Bridging the Digital Divide: How Oracle Academy is Transforming Technology Education in Africa

Oracle Academy Tech Chat

In this episode host Bekere Amassoma speaks with Annick Sakho, Director, Government Affairs Africa about today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape and how access to technology education is a crucial factor in driving economic growth, innovation, and job creation.

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Episode Transcript:

00:00:00:00 - 00:00:35:11

Unknown

Welcome to the Oracle Academy Tech Chat. This podcast provides educators and students in-depth discussions with thought leaders around computer science, cloud technologies, and software design to help students on their journey to becoming industry ready technology leaders of the future. Let's get started. Welcome to Oracle Academy Tech Start, where we discuss how Oracle Academy prepares the next generation's workforce.

00:00:35:13 - 00:00:59:17

Unknown

I'm your host, Bekere Amassoma. In this episode, I am joined by Annick Sakho who is Director of Government Affairs Africa in Oracle. So Annick to start off. Thank you for joining us. And can you share a bit about your journey into technology, how you got into Oracle and your current role as Director of Government Affairs for Africa?

00:00:59:22 - 00:01:24:01

Unknown

A big hello to you, Bekere, and thank you for inviting me today. It's a real pleasure to be here with you to discuss Oracle Academy in this, podcast. Thank you for the opportunity. So I am currently the Oracle Government affairs in charge of Africa, and I am based out of Abidjan in Cote d'Ivoire, in the Oracle Cote d'Ivoire office.

00:01:24:03 - 00:02:05:17

Unknown

So, you asking me about how I got into Oracle? Well, I started my career as a research and development engineer in a telecommunication company in Switzerland because I hold a telecommunication engineering degree. And later on, I joined Cote d’lvoire and joined IBM at the time when companies were starting to implement remote access to their mainframes and other computers. So, IT companies were actually in need of people who understood telecommunication to configure all these controllers and protocol, etcetera, to establish, stable, secure, remote connection.

00:02:05:19 - 00:02:42:20

Unknown

And this is how I got into technology, because remember at those time, originally remote access was, about dialing up on the phone and having a modem to allow employees to connect to an office, network of telephone networks. And, since I joined technology using my telco skills, I stayed there, and my journey started a very fulfilling one, I would say, where I held, initially a pre-sales role before transitioning into a sales role.

00:02:42:22 - 00:03:11:21

Unknown

I've been with Oracle almost 20 years now, and, New Year has been the same as the previous one because I was privileged to work with customers in different industries located in various regions across Africa, selling innovative solutions to support their business. And the most enriching part was the opportunity to work in a multicultural environment. To progress to a managerial role and then to lead virtual tips.

00:03:11:22 - 00:03:37:04

Unknown

So when I was leading the technology cloud sales team across sub-Saharan Africa a few years ago, I realized that a lot of governments were not familiar with cloud technologies, not even with Oracle solution portfolio. However, we knew that governments have a crucial role in supporting the regulatory environment and the adoption of these technologies in the local digital economy.

00:03:37:06 - 00:04:17:00

Unknown

And this is one this is, the reason why when the director, Government Affairs Africa position opened, I applied. This is what led me to, being today the government office director for Africa. In this capacity, I lead and coordinate Oracle's engagement with the African government officials and the various stakeholders like the NGO, the trade union, the industry associations, etc. and working closely, on the other hand, with Oracle Senior Management in Africa and Oracle Global Business Units.

00:04:17:02 - 00:04:51:13

Unknown

And part of my responsibilities include educating government officials about our company, about our industry and more generally, about technology. Wow Annick that's quite interesting and thank you for sharing. Now how would you describe the current state of the digital divide in Africa's education sector? Interesting question. Africa's digital transformation journey is marked by significant challenges that require, strategic intervention to overcome.

00:04:51:15 - 00:05:29:03

Unknown

And one of the critical areas that needs attention to ensure that the continent can fully leverage digital opportunity. Revolves around digital skills. With 70% of Africa's population under 30. There is a pressing need to reform education systems and to align with our industry needs. And, traditional education, from what I see it often does not equip young people with a skills demanding by the tech industry because we have not been able to, revovle in terms of curriculum.

00:05:29:05 - 00:06:02:19

Unknown

And this leads to a mismatch between education and employment opportunities. So the digital divide in Africa's education sector remains a significant challenge, particularly at the university and high school levels, because this is a last stage before going into the workforce and before applying for jobs. While, digital transformation is accelerating globally. Many African students still face barriers to accessing quality tech education for various reason.

00:06:02:21 - 00:06:35:23

Unknown

Inadequate infrastructure, limited internet connectivity, lack of appropriate training, and the lack of access to quality tech education and relevant training program impede the development of digital competency among the students. And additionally, we can also see that we have disparities between urban and rural areas where limited access to technology into the spread of digital and computing skills and, remote reach.

