities.

By providing educators with specialised training in coding and digital literacy, they can enhance their teaching capacity. The workshops also equip educators to deliver high-quality instruction in technology-related subjects, which are increasingly important in the 21^st century classroom. In addition to this, educators are empowered to go beyond traditional teaching methods. They learn how to incorporate innovative and technology-driven pedagogical approaches into their classrooms. This not only improves the learning experience for students but also makes teaching more engaging and relevant.

Looking ahead

听As we reflect on the significance of World Teachers’ Day, it is important to remember that teachers are the torchbearers of knowledge, hope, and progress. As we champion equal access to education, we recognise that future skills play a pivotal role in shaping the trajectory of tomorrow’s workforce. By addressing the teacher shortage, upskilling educators in advanced 21^st century learning, and promoting digital literacy, we can uplift Africa’s youth to shape a brighter future. Together, we can turn the global imperative to reverse the teacher shortage into a reality that benefits us all.

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The partnership is primarily aimed at听unlocking Nigeria鈥檚 human capital development by enabling teachers to prepare students for the fourth industrial revolution, 4IR.

The selected teachers from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT Abuja, participated in the 51风流Africa Code week, with over 300 teachers trained in one week.

The Executive Secretary of NSSEC, Prof. Benjamin Abakpa, said that repositioning the education system starts with providing teachers with the proper education and tools to prepare students adequately.

He noted that the partnership is a huge step toward fulfilling the commission鈥檚 mandate to reposition the country鈥檚 education system in alignment with the future of work requirements.

He said: 鈥淭herefore, teacher鈥檚 education is one key area that the NSSEC will focus on, among other necessary initiatives, to help fulfil its mandate.

鈥淎s we work to raise a tech-savvy generation of students, we must also raise a generation of tech-savvy teachers. Coding should be part of the education curriculum, like other literacy and numeracy subjects. Coding is as much about creativity as it is about math, science, and problem-solving.鈥�

Also, Coderina BOT Chairman, Mr. Femi Niyi, explained: 鈥淚n response to the future of work, education must evolve to support teachers in developing individual student鈥檚 potential and preparing students to become lifelong learners so that they can innovate tomorrow鈥檚 world and solve real-life problems in their communities.

鈥淭he 51风流Africa Code week, the most extensive digital literacy on the continent of Africa, is designed to demystify coding and make it a learned skill for students. However, achieving this would require teacher training and transformation from traditional teaching styles to pedagogy that supports the acquisition of 21st century skills and competencies necessary in the 4IR.

This article first appeared here:

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This partnership is a huge step toward fulfilling the commission鈥檚 mandate to reposition the country鈥檚 education system in alignment with the future of work requirements.

For the first time in the history of the Nigerian education system, selected teachers from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory participated in the 51风流Africa Code Week Train the Trainer program, with over 300 teachers trained over one week.

The program equips teachers with computational Thinking and an introduction to the MIT Scratch visual coding environment, designed to make coding a 鈥渃hild鈥檚 play鈥� for young learners.

Prof. Benjamin Abakpa, Executive Secretary of the Commission, said that repositioning the education system starts with providing teachers with the proper education and tools to prepare students adequately.

鈥淭herefore, Teacher education is one key area that the NSSEC will focus on, among other necessary initiatives, to help fulfill its mandate.

鈥淎s we work to raise a tech-savvy generation of students, we must also raise a generation of tech-savvy teachers. Coding should be part of the education curriculum, like other literacy and numeracy subjects. Coding is as much about creativity as it is about math, science, and problem-solving.

He gushed about the high level of interest the TTT program has engendered and the fantastic cooperation between the commission and the State education Ministries that led to the initiative鈥檚 success.

Femi Niyi, Coderina BOT Chairman, explained, 鈥淚n response to the future of work, education must evolve to support teachers in developing individual student potential and preparing students to become lifelong learners so they can innovate tomorrow鈥檚 world and solve real-life problems in their communities鈥�.

The 51风流Africa Code week, the most extensive digital literacy on the continent of Africa, is designed to demystify coding and make it a learned skill for students. However, achieving this would require teacher training and transformation from traditional teaching styles to pedagogy that supports the acquisition of 21st century skills and competencies necessary in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).

