Learn, code, live!
80 million! No, we are not talking about another startup fundraising… But sadly about the number of forcibly displaced people in the world, according to the the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR) annual Global Trends report that has been published today. It begs the question, in what world are we living in? Recent events have shown that racism around minorities still persists in our societies. It must be combated, and it must be put to an end. As refugees are part of these minorities, let’s focus today on a cause that we, at daphni, wish to help change and progress thanks to technology, a sector that we support.
When we keep saying that we build da city for good, we also mean building a better world in thinking about that cause we care about. Indeed, we truly believed that displaced populations and communities have the right and freedom to be part of the greater society. Thus, having access to technology that enables them to build a better future for themselves and their families.
Lots of great and inspiring initiatives from the Tech ecosystem have emerged and ready to help refugees change their lives and thanks to all the active players that are working hard towards building a better future for them! For instance, we think about Techfugees launched by the great Josephine Goube and aiming at providing a space for dialogue between technology companies and refugees. Technology may hold some of the answers.
As we have shared with you in our last newsletters some articles about an initiative that we have been supporting since last year named: CHAMS. This non-profit startup, created by Sofiane Ammar, has the mission to build and operate coding schools and entrepreneurship bootcamps for refugees. Today, Chams is also involved in teaching resilience through entrepreneurship to help students navigate in uncertain situations. During the covid-19 lockdown, the students in Jordan developed the ARCH app, which made it possible to collect and distribute a hundred computers to the most disadvantaged in France who were then unable to work from home during the confinement.
Moreover, Chams aims at connecting refugees with European startups for a remote internship after the 6 months coding training. Indeed, this will allow the students to integrate the market as well as giving startups the opportunity to be engage in a tech diversity and social act.
Additionally, the prospects are multiple-fold: two 6-month bootcamp schools in Kenya with the Norwegian Refugee Council — Memorundum Of Understanding signed — for 50 students, one 6-month blended bootcamp school in Abu Dhabi in discussion with the local UNHCR and Na’amal for 30 students, a contract signed with Ecole 42 for a campus in Amman, the preparation of a crowdfunding campaign to finance part of the programs, discussions with the GitHub company — the largest community of computer developers in the world — are underway…
Sofiane Ammar said “We’re committed to mixing people from underserved local communities and refugees in our training programs, to foster a creative community of bold young men and women who want to be a force for positive change in their communities.” So, do not hesitate to contact him if your want to help Chams in its mission!
With Love,
