On Thursday 8 September 2022, the Minister of Digital Affairs and Digitalisation, Ms Aurelie ADAM SOULE ZOUMAROU, chaired the certificate ceremony for the graduates of the first cohort of the LeARN programme.
After intensive months of learning web/mobile development and of practical internships, the graduates of the first cohort of the LeARN programme received their certificates on Thursday 8 September 2022. Following an English refresher course, the various modules they took enabled them to master front-end development (Web & Go specialisation) or back-end development (Code & Go specialisation). Now able to develop mobile applications or web platforms, the graduates, through their spokesperson, said they were ready to put their skills at the service of the digital transformation of Beninese companies and institutions.
After thanking the project's various partners and stakeholders, Minister Aurelie ADAM SOULE ZOUMAROU congratulated the recipients on their commitment. “You will be the ambassadors for the next cohorts, because the trust placed in the programme will depend on what you are able to demonstrate in companies. My request to you is to ensure that trust in this programme remains, endures and grows,” she stressed. Invited to the event, the Director General of Smart Africa, Mr Laciné KONE, also offered words of encouragement to the graduates.
Initiated by the Government of the Republic of Benin and implemented by the Ministry of Digital Affairs and Digitalisation, the LeARN programme aims to offer young Beninese people, recruited throughout the national territory, digital training scholarships every year. Each year it welcomes motivated young people aged 18 to 35 who are passionate about digital technology. For the first cohort, fifty (50) young Beninese people from across the national territory were selected (out of more than 18,000 applications received), following a transparent and rigorous selection process, to benefit from this programme, which prepares them for careers as web or mobile application developers.