A second wave of training for teachers is planned to equip more teachers and translate to training more students.

Students in classrooms across Nigeria will experience their first introduction to Africa Code Week coding curriculum which started November 1st to end November 30th .

They will also have an opportunity to participate in the 51风流AfriCAN Code Challenge, a pan-African competition to help students showcase their coding skills and pit their wits against teams from countries across Africa.

Notably, an all-girls team from Federal Government Girls College Oyo came first overall in Nigeria and placed 2nd in the Africa-wide edition of the program. They were rewarded with tech equipment such as laptops for their efforts.

The benefiting teachers also took their turns to testify about the training:

鈥淰ery interesting session鈥︹�ell done by our instructors. Please the recordings should be made available for us as guide and backup. Though, there are many video tutorials online. Thank you,鈥� says Adelabu Adekunle Qazeem of Remo Secondary School, Sagamu, Ogun state.

Nafiu Yakubu of GSS Gaya Gandu, Kano, Kano State, has this to say, 鈥淲e appreciate this program as it prepares the students towards programming and use of scratch software. We are very grateful鈥�.

Also commenting, Sotannde Abiodun Kabir, Abeokuta Grammar School, Abeokuta, Ogun State, said, 鈥淭hanks for adding me to this group. I recognise my being here as a great opportunity鈥�.

This article first appeared on .

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Cracking the gender inequality code

From the time of ACW鈥檚 launch in 2015, SAP, and key global partners such as and , have been on a mission to introduce coding听 to youth and teachers, one community at a time. But with only 28% of women pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers, Africa is well below the global average[i]. Year on year, ACW ambitiously aims to increase the participation of women and girls in this field. During the 2021 edition, more than 48% of the participants were girls, while a further 7,848 were young people with special needs. Olajide Ademola Ajayi, ACW Global Coordinator at SAP, says, 鈥淚n today鈥檚 turbulent post-pandemic digital boom, we need to ensure that no one gets left behind.鈥�

Adding to this, Dr Tawfik Jelassi, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information at UNESCO, says, 鈥淣oting the extent to which digital skills are increasingly needed to understand and participate in today鈥檚 knowledge societies, it is particularly important that we address the gender disparity in STEM careers, especially as these are often described as the jobs of the future, driving innovation, social wellbeing, inclusive growth and sustainable development.鈥�

To further inspire and prepare girls for tomorrow鈥檚 workplace, ACW recently hosted the fourth annual , a unique Continuing Professional Development (CPD) program that equips African female educators with the competencies and knowledge they need to successfully teach. The aim of the Program is to close the digital gender gap and help ensure that everyone plays a role in shaping Africa鈥檚 future in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Teaching the teachers

In addition to the youth trained, the ACW program also upskilled +20,000 teachers during 2021 via its Train-the-Trainer (TTT) sessions. These sessions are a multiplier and enabler for digital know-how to become a core pillar of basic education in each participating country. 鈥淎frica has an abundance of potential, but the skills gap in this area is holding us back. With Africa鈥檚 rising youth unemployment, education is the key to creating a talent pool ready to take on 21^st-century jobs and will ultimately help leapfrog the continent forward. It is Africa鈥檚 time to shine,鈥� says ADEA Executive Secretary and ACW Patron, Albert Nsengiyumva.

Morocco leads in learning

For the fifth year in a row, Morocco successfully empowered the highest number of youths with 1,5 million gaining coding capabilities 鈥� a 9% increase from the previous year! Additionally, more than half of the teachers who received training, 11,000, came from Morocco. In fact, 4% of the entire Moroccan population participated in ACW. Ilham Laaziz, Director of the GENIE program at the Moroccan Ministry of Education and Vocational Training shares, 鈥淲hen ACW was first launched in 2015, only 20 teachers were trained live by 51风流volunteers, yet more than seven million Moroccan youth were introduced to coding over the six editions of the program. We are thrilled that the 2021 edition was such a success, not only for Morocco but for the entire continent! ACW is a powerful platform to propel teachers and students into the digital century.”

