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LAGOS, Nigeria (Achieve3000, December 28, 2016). Inside an
ordinary-looking building in Lagos, Nigeria, a revolution of sorts is
taking place. It's where a company called Andela selects students to
become software developers. It pays them as they learn the skills
they need to work for top tech firms.
It's a unique, win-win partnership. Tech companies such as IBM,
Microsoft, and Google in the U.S., Europe, and Africa pay Andela to
provide them with great developers, or programmers. The
arrangement benefits companies in countries like the U.S. There, a
shortage of computer programmers has created a need to hire them
from other countries. It also helps the programmers from Africa. In Photo credit and all related images:
many parts of the continent, there is a lack of technology education. Chris Stein for VOA
This means that many talented young people do not have the Andela is a company that trains
opportunity to learn the skills needed to become programmers. students in Nigeria and Kenya to
become computer programmers for
To find the needed talent, startup Andela has created a student companies like IBM, Microsoft, and
program. It starts training new developers in the program every Google.
three months. The program is highly selective. Usually, 3,000 to
5,000 students ask to enter the program. Only about 12 are chosen. Students must prove they are self-starters.
They need to be problem-solvers. Those who are chosen get to attend a two-week programming "boot camp."
The best of them are then accepted into Andela's four-year program.
The student-developers spend their first six months learning programming skills. They then begin a two-week
on-the-job training at a tech company that partners with Andela. After completing the training, the students
work with the company for the rest of their apprenticeship. Andela's students work remotely, full time, for tech
companies around the world. They work from Andela's offices in Lagos and Nairobi, Kenya. Andela pays them
throughout the training.

To date, as of December 2016, Andela has accepted about 250 students into its program. It wants to train
thousands more.

The newly trained programmers love it. Developer Eugene Mutai is one. He says he appreciated the opportunity
to reach his goals through Andela. Before entering the program, Mutai, age 26, worked low-paying jobs. He
taught himself programming. He couldn't afford to go to school.

Andela's tech partners seem to be pleased with the program, as well. Andela's website includes comments from
company leaders who have worked with Andela apprentices. One company leader admitted that he was unsure
about the program before working with the programmers. But, he said, he found the young developers to be
all Andela promised they would be—problem-solvers who are making a difference.

Andela is not making a profit yet. But that's OK, according to company leader John Johnson. For now, Andela is
working on building a presence in the tech community.

The company won a huge vote of confidence in June 2016. Facebook leader Mark Zuckerberg and his wife,
Priscilla Chan invested $24 million in Andela.

"We live in a world where talent is [everywhere], but opportunity is not. Andela's mission is to close that gap,"
Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post regarding the investment. With Andela, he continued, "Companies get…
great developers, and developers in Africa get the opportunity to use their skills."

And now, Andela is ready to do even more. The company plans to use money from its investors to find more
students. It also hopes to locate more tech partners. It may open an office in a third African country.

Voice of America contributed to this story.

Dictionary

apprenticeship (noun) a kind of training during which a person learns a job from someone with skill and experience