Career skills training is constantly shifting. As a result, adaptation is no longer just a skill – it’s a survival strategy. A secret weapon for young people eager to blaze their own career trail is Ingazi (Passport to Earning Rwanda). This is a partnership between The Ministry of Youth and Arts, Rwanda Development Board (RDB) and UNICEF Rwanda. What truly sets Ingazi apart is not just its mission to serve as a one-stop shop for all the needs of young people transitioning from school to work but its purpose to offer resources to all youth in the country including those with disabilities, those not in school, and those who are not connected to the internet. In the end, the hope is that Ingazi contributes to advancing the national agenda towards a knowledge-based economy.
To ensure that we tailor Ingazi to the needs of the young people it aims to serve, we put the platform to the test. We committed to including young people in every stage of the process. So, for the first time, we placed the platform face-to-face with digital-savvy youth. We only made one request; be honest, we can take it! Consequently, the theme of the testing phase became “let’s hear your voice! Your input is invaluable as we build Ingazi, the upcoming digital learning and earning platform.”
Our journey took us to Gashora Girls High School, Maranyundo Girls School and the City of Kigali with Davis College students. We loaded the car with snacks, T-shirts, notebooks, banners, and we set off to hear the thoughts and dreams of tomorrow’s workforce.
The testing events were done in pairs per site. The first day was an introductory session and the second day was much more interactive with Q&As. The aim was to collect user experience feedback and verify whether the platform functioned as expected. The data collected would then enable the Ingazi team to address any technical malfunctions or content performance issues ahead of the platform launch. The testing phase was a crucial step in achieving Ingazi’s 2024 targets. These include;
300,000 young people should have received information about Ingazi and be involved in Ingazi activities
100,000 adolescents and young people should be registered on Ingazi
50,000 adolescents and young people should be certified on Ingazi
5,000 adolescents and young people should benefit from post-certificate opportunities
As you can see the targets are ambitious and why not?
Our first stop was in Bugesera where we visited Gashora Girls School and Maranyundo Girls School. As you can imagine, the girls did not disappoint! As we explored Ingazi’s features together, their enthusiasm to shape their own learning was infectious. What blew us away was the diversity of requests that flooded in. Some budding scientists were eager for courses that could complement their love for experiment such as artificial intelligence and cyber security. Others were leaning towards courses that bring out their artistic flair such as graphic design. This was emphasized by a Gashora student who noted that, “Ingazi should be a platform that makes learning interesting and fun”.
Kommentare