News | Education | 28. October 2020
Siemens Stiftung provides online vocational orientation courses with the atingi e-learning platform
atingi – an e-learning platform for Africa
atingi is the new digital learning platform from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It provides users with courses and learning content tailored to each person’s economic and cultural circumstances. atingi was developed by a team of education and digital experts within the framework of the global “Africa Cloud” project at the German development agency GIZ in close cooperation with Smart Africa, the African Union’s digital initiative. As an active partner in the project, Siemens Stiftung’s contribution focused on professional orientation innovatively linked to STEM content.
“The development of online professional orientation courses for young people is a perfect collaboration between GIZ and Siemens Stiftung. With public learning resources turned into freely-accessible online courses, atingi’s learning opportunities now include excellent vocational education content.” Volker Lichtenthäler, senior project manager of digital learning, atingi.
Removing hurdles on the path to a bright professional future
Siemens Stiftung is working with the atingi e-learning platform to enable access to high-quality digital learning materials free of charge. The typical user is a young person approaching the end of their secondary education in Africa. These young people are often confronted with unique educational challenges: in many areas, public, private, and civic education opportunities are not widely available. With digital learning through atingi, young people gain the opportunity to explore their potential, acquire new skills, and improve their prospects on the local job market. Web-based training (WBT) provided by Siemens Stiftung on the platform innovatively links professional orientation and STEM knowledge. Training modules include testimonials from role models across the continent, who share insights into their working lives. Not only does this provide inspiration for young people, but it also showcases the continent’s diversity and inventiveness. This leads to a reputational boost for occupational profiles such as electricians or farmers and demonstrates the potential of these vocations.
The newest WBT – agripreneur
In addition to the existing occupational profile WBT about electricians, the second WBT focuses on agripreneurs, a field that combines agriculture with entrepreneurship and showcases the wide range of opportunities and innovations in the agricultural sector. Isaac Sesi from Sesi Technologies, recipient of a Siemens Stiftung empowering people. Award in 2019, is one of the agripreneurs who shares knowledge and experience in the WBT. Isaac developed an affordable and effective moisture measuring device for grain called the GrainMate. Examples like these are meant to inspire young people in Africa to pursue careers in agriculture, a sector that forms the economic backbone of many African countries.
“If you can make improvements in agriculture, you are going to impact a lot of lives, and you are going to significantly boost the income of the country.” Isaac Sesi, CEO of Sesi Technologies.
Professional orientation and STEM – an excellent match
Users can easily access information about occupational profiles while also acquiring STEM knowledge – this creates a clear understanding of the importance and future potential of STEM subjects. Continuing education seminars for educators in Ghana and Nigeria and a special digital media package on the foundation’s Media Portal are among Siemens Stiftung’s efforts to underscore the link between professional development and STEM. Furthermore, by expanding Experimento to include professional orientation, we provide tools for educators to show their students the connection between STEM and their future occupations.