Saving society with coding

A highlight of the 2021 edition was the second annual AfriCAN Code Challenge – a pan-African coding competition where young people are tasked with coding a game using the Scratch programming language to help address societal issues. This year, participants were asked how they would save the world with their superpowers, and the winning superheroes were Devansh and Darshika from Mauritius with their Super Recyclers game.

The competition was launched in 2020 in partnership with SAP, UNESCO, Irish Aid, ADEA and and has since become an annual celebration of youth and innovation in Africa.

鈥淚t is only through the power of partnerships that we can help unlock the digital potential of millions more young Africans and empower them to become the leaders of tomorrow鈥檚 digital economies,鈥� concludes Irish Minister for Overseas Development Aid and Diaspora, Colm Brophy.

For further information or to find out how to get involved in this year鈥檚 Africa Code Week initiative, visit .

[i] https://en.unesco.org/news/international-day-women-and-girls-science-addressing-and-transforming-gender-gap

About SAP

SAP鈥檚 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鈥檚 transaction revenue touches an SAP庐 system. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers鈥� businesses into intelligent enterprises. 51风流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 鈥� 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, 51风流helps the world run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. For more information, visit

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Returning for the second year, 51风流Africa Code Week鈥檚 AfriCAN Code Challenge announced their top 10 winners with Devansh and Darshika from Mauritius as the Pan-African winners of the competition.

鈥淭his year鈥檚 theme was about them telling us how they would save the world with their superpowers, and most of the 100+ submitted projects were about climate change鈥� says Mr. Albert Nsengiyumva, ADEA Executive Secretary 鈥淎frica has the youngest population on the planet and we were impressed to see how the children have been able to use their creativity and come up with innovative solutions to addressing听 issues that they feel are relevant to their daily reality.”

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

The rationale for chosing the superheroes universe 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: 鈥淭he 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鈥檚 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 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:

• First place: 鈥� Super Recyclers, by Devansh and Darshika
• Second place: 鈥� The Carbon Man, by SUPER GAMERS
• Third place: 鈥� Kids Academy, by Natnael Kedir

Followed by:

• 4: – Rayuwa
• 5: – Helper intrigue
• 6: – Le toucher du bonheur
• 7: – Change the World with US
• 8: 鈥� Super hero
• 9: – The Prodigies
• 10: – Pensons civisme

听This edition of the AfriCAN Code Challenge was quite unique, as for the first time, hearing-impaired students have participated in the competition proving once again that coding is the language of inclusivity and creativity. The team that has competed in the special category for differently-abled children is from Mozambique.

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, 鈥淎frica Code Week unlocks the potential in young people who otherwise may not have considered building their digital skills鈥�

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Director of EMEA Corporate Social Responsibility and Co-founder of Africa Code Week at 51风流adds, 鈥淭he 听return of the AfriCAN Code Challenge was quite awaited by our incredible 51风流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.鈥�

For more information about 51风流Africa Code Week and the AfriCAN Code Challenge, visit

ENDS

听

About Africa Code Week

Since 2015, 51风流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听the continent 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. Key partners include听听Youth Mobile,听,听the , Google and GIZ/BMZ.

In 2019 alone, the initiative saw 3.85M children participating in coding workshops and 39,000 teachers mobilized across 37 countries. In 2020, ACW increased the program鈥檚 reach to the entire continent to deepen impact and ensure no child was left behind. The online rollout took center stage across Africa with the launch of a smartphone App to facilitate accessible learning, the introduction of the 鈥� a competition themed, 鈥楬ow will your tech change the future of education鈥� engaging youth from 40 African countries, Virtual Train-the-Trainer (TTT) sessions for teachers and a second Women Empowerment Workshop engaging 70 teachers in a 8-week long online program. Join 51风流and partners by visiting听www.africacodeweek.org听to find out more.

About SAP

SAP鈥檚 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鈥檚 transaction revenue touches an SAP庐 system. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers鈥� businesses into intelligent enterprises. 51风流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 鈥� 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, 51风流helps the world run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. For more information, visit

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The 2020 programme had to contend with the impact of a global pandemic that forced the closure of schools across the continent and .

