Bajan and Kenyan agencies team up for online job training

Barbados and Kenya have announced a groundbreaking partnership to use technology to provide distance learning for Kenyan job-seekers.

Barbados’ National Transformation Initiative (NTI) has joined forces with Kenya’s Apprentice Job Work Africa (AJW Africa) to impart training to over 100 Kenyans in key developmental areas.

In a pilot project that the two agencies have hailed as an innovative and historic collaboration, NTI extended its exclusive e-learning platform beyond Barbadian borders.

Previously reserved for Barbadian citizens, this platform not only offers home-grown courses but also a multitude of online courses through its partnership with the global online course provider, Coursera.

These 100-plus Kenyan students will be delving into courses spanning Information and Communication Technology, Healthcare, and Hospitality, joining over 38,000 Barbadians already benefiting from NTI’s course offerings on its website – nti.org.bb – which are all free of charge.

The partnership was initiated by Barbados’ High Commissioner to Kenya, William Alexander McDonald, who facilitated the meeting between NTI and AJW in May. The meeting led to a Memorandum of Understanding between NTI and AJW that was signed on June 29th.

On August 29th, NTI and AJW Africa hosted an opening launch and orientation session for the new students. High Commissioner McDonald, AJW Africa’s chairman Kefar Tande, CEO Jane Mwangi, and Programme Director Jonathon Maina, were joined virtually by NTI Director Dr. Allyson Leacock, and members of her team: Adrian Green, NTI Artivist, Fabian Branch of TAPP New Media, an Randy Clarke, NTI eLearning Support. The NTI team led the introduction and orientation to e-learning and the online platform.

AJW’s Mwangi said: “Today, we celebrate not only the commencement of a skills development programme but the ignition of potential that lies within each participant and within the vision of Apprentice Job Work Africa”. In her welcome to the partnership with NTI, she emphasized the “profound power of education, collaboration, and shared aspirations”.

Dr. Leacock described the “historic” collaboration as a “journey of partnership, knowledge, and empowerment that spans continents and bridges cultures”. She noted that “when different entities unite with a common goal, the possibilities are limitless”.

Tande said the project would help Kenyan youth bridge the gap between education and employment, providing a platform where aspirations meet action, and dreams are cultivated into tangible achievements.
(PR)