Chachu Ombara
JF-Expert Member
- Dec 11, 2012
- 5,897
- 10,358
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
́CodeBus Africa ́ arrives in Dar es Salaam
Young computer coders tour the African continent to celebrate 100 years of Finland.
Education and technology organizations from Finland and Tanzania will come together next week to run creative coding workshops for local students in Dar es Salaam and Iringa. The collaboration is part of the CodeBus Africa project, a 100-day tour connecting Finnish and African innovators as part of Finland's official 100th anniversary celebrations. The CodeBus Africa journey will span ten countries in total – thiopia, Gha- na, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia – between February and May 2017.
CodeBus Africa will be organized in Tanzania by Finnish Aalto University and Tanzanian innovation hubs Buni and Kiota with the support of the Finnish Embassy. The project, which is regionally sponsored by the Finnish global telecom leader Nokia, will place special emphasis on involving girls who still remain un-derrepresented among the users and creators of technology.
With its focus firmly on the young, this innovative activity will consist of creative coding workshops. Stu-dents will pair up to learn coding and to produce their own song with the free open-source platform Sonic Pi. Peer support, creative self-expression and a tangible final product are all elements designed to make the learning experience positive and rewarding. The aim of the project is to boost grassroots level teaching of computer programming, and to contribute to long-term efforts to promote quality education, youth em- powerment and employment.
"I am pleased that we are able to bring this project to Tanzania as part of our anniversary celebrations", commented Pekka Hukka, Ambassador of Finland to Tanzania. “I think what is important at the moment in this nation is to find the right ways to reach out to the young, focusing on education and employment which are basic building blocks for the future of any country. This week we have Aalto University from Fin- land here to demonstrate how coding can be used for the reaching these objectives."
"We are very lucky to have good local partners working with us. We have worked in the innovation sector for many years and thanks to this prior work, our network of actors is good. I am delighted to see a strong Finnish company, Nokia, as a partner in this project. As a global leader in innovation and technology worldwide, they have the capacity to transform lives through shaping the future of technology. It is a privi-lege to have the opportunity to work together with them in putting this capacity into the use of the com- on good."
The Codebus Africa will stop in Dar es Salaam at Buni Innovation Hub at COSTECH on 28–29 March and n front of Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre on 30 March. In Iringa the Codebus Africa will be on 3–4 April at KiOTA Hub, at University of Iringa.
The CodeBus Africa tour will be documented on the project website www.codebusafrica.com, as well as on social media on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter between February and May 2017.
For more information, please contact: Mr. Simo-Pekka Parviainen, First Secretary, Embassy of Finland: simo-pekka.parviainen @ formin.fi
CodeBus Africa is coordinated by Aalto Global Impact, which promotes Aalto University’s societal impact lobally through educa-tion, research and innovation. The project's organising partners are the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Nokia, Supercell, Mehackit and over 15 African technology hubs, educational institutions and organisations.
́CodeBus Africa ́ arrives in Dar es Salaam
Young computer coders tour the African continent to celebrate 100 years of Finland.
Education and technology organizations from Finland and Tanzania will come together next week to run creative coding workshops for local students in Dar es Salaam and Iringa. The collaboration is part of the CodeBus Africa project, a 100-day tour connecting Finnish and African innovators as part of Finland's official 100th anniversary celebrations. The CodeBus Africa journey will span ten countries in total – thiopia, Gha- na, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia – between February and May 2017.
CodeBus Africa will be organized in Tanzania by Finnish Aalto University and Tanzanian innovation hubs Buni and Kiota with the support of the Finnish Embassy. The project, which is regionally sponsored by the Finnish global telecom leader Nokia, will place special emphasis on involving girls who still remain un-derrepresented among the users and creators of technology.
With its focus firmly on the young, this innovative activity will consist of creative coding workshops. Stu-dents will pair up to learn coding and to produce their own song with the free open-source platform Sonic Pi. Peer support, creative self-expression and a tangible final product are all elements designed to make the learning experience positive and rewarding. The aim of the project is to boost grassroots level teaching of computer programming, and to contribute to long-term efforts to promote quality education, youth em- powerment and employment.
"I am pleased that we are able to bring this project to Tanzania as part of our anniversary celebrations", commented Pekka Hukka, Ambassador of Finland to Tanzania. “I think what is important at the moment in this nation is to find the right ways to reach out to the young, focusing on education and employment which are basic building blocks for the future of any country. This week we have Aalto University from Fin- land here to demonstrate how coding can be used for the reaching these objectives."
"We are very lucky to have good local partners working with us. We have worked in the innovation sector for many years and thanks to this prior work, our network of actors is good. I am delighted to see a strong Finnish company, Nokia, as a partner in this project. As a global leader in innovation and technology worldwide, they have the capacity to transform lives through shaping the future of technology. It is a privi-lege to have the opportunity to work together with them in putting this capacity into the use of the com- on good."
The Codebus Africa will stop in Dar es Salaam at Buni Innovation Hub at COSTECH on 28–29 March and n front of Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre on 30 March. In Iringa the Codebus Africa will be on 3–4 April at KiOTA Hub, at University of Iringa.
The CodeBus Africa tour will be documented on the project website www.codebusafrica.com, as well as on social media on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter between February and May 2017.
For more information, please contact: Mr. Simo-Pekka Parviainen, First Secretary, Embassy of Finland: simo-pekka.parviainen @ formin.fi
CodeBus Africa is coordinated by Aalto Global Impact, which promotes Aalto University’s societal impact lobally through educa-tion, research and innovation. The project's organising partners are the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Nokia, Supercell, Mehackit and over 15 African technology hubs, educational institutions and organisations.
