February 8 2018

Helping Children on Their Path to Independence

The “Digital Learning for a Digital Generation” program is giving vulnerable African youth the skills they need to compete in the modern workforce.

In Sub-Saharan and Central Africa, 15% of youth cannot find work and in Northern Africa, the rate exceeds 30%.

Not only are African youth facing a high unemployment rate, but they are also lacking the skills to be competitive in the job market. In particular, there is a desperate need for digital skills development.

In response to this need, SOS Children’s Villages has developed a unique Information and Communication Technology education program. The new “Digital Learning for a Digital Generation” (DLDG) program focuses on giving vulnerable youth the skills they need to compete in the modern workplace by expanding their exposure to new technologies and digital learning resources.
 

Young adults expand their computer skills to increase their employability.


The thousands of children, youth and young adults currently enrolled in the DLDG project (more than half of whom are girls and women) are developing their computer skills in order to become more marketable and successfully integrate into the modern work force.

The United Nations recently recognized this leading-edge program for its effectiveness and innovation.
 

More than half of the students enrolled in the DLDG program are girls and women.


Thanks to a $100,000 grant, SOS will be able to reach an additional 38,000 people. These new programs will be tailored to the unique local needs in Morocco, Egypt, Benin and Cote d’Ivoire. These successes will also be replicated in smaller labs created for the communities where SOS Family-Strengthening Programs already operate.