Turning Talent into Skills and Skills into Success

Published on Friday, 22 March 2019
Photo taken during the eLearning Africa 2018 held in Kigali (Rwanda) | Copyrights: Dominik Tryba, ICWE GmbH

As the African continent prepares for a period of profound change, with the launch of a drive to create a common free trade area, increasing exposure to global markets and technological innovation affecting every sector, this year’s eLearning Africa will ask some fundamental questions.

What will attract investors to our businesses, venture capitalists to our entrepreneurs and employers to our workers?

How can we make growth last and sustain change?

How can we best help young people to transform their talent into skills and their skills into success?

How can we preserve and adapt traditional African knowledge for the future? 

To provide answers to these and many other questions, African and international experts will gather in Abidjan, the capital of Côte d’Ivoire, from 23rd  to 25th October for eLearning Africa, an annual, pan-African event, which has earned a reputation as the continent’s leading edTech conference and exhibition.

Confirmed keynote speakers will include Professor Ndri Therese Assie-Lumumba, the President of the World Council of Comparative Education Societies, and Chairperson of African and Diaspora Education at Cornell University; Efosa Ojomo, author, researcher and economic development expert, who is a senior research fellow at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation; and Jef Staes, one of the world’s leading authorities on learning processes and innovative organisations, whose inspirational insights are derived from more than 25 years’ experience as a Training Manager and Corporate Learning Officer.

Rebecca Stromeyer, the founder and organiser of eLearning Africa, announced today:

“ This year’s eLearning Africa will be very practical. We will be looking at how we can make the most of African talent and how we can turn African skills into success. We had a successful call for papers, which resulted in some very interesting proposals. We are currently reviewing them and we will then publish the full programme on our website. Some of the world’s leading experts will be participating in the conference, along with investors, entrepreneurs and political leaders, so it will be a great opportunity to discuss the role of education, training and technology in equipping Africans with the skills they need to succeed in the future.”

Albert Nsengiyumva, Executive Secretary of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) said:

“ Making sure that our people have got the skills they need to compete is vital for the future of the whole African continent. The pace of change is going to get faster and faster. If we want to make a reality of the African Union’s 2063 vision of a ‘transformed continent,’ we have to put the systems, structures and solutions we need in place now. We also need to look carefully at what investors expect from Africa’s workforce and how we can make African labour markets attractive to potential employers. The discussions ministers and investors will have at this year’s eLA are an important part of planning for the future.”

A Ministerial Round Table will be held on the opening day of the conference. It will be attended by education, technology and communication ministers from all over Africa. Their discussions will focus on the importance of learning, training, skills and investment to helping Africans to make the most of plans for an African Common Free Trade Area.

eLearning Africa is always accompanied by an international exhibition of products, services, solutions and courses. The organisers are confidently predicting that this year’s exhibition will be the biggest in the event’s history and companies and organisations from all over the world will take part.

“The exhibition is a good sign of the interest outside investors are taking in Africa,” said Rebecca Stromeyer. “I have seen the exhibition grow and, this year, there is no doubt there is real excitement about opportunities in Africa’s edTech sector. It is a rapidly growing market, which could soon be the biggest in the world, and some of the best known names in global education and technology will be taking part.”

For more information about eLearning Africa, to register to take part or to book an exhibition stand, please visit eLearning Africa website.

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About eLA: eLearning Africais the key networking event for ICT supported education, training and skills development in Africa and brings together high-level policy makers, decision makers and practitioners from education, business and government. Over 13 consecutive years, eLearning Africa has hosted 17,278 participants from 100+ different countries around the world, with over 85% coming from the African continent. More than 3,300 speakers have addressed the conference about every aspect of technology enhanced education and skills development. Serving as a pan-African platform, the eLearning Africa conference is a must for those who want to develop multinational and cross-industry contacts and partnerships, as well as enhance their knowledge, expertise and abilities. The conference and its associated exhibition, featuring the latest products, courses and solutions from around the world, represent “an outstanding networking opportunity and the best vantage point anywhere in Africa to gain a view of the continent’s edTech market,” according to the organisers. www.elearning-africa.com

 

About ADEA: The Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) is a forum for policy dialogue. It is a partnership bringing together African policymakers in charge of education, science and technology; development partners; researchers and education technical experts. ADEA contributes to the empowerment of African countries to develop quality education and training systems that respond to the countries' emergent needs and drive social and economic transformation sustainably. www.adeanet.org