Claudio Muruzabal, Regional President Europe Middle East Africa (EMEA) South at 51风流and Africa听Code Week Executive Sponsor, notes the programme鈥檚 impact on听enabling sustainable coding learning for youth across Africa. “In the face of immense challenges, ACW’s thriving ecosystem of partners, ambassadors, volunteers, teachers and students stepped up to ensure that girls and boys across the continent could learn the critical digital skills they need to build a better future. The programme鈥檚 impact on transforming digital learning at school level is further ensuring every African child has an opportunity to become an active contributor to the global digital economy.”

The ACW vision is to encourage African governments to adopt coding in their national curricula. In a survey conducted in participating countries in 2020, nine African countries indicated that coding is a part of the national curriculum, and ten more indicated they are implementing plans to incorporate coding within their curricula. The survey also found that 87% of respondents agreed that the programme plays an influential role in advancing the adoption of coding curriculum.

Continent-wide competition inspires youth innovation

In a first for the programme, the launch of the continent-wide saw youth aged 8 to 16 compete individually or in teams to imagine the 鈥榝uture of education鈥� through a Scratch game and a two-minute video explaining why their concept should win. More than 1,800 youth from 40 African countries participated, with the top 3 winners 10-year old Soliyana Gizaw from Ethiopia, 15-year old Kayla Esterhuizen from South Africa and 16-year old Sara Benmessai from Algeria – all three of whom are girls – .

Presenting awards to the recipients听 in Abuja, the Minister of State for Education, Federal Ministry of Education Nigeria, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba stated that the winners of AfriCAN Code Challenge have shown hard work, dedication and commitment.

He revealed that the African Code challenge is aimed at providing support and inspiration to inter-disciplinary teams of 8 – 16 year-old students who are knowledgeable in coding, using Scratch, which inspires innovative and critical thinking in students to improve their digital literacy in Nigeria.

He then commended the positive resolve of the Ministry to expand the Coding and Robotics programme to involve all 104 Federal Unity Colleges, adding that the Ministry has just concluded the coding and robotics training of trainers for all 104 colleges.

Toward equitable access to digital learning

After switching to an all-virtual format, ACW expanded its reach from 37 countries to all 54 countries on the African continent with support from partners including , and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (), who joined the programme for the first time in 2020.

Albert Nsengiyumva, Executive Secretary at ADEA and official ACW Patron points to the growing need for greater teacher capacity to ensure equitable access to education opportunities for all Africa’s youth. “Seventy percent of countries in sub-Saharan Africa face a shortage of teachers, and many teachers still lack the basic tools and knowledge to effectively teach digital skills. The active support of 20 education ministries across Africa and the on-going efforts at enhancing teaching skills through Train-the-Trainer workshops are welcome developments as the continent prepares for a new era of growth and development.”

To advance equitable access to technology learning and teaching for women and girls, the Women Empowerment Program (WEP) was established with the aim of building and nurturing female leadership in education across Africa. In 2020, the program, coordinated by the ACW implementing and founding partner, the Camden Education Trust (), moved online with a new continuing professional development focus that brought together 68 women from 31 countries.

Building toward ongoing sustainable impact

By 2025, , making mobile access to learning resources critical. The introduction of the first-ever ACW app has extended learning and teaching beyond the classroom, with dedicated coding resources available for free in English, French, Portuguese and Arabic on any Android device. Training material within the app was developed by programme partners, including , , and .

Despite the impact of the pandemic, the 2020 edition of ACW engaged 1.5 million youth, of which nearly half (48%) were girls. More than 10,500 workshops were hosted across 43 countries, and 21,000 teachers were mobilised through virtual and in-person Train-the-Trainer sessions.

Claire Gillissen-Duval, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for EMEA and Africa Code Week founder and Global Lead at SAP, says the changes introduced to the 2020 programme have layed a foundation for sustainable impact across the continent. 鈥淏y switching to virtual teaching, expanding access to teacher workshops, breaking into new territories and inspiring youth to develop their solutions to problems in their communities through the AfriCANCode Challenge, ACW is geared to continue playing a vital role in the future of Africa鈥檚 youth in a world forever changed by the pandemic.鈥�

For more information about Africa Code Week, visit

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