Reports have shown that the demand for Blockchain developers has grown 500% since the end of 2017. This demand has increased across all major industries, from technology to healthcare, banking, and government agencies, etc. In response to this, Africa’s number one IT training academy, Gebeya, partnered with Stellar.org, a U.S. non-profit, to organize an intensive training session. The session was concluded recently, and the 11 graduates from the Gebeya IT Academy now possess the skills needed to lead Africa’s charge into blockchain technology.
Gebeya co-founder and CEO, Amadou Daffe, echoes the academy’s goal of becoming the go-to institute when it comes to blockchain expertise in Africa, further emphasizing their intention to raise the next generation of developers with blockchain know-how.
The training sessions were held from February 26 until March 5, 2019, and spanned 40 hours over the seven days. The training objectives were twofold: to equip professional software engineers with extensive knowledge of the blockchain, while also preparing them for future training sessions in the bid to expand the landscape and train up to 1000 blockchain developers within the African continent.
Blockchain technology boasts vast applications across all spheres of industry. Tumelo Ramaphosa, son of South African president, has identified an application for the technology within the agricultural sector. His start-up, StudEx Wildlife aims to digitize endangered species, tokenizing the animals and allowing investors to leverage their value.
Tumelo, who has been interested in blockchain since 2010, states that the company aims to decentralize the monopoly in wildlife ownership in South Africa, while simultaneously making it possible for farmers to raise funds through ICOs. Tumelo Ramaphosa is set to speak again at the Unlocking Blockchain Africaconference set to be held at the Cape Town Convention Center, South Africa, in December 2019.
Marvin Coleby, Chief Executive Officer at African Fintech company, Raise, emphasizes the potential that blockchain technology carries in creating socio-economic independence for Africans, not only at home but overseas. He also stresses the need for African engineers to be at the forefront of blockchain innovation within the continent, further bringing Gebeya’s role to the fore (as the academy is one of the very few institutions in Africa offering courses for blockchain engineers). Coleby lauds their effort in training blockchain engineers for companies in the continent to hire, work and partner with.
Raise, through the Stellar.org blockchain-based platform, enables individuals to digitize and trade real-world assets, not only allowing for easy asset management by investors but also making the entire process seamless for companies, investors, law firms and broker-dealers. Click here to learn more about the Raise.
Hiruy Amanuel, Gebeya co-founder, also reiterates the significance of training African-based talent, stating that it is key to ensuring the continuance of the Blockchain technology within the continent.
Gebeya and Stellar.org’s first team of eleven graduates now possess the technical skills to undertake blockchain-related projects, while also training the growing number of student developers interested in becoming blockchain professionals. As mentioned above, the demand for blockchain developers is increasing, and their yearly income is also growing; with expert developers taking home as much as $172,000.
