New York; May 5, 2010 ‘ Accenture (NYSE: ACN); BSI, Ltd. and NetHope have been engaged by the Tanzanian Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) to create an eLearning initiative to improve the country’s secondary education system using state-of-the-art information and communications technology. The initiative, ‘Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow,’ will help the country’s 4,000 secondary schools deal with the challenges of teacher capacity, and enable more than 1.5 million students with technological skills in a rapidly growing school system.
‘His Excellency, President Jakaya Kikwete has made education a top priority with the firm belief that a progressive and effective education system is the foundation of a vibrant, stable and self-sustaining democracy and the best assurance of long-term social and economic development,’ said Professor Jumanne Maghembe, Tanzania’s Minister of Education. ‘We have completed our five-year school expansion plan two years ahead of schedule, and our success in record enrolment of secondary students and the rapid deployment of schools has not come without its own set of challenges. Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow aims to address these challenges in a timely and cost-effective manner.’
The objectives of the programme include:
- Improving access to quality education, at secondary education level
- Complementing teacher training with the innovative deployment of technology
- Improving student learning outcomes and corresponding educational metrics
- Building the capacity in the MoEVT to develop an eLearning solution that matches the needs of Tanzania’s secondary education system.
Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow will begin with a pilot phase in which technology solutions will be developed and tested in a variety of secondary school environments’in order to test the feasibility of eLearning solutions for secondary school students. The development phase will be a collaborative effort that taps into the expertise of several top technology firms, non-government organisations (NGO’s) and universities. Accenture Development Partnerships will work hand-in-hand with BSI Ltd to programme manage the eLearning initiative’and the coalition of technology partners and non-governmental organizations.
‘The Tanzanian government is committed not only to strategically addressing this growth while improving learning outcomes in our classrooms, but also to improving social, economic and educational opportunities for future generations,’ said Minister Maghembe. ‘We are pleased to be working with progressive partners such as Accenture; BSI, Ltd. and NetHope in the implementation of this initiative.’
‘This project recognises the convergence of education and information technology as an enabler of transformation in Tanzania through its young people, as well as the need to develop 21st Century skills in order to compete effectively,’ said Jill Bishop, President, BSI, Ltd. ‘With the introduction of broadband in Tanzania, we’re focused on developing a successive generation of tomorrow’s leaders and the emergence of a knowledge based society.’
‘Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow represents a tremendous and immediate opportunity to build a successful partnership of high technology firms, NGO’s and government to address the critical need for improved education in developing countries. With the power of our partners, and the NGO community, along with the leadership of Accenture, we’re able to help bring the true power of the Public Private Partnership to this scale deployment’ said Jack Levy, Global Programme Director of NetHope.
Roger Ford, Senior Executive at Accenture Development Partnerships, added: ‘This demonstrates Accenture’s commitment to helping educate young people to bring advanced skills and opportunities to Tanzania’s future generations. Rather than focusing on technology in the classroom, we will help the ministry deliver an innovative learning experience to the youth of Tanzania via collaborative partnering and by leveraging the successes that have been demonstrated in the region.’
NetHope is a new-generation information technology collaboration of 29 leading international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) representing more than $30 billion of humanitarian development, emergency relief, healthcare, micro-finance and conservation programs serving tens of millions of beneficiaries in more than 180 countries. Using a collaborative, membership-based model, NetHope develops and applies technological solutions on the international stage to improve humanitarian operations and significantly increase impact on beneficiaries. For more information, visit www.nethope.org.
