Canadian govt throws weight behind eLearning Africa 2007

By Emeka Aginam,

Canadian participation in the second annual eLearning Africa (eLA) conference is showing a dramatic increase as an unprecedented number of Canadian delegates prepare to head to Nairobi, Kenya for eLA 2007 in late May.

As Lucien Bradet, president of the Canadian Council on Africa and organizers of the Canadian contingent to eLA, noted “we are very pleased that the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) recently approved a substantial contribution to CC Africa to support this important upcoming event.

The CIDA contribution of $163,773 CDN will provide funding for bursaries, travel and lodgings, enabling up to as many as 75 African partners and delegates to attend the conference who otherwise would not be able to do so.

Additionally, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Ottawa has plans to send as many as 15 of its field staff and partners involved in information and telecommunications for development projects in Africa.”  "We very much appreciate the strong commitment of CIDA and our other Canadian partners.  It is one of our main concerns to support African professionals within this sector who are working at grassroots level and whose work makes a difference to their communities.
Enabling them to take part in the eLearning Africa conference will greatly benefit them in their work. The CIDA donation helps us to support this process", comments Rebecca Stromeyer, managing director of ICWE, who organises the conference in cooperation with Hoffmann & Reif. 

eLearning Africa 2007 will see twenty Canadian speakers, including two keynotes, speak on a wide range of topics related to ICT and education issues in Africa. In addition, Canadians will facilitate workshops, host demonstrations and participate in various panel discussions over the three-day event.

Seven Canadian organizations will also be exhibiting at eLearning Africa. Toon Boom, the Consortium for International Development in Education, LearnNB, Anyway Solutions and TTG Systems will have booths at the Canadian Pavilion.

Representatives from an additional ten companies, as well as Montreal International, will be attending eLearning Africa and representing their organizations’ products and services within the booths at the Canadian stand. Additionally, SMART Technologies Inc. of Calgary and the Canadian-based Commonwealth of Learning will be exhibiting and participating in the event.

Bradet concluded “this type of collaboration and the positive contribution of CIDA to this year’s event is really what we are all about.
It engages both our Canadian membership and international networks, tapping into existing African trade relations and drawing upon the organizational capacity of the Council and staff.
On a fundamental level, it speaks to Canada’s ongoing commitment to Africa and, for us, explicitly introduces eLearning as an important and growing element in Canada’s African trade portfolio.”

The Canadian Council on Africa (CCAfrica) is a member-driven, non-profit organization serving private and public sector organizations with business interests in Africa. CCAfrica is dedicated to promoting trade and investment between the Canadian and African business communities, with a focus on capacity building.