Challenge
In the past 20 years, Rwanda has transformed into a hub of tech activity, with the capital Kigali at the center. The country is investing in tech infrastructure, with the world’s most powerful multinational tech companies, including the likes of Google, Facebook, and Amazon, setting up shop.
Yet Nyabiheke Refugee Camp in Rwanda was frustratingly cut off from the world – the nearest internet café was 15 km away, and even that was bare bones, with old computers and spotty wi-fi. There was no easy way for refugees to stay in touch with loved ones in other countries, do an online job search, or take online classes, things that might actually help them build a future.
Gaetan, a Congolese refugee in Nyabiheke for the past 15 years, approached Alight with an ambitious idea: a computer lab for the Camp. Not just that, but one that offered IT training, preparing him and his friends for the real world in Rwanda.
Approach
Alight raised the funds to build the lab, to construct the building, to furnish it with new computers, and to invest in all the equipment to get it up and running.
Next steps: design a coding school that not only created a space for connectivity, but that equipped refugees with high-demand, highly marketable IT skill sets. That guarantees job placement in some of the most desirable tech companies. That radically improve the lives of refugees in Nyabiheke. That makes them competitive in the global economy.
Impact
We convened an all-star team of humanitarians, entrepreneurs, tech professionals, and refugees to design a six-month course that immersed students in competitive programming languages, with the goal of placing every one of those students in jobs once completed. Our goal is to equip graduates with world-class coding skills – skills that would be competitive anywhere.
