THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Africa and Middle East, and Kathinka Kurz, Head of the Development Partnerships Program with the private sector – develoPPP – at the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, have signed a partnership agreement to develop the digital skills of 20.000 young people in 14 countries in the Africa and Middle East region.
Orange and GIZ as two major institutions – one recognized for its expertise and know-how in the field of innovation, the other recognized by its experience and expertise in supporting the economic and social development of partner countries – will work hand in hand to train young people in digital skills, improve their employability and thus help reduce unemployment.
Both parties join forces and bundle their competences and resources, with a financial contribution of 20 million euros by Orange, and up to 10 million euros by GIZ. This partnership will have a long-lasting impact on the economic perspective of young people.
In the context of the project GIZ acts as implementation partner for the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), which has set up the develoPPP.de program to foster the involvement of the private sector at the point where business opportunities and development policy initiatives overlap.
Orange and GIZ will establish digital hubs in Africa and the Middle East – Orange Digital Centres (ODCs). These centres offer young people training in digital technology free of charge, they accelerate the creation of start-ups and support project leaders. The ODCs will feature digital state-of-the-art equipment. The teams will work with various stakeholders and the entrepreneurial ecosystem of each country to train young people and support in finding jobs. The ODCs will also work with universities in the regions.
The ODC concept already launched in Tunisia (https://oran.ge/2PuVHOo) and Senegal will soon be deployed in Morocco, Jordan, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Mali, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Burkina Faso, in Guinea and Liberia. Each ODC includes a coding school, a FabLab Solidaire, a start-up accelerator “Orange Fab” and Orange Digital Ventures Africa, the Orange Group’s investment fund.
Each of these 4 programs is aimed at a specific audience. The Coding School, a free access technology center that offers training, events and support for developers, geeks and project ideas. The FabLab Solidaire, a digital manufacturing workshop for creating and prototyping with digital equipment, also targets young people without diplomas and without jobs. The FabLab Solidaire of the ODC is part of the worldwide network of 88 FabLabs Solidaires belonging to the Orange Foundation.
Orange Fab and Orange Digital Ventures Africa are programs that target entrepreneurs. The first is a start-up accelerator that supports the most promising start-ups in their commercial development and also helps them to build business partnerships with the Orange Group and the worldwide network of 17 Orange Fabs. The second, Orange Digital Ventures Africa, is a 50 million euro investment fund that finances innovative start-ups in countries on the African continent and in the Middle East region.
The Orange Digital Center aims to create synergies between all these programs.
The aim of this partnership between Orange and GIZ is to make digital a chance for everyone.
Orange is present in 19 countries in Africa and the Middle East and has nearly 125 million customers as of 30 October 2019. With sales of € 5.2 billion in 2018, this zone is a strategic priority for the Group. Orange Money, its money transfer and mobile money service available in 18 countries, has 45 million customers. Orange, a multi-service operator, a leading partner in digital transformation, brings its know-how to support the development of new digital services in Africa and the Middle East.
Report distributed by APO Group on behalf of Orange
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About Orange:
Orange (www.Orange.com) is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 41 billion euros in 2018 and 148,000 employees worldwide at 30 September 2019, including 88,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 268 million customers worldwide at 30 September 2019, including 209 million mobile customers and 21 million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 27 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies, under the brand Orange Business Services. In March 2015, the Group presented its new strategic plan “Essentials2020” which places customer experience at the heart of its strategy with the aim of allowing them to benefit fully from the digital universe and the power of its new generation networks.
For more information on the internet and on your mobile: www.Orange.com, www.Orange-business.com
About GIZ & develoPPP.de:
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (www.GIZ.de/en) is a federal enterprise with worldwide operations. It supports the German Government in the fields of international cooperation for sustainable development and international education. GIZ supports people and societies in shaping their own futures and improving their living conditions. www.GIZ.de/en
The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has set up the develoPPP.de program to foster the involvement of the private sector at the point where business opportunities and development policy initiatives overlap. To this end, BMZ offers financial and technical support for companies that want to do business or have already begun operating in developing and emerging-market countries. GIZ acts as one of two official partners who implement the programme on behalf of BMZ.
As part of the BMZ’s Special Initiative “Training and Job Creation”, develoPPP.de supports initiatives by companies that invest in better qualification of skilled workers and create more jobs in selected African countries. As economic growth and local value creation are key drivers of development, people, companies and countries all benefit at the same time.
