From Udacity to edX, there are several platforms dedicated to providing access to online education that are now growing rapidly in Africa. The next decade will be one of explosive growth for African online education platforms. What are the influential African online education platforms in the continent?
With the internet, mobile phones, and other technologies becoming more widespread, there has been a huge growth in education and learning opportunities. The latest development in online education is Africa’s rise as an educational hotspot.
Online education is on the rise in Africa following internet provision through mobile. It’s no wonder why. There’s so much at stake. A continent with more than 1.2 billion people, but only 260 million students, has a large pool of potential students looking for quality education. To stay competitive, educational institutions need to meet student demand and improve retention rates. The best way to do this is to provide quality and affordable education.
A quick look at some of the best educational platforms on the continent will show the demand and the potential. With an increase in internet connectivity, several new companies are emerging. From innovative platforms to social media influencers, these online education platforms are making the internet more accessible to students across the continent. Here are 8 African online education platforms to watch.
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8 African Online Education Platforms to Watch Beyond 2022
1. African Virtual University
African Virtual University (AVU) is Africa’s first pan-African online institution. Launched in 1997, AVU is committed to providing students and scholars with affordable, accessible, and relevant quality education and research in an environment that encourages critical thinking and promotes innovation.
AVU was founded by a small group of passionate educators, who saw a need for more flexible educational offerings. They wanted to offer a wider selection of quality online courses and to enable students to choose from a variety of flexible delivery options – not just traditional onsite delivery.
The university offers courses on a range of subjects to both domestic and international students. Today, it offers distance learning courses across a broad spectrum of disciplines to more than 43,000 students in over 30 African countries.
The university has degree programs in STEM programs.
2. Eneza Education
Eneza Education is a Kenyan-based platform that aims to connect learners across Africa through learning modules, video tutorials, live classes, and interactive courses. In addition to providing its users with free learning tools, Eneza is trying to provide education solutions for the rural and semi-rural communities in Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania. According to the Eneza Education website, the company currently serves millions across the region.
Eneza allows students to access all their resources through mobile devices. Students also can create a library of their resources that others can access. They can create quizzes, exams, assignments, and more, which can be shared with other students around the world.
3. Kenyetta Digital School of Learning
Founded in 2014, Kenyetta is a leading online learning platform serving learners across the African continent. They have developed a content strategy designed to enhance the digital literacy of young people.
KDSL offers a wide range of free online courses on topics including leadership, financial literacy, career preparation, and more. We also offer tailored training programs and bespoke online development courses. The platform combines online teaching tools, technology, and innovative teaching methodologies to ensure that learners are engaged, motivated, and fully prepared to succeed.
The Digital School has centers in various parts of Kenya including Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Kakamega, Kericho, Nyeri, Embu, Garissa, and Marsabit.
4. Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology MEST
The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) provides training, investment, and mentoring for the next generation of tech entrepreneurs who will create market tools for the integration of Africa into the global economy. The program teaches entrepreneurs how to build tech businesses.
There are computer programming, software development, product management, finance, marketing, sales, and leadership courses.
5. Moringa School
The Moringa School is one of the top coding school in Africa. It is a full-time coding school. The company selects 12 students who are interested in a tech-related degree and will provide them with a four-month intensive boot camp where they will learn the skills needed to become the next generation of techies.
The purpose of the program is to teach students different programming languages so that they can improve their technical skills. In addition to academic excellence, presentation skills and business basics are additional modules to ensure that the learners are well-prepared upon graduation from school.
6. University of Africa
This is an online university founded in 2012 that offers free online courses on entrepreneurship. Its vision is to educate more people on the opportunities offered in business and entrepreneurship, especially among Africans. The main objective of this online platform is to offer free online courses to students and other learners who are interested in business and entrepreneurship.
The University of Africa offers free online courses, certificates, diplomas, Degree, and Ph.D. degrees. Students can choose from a wide range of degree programs including the Bachelor of Business Management (BBM) and Bachelor of business, computing, education, mass communication, psychology, and LLM Laws.
It also offers an annual free internship program called the Summer Internship Programme. The university offers a scholarship program as well. It has more than 2000 students from Zambia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, South Africa, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
7. Unicaf University
Unicaf University is dedicated to helping learners from all over the world develop their skills through education. Through the use of technology, Unicaf University is revolutionizing the way people access higher education in Africa. Their platform provides students with flexible learning options, including the ability to study anywhere, anytime, on any device, and at any pace.
Unicaf University has been created to help students overcome the challenges of a lack of academic resources, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where 80% of people cannot afford secondary school. According to its founder, Unicaf University will focus on three key areas: teaching and learning, research and development, and innovation.
Partnering with South Wales, Marymount California University, the University of Nicosia, and Unicaf University, it gives Undergraduate and postgraduate programs both offline and online.
In Africa, the university has campuses and learning centers in Malawi, Nigeria, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Mauritius, Zambia, and Ghana.
8. Wits Plus
Wits+ is an innovative and innovative e-learning platform that provides a convenient and cost-effective solution for learners in South Africa. The platform is part of the Wits university of south Africa.
It aims to help learners who are looking to gain the right skills and qualifications to make their dreams come true. To achieve this goal, Wits+ has made its learner’s experience a hassle-free one by making the learning process simple and easy to understand.
With Wits+, learners are not required to spend hours attending lectures. Rather, they are given access to a collection of pre-recorded videos and other digital content that can be watched at any time. On a part-time basis, Wits Plus only offers programs for a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Final Thoughts on African Online Education Platforms
In conclusion, when you’re looking at a list of online education platforms, the first thing you need to do is figure out whether your target audience is likely to use them. That’s because even if you’re selling the same product as someone else if you don’t offer it to a different audience, it won’t do much good for you.
Many online education platforms are geared toward Africans, but few are specifically designed for African students. You need to find out which of these are popular with your target audience, and determine which ones will be best suited to your business. Once you’ve found a few that look interesting, do a bit of research on each one to see if they have any potential problems that you need to consider before signing up.
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