00:06:35:23 - 00:07:08:01

Unknown

This gap limits the ability of African student to compete in an increasingly technology driven job market. The World Economic Forum had just released their report on jobs, The Future of Jobs 2025, and it really showed that the jobs will transform, and we need to be equipped to have a chance to thrive in this new environment. Companies today, they are not hiring young people based on the traditional degrees alone.

00:07:08:03 - 00:07:48:04

Unknown

They hire them based on skills. This means that, you know, so should certification programs. The, certificate that they can earn will demonstrate how skilled they are. And they have now more values than having a bachelor's or a master's degrees in many cases. And knowing that, Africa has a young population, we need to have a reform of our education system to adequately equip young people with the skills needed for the digital age.

00:07:48:04 - 00:08:26:11

Unknown

And this is, concern more and more, countries, being conscious about and are working towards changing things. Well, I will say that we need to democratize education and the access to digital education. And for that, we need to focus now on upskilling or reskilling our youth to bridge the digital skills gap, ensuring that our young population is prepared to participate in and to drive the digital economy.

00:08:26:13 - 00:08:56:00

Unknown

Addressing this skill gap is essential for the continent's digital future. So as a conclusion, I would say that, we need to foster digital literacy and practical tech skills. Otherwise, the next generation of African professional will not be in a position to compete in a global environment, and they need to be empowered to drive economic growth and innovation across our continent.

00:08:56:06 - 00:09:38:18

Unknown

This is very important. Thank you very much Annick. Well said. Now to the next question. How do you see Oracle Academy's overarching mission in Africa, and how does it align with global efforts in tech education? I had the opportunity to engage with Oracle Academy in, different African countries, and I could see the impact. Oracle Academy's mission in Africa is to democratize access to technology education by providing free, high quality computing resources, curricula and training both to the students and the educators.

00:09:38:20 - 00:10:18:10

Unknown

Oracle Academy helps to bridge the digital divide because it helps equipping student and educator was essential digital skills, and by doing so, it aims to equip young Africans with the digital skills needed for the modern workforce, particularly in high demand fields such as software development, artificial intelligence, cloud computing. This mission aligns closely with global efforts in tech education, which focus on closing the digital skills gap, promoting Stem learning, and fostering innovation driven economy.

00:10:18:12 - 00:11:04:17

Unknown

And when we talk about Stem learning, I would like to also stress the opportunity it gives to women and young female students to have access to technical, education, because I'm a big fan of promoting Stem for the young girls for them to, really get interest into this, subject. So, in Africa where, internet penetration and digital infrastructure are still developing, Oracle Academy plays a crucial role in bridging the digital divide that were mentioned earlier by collaborating with universities, high schools, government institutes.

00:11:04:19 - 00:11:34:18

Unknown

It supports curriculum enhancement, teacher training and practical learning opportunities because we have we are giving access to students and teachers to a hub where they can find all the resources to be really educated and trained to the latest technology. And these ensure that Africa's youth is not left behind in the global digital economy. So this is a, very important role.

00:11:34:20 - 00:12:06:23

Unknown

And I will say that Oracle's academy efforts in Africa are critical, a critical component of a broader global movement towards inclusive and equitable tech education, fostering local talent and driving economic growth, and an increase in digital world.

00:12:07:01 - 00:12:40:17

Unknown

So, like I said, I am currently, director for Government Affairs in Africa. And through the conversations we're having with government that are really trying to, put in place and implement a digital transformation strategy, we realize that education and training is key into this effort. Government collaboration plays a pivotal role in expanding the reach and effectiveness of Oracle Academy across diverse African communities.

00:12:40:19 - 00:13:20:23

Unknown

While Oracle Academy provide the curricula, the training, the technology resources, government will act as a facilitator, an enabler, so that they help to integrate digital education into the national education system. This partnership is essential for creating sustainable, large scale impact. I can give the example where I have participated, in discussion between Oracle Academy and, some African governments in where we have close partnerships.

00:13:21:00 - 00:13:50:23

Unknown

Through ministries of national education or ministries of higher education, or even government institutes that help Oracle Academy engage with a lot of public universities and higher education institute and on board them as a member. This is what I mean by large, large scale impact to be able to reach a larger number of public, education, institutions.

00:13:51:00 - 00:14:34:12

Unknown

And I can say that governments can endorse and integrate Oracle Academy’s program into national high school and university curriculum, ensuring that students gain relevant computer coding data science skills as part of formal education. Because this is what we were saying earlier, because they are not well trained and they don't have a modern curricula, sometimes they are left behind,they are not exposed to, technology and education industries also play a key role in aligning this program with national development goals, ensuring they meet industry and market needs.

