Learning Lions
IT and Media Skills to Build a Future in Rural Africa
The non-profit organisation "Learning Lions" has set itself the task of teaching IT and media skills to young people in East Africa. Especially in rural areas, where there is great poverty and hardly any infrastructure, the aim is to give people a perspective for their future and enable them to become entrepreneurs.
Competences:
Vocational education and training, Entrepreneurship, Train the Trainer
Target Group:
Young adults in impoverished rural areas of Eastern Africa
Country:
Kenya
The IT and media industry offers great opportunities for professional development worldwide. The organisation “Learning Lions” strives to open up these opportunities for young people in Africa as well. With financial support from the Bavarian State Chancellery for the construction of campus buildings and housing units, professional perspectives are to be created. The "Learning Lions", founded in 2015 in the Kenyan district of Turkana, accompany young people on their way: from their first steps in IT to marketing their services.
The world’s first “Fair-Trade” approved digital agency
Especially in structurally weak rural regions like in northern Kenya, it is a major challenge to create alternatives that prevent young people from migrating to the cities or abroad. The approach of the "Learning Lions" starts with a three-month basic training with modules that build on each other and teach the adolescents skills in programming, graphic design and media production.
The aim is to equip the "Lions" to offer digital services and eventually train other young people themselves. The "Learning Lions" part of the project is followed by two further units. “Digital Lions” is a digital outsourcing agency - the first in the world with a “Fair Trade” label. It offers various creative services, from image editing and video production to website design.
The campus is also open to digital nomads and entrepreneurs
The basis for the third unit “Start-up Lions” is to establish a scalable business cluster with high-quality skills in IT and media services and to market it as an integrated business model to international clients. The START-UP LIONS CAMPUS at Lake Turkana - a business incubator offering entrepreneurial support, networking and a co-working space for 400 "Lions" - has been operational since 2020.
The campus is also open to international digital nomads and enterprises that want to create start-ups and realise projects with the “Lions”. The project places special focus on promoting young women who want to take up technical and creative professions. The “Tech Dada” (Dada is the Swahili word for “sister”) support programme is designed to actively promote gender equality.