00:14:34:14 - 00:15:21:19

Unknown

We can see that we have large, program being put in place by, more and more government, long term strategy, five year vision, etc. you'll see that, center of those strategy because they are also the one on which the government, put the effort in terms of enforcing and empowering the digital economy. So, because we have, insufficient number of teachers proficient in digital tools and methodologies, it's obstructed the effective adoption of technology in the education sector.

00:15:21:21 - 00:16:07:14

Unknown

So with institution like Oracle Academy, we can provide professional development to educators. And government can also help by scaling this effort and integrating teacher training program with the international education policies. This is an example of how government can collaborate with us. And of course, they can also encourage, digital skills certifications, both for the teachers to ensure that they are well trained and well equipped to deliver the training and also to the student to push them into the next level of, learning, I would say.

00:16:07:16 - 00:16:42:20

Unknown

So I would say that government collaboration magnify the impact that we can have with Oracle Academy by ensuring that we have a systemic and long-term change in Africa's education sector, and by working together Oracle Academy and government, the African government, we can empower more students. By reduce the, the, the digital divide, and we can build a real tech savvy workforce capable of driving innovation and economic growth in the continent.

00:16:42:22 - 00:17:38:04

Unknown

Thank you Annick, I like what you really said about, how government collaboration can actually amplify the impact of Oracle Academy. Thank you very much, Annick. Now, I would like to ask if you could share one key message for governments and other development partners about collaborating with Oracle Academy. What would it be? I will say that investing in digital education through partnerships with Oracle Academy, it's an investment in Africa's future workforce and economic growth because by integrating Oracle Academy's world class computing curricula into national education systems, government and development partners, by the way, can equip millions of students with the digital skills necessary for the jobs of tomorrow through strategic collaboration and enhancing infrastructure training,

00:17:38:04 - 00:18:07:10

Unknown

educators expanded access to technology. African can bridge the digital divide, and we can. There thus foster innovation and drive inclusive economic development. Now's the time to act and skill digital education to ensure that no student is left behind in the global tech revolution. Because we are living in a global world nowadays. Thank you. Thank you very much, Annick.

00:18:07:12 - 00:18:37:09

Unknown

Now, as part of our final question, I would like you to touch on African youth's in Tech. What advice would you give to us African youths aspiring to build careers in tech? Well, everybody is about creating a startup, right? They'll want to create a startup. But now we need to understand what the use of those starts up. There are so many opportunities nowadays, but young people must be ready for that.

00:18:37:11 - 00:19:33:00

Unknown

They need to learn and master the fundamentals with a strong foundation in key tech skills like coding like that to science, like cloud computing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence. And this is where taking advantage of free learning platforms like Oracle Academy, for example, makes a difference. They should leverage online learning and certifications. We spoke about certifications and if the ongoing certification program from leading tech companies like Oracle, it is important as an achievement for them because it's very valuable when they'll be on the job market, because it will prove to recruiters and company that they have a competitive edge.

00:19:33:02 - 00:20:02:13

Unknown

They have a competitive edge in the job market and the completion of certificates. We'll talk about cloud skills, for example. It's called high on their resume. And it will give them the foundation to develop a career in tech. And they should also not forget to embrace continuous learning. The tech industry evolves very, very rapidly, so staying updated is crucial.

00:20:02:15 - 00:20:38:06

Unknown

Lastly, they should be resilient and think big, I was talking about startup, but we have challenges. It has challenges like limited internet access, lack of resources. But we need to be perseverant and creative have out of the box thinking it will set them apart. And they should not aim at just being a tech shooter, but they should also try to be a tech innovator and develop solution that solves real problem in their community.

00:20:38:07 - 00:21:04:15

Unknown

Now this is very and I wish this wouldn't end. And your point about, Africa is not not just being, users of this tech, but, you know, innovators of this tech is very key. And I must say that this has been a very insightful conversation. And on say big thank you to you Annick for sharing your experience with also now Oracle Academy is transforming technology education in Africa.

00:21:04:16 - 00:21:36:22

Unknown

And I dare to say that you rock. And to our listeners I would say visit our website academy.oracle.com to learn more about Oracle Academy's learning resources. Subscribe to our podcast. Share with your friends. You can also follow our Academy on X, Instagram and Facebook. Listen to us next week and also visit our website. And please drop or write a review for us or rate us on our website.

00:21:36:22 - 00:21:56:12

Unknown

And please also follow our social media pages. Thank you very much and do enjoy the rest of your day everyone. That wraps up this episode. Thanks for listening and stay tuned for the next Oracle Academy Tech Chat podcast.