JA DEEP is an online-based interactive entrepreneurship curriculum, created specifically for young African learners. JA DEEP is the online version of the successful in-person Company Program and a part of the Futurepreneurship Initiative that our Foundation proudly have sponsored for several years in partnership with Junior Achievement Africa (JA Africa). By establishing a digital learning platform, it allows us to reach youth across the continent, whether inschool or out of school, in rural or urban areas, unemployed or in employment etc. We have the potential over time to engage over one million students per year, while cutting the cost of delivery to less than one dollar per student.
COUNTRIES
Our foundation is providing both financial and technical support for the implementation of the JA DEEP Program in Ivory Coast, Senegal, DRC, Gabon and Cameroon which aims to engage over 10,600 youths over four years. Thanks to our initiative and desire to enable all African youths to become economically self-reliant, our foundation is financing the development of a French version of the program to also support the youth of francophone countries. Additionally, we will also sponsor the impactful and popular yearly Regional Company of the Year Competition. Following Tomorrow Foundation initial request to cover francophone countries, Coca-Cola Foundation decided also to integrated th Program with this geographical scope including additional learning features and formats.
CONTENT
The program allows learners the opportunity to experience the risks and rewards of entrepreneurship by walking them through all steps of how to start and operate a business that fills a need or solves a problem in their communities. Learners put theory into practice from idea generation, product development, capitalization of the venture, marketing and sales strategies and financial reporting, while being supported with digital mentorship from a JA corporate volunteer. In addition to the entrepreneurship modules, the digital platform will also include training content on basic digital skills, including how to build an online identity and how to harness the power of the internet and social media in growing a business.
JA will pull from resources provided by JA’s program partners, such as Facebook’s BluePrint, IBM’s Digital Nation-Africa and Google’s Digital Skills for Africa initiative. The platform will also offer the option to transition to deeper learning in digital literacy by providing access to more advanced courses developed by these and other partners. Incentives will also be built into the program in order to encourage students to progress through the modules up to completion – e.g. the opportunity to win mentorship/apprenticeship sessions, scholarships/nominations to attend prestigious local and international schools and
universities etc.
IMPACT
By donating into our project JA DEEP, you areaiding further professional and personal development of thousands of passionate, young people in Sub-Saharan Africa. By teaching them about entrepreneurship we're giving them the keys to unlock their own future success story. Because of your support we will together make a positive impact by harnessing Africa's youth bulge which has the immense potential of translating into a dividend not just for the individual's life trajectory, but more so through their creation of enterprises that will both stimulate economic growth and provide job opportunities for some of the approximately 7 million African youth who each year graduate into years long unemployment.
THE DEEP PLATFORM
The entrepreneurship education platform will be built upon an existing open source, customizable Learning Management System and is expected to have the following features:
1. Accessibility – Accessible via web and a mobile application, with the option for offline access.
2. African look and feel – The platform and content uses names, currencies, visuals and references that are relevant and familiar to African youth.
3. Language - Available in English and French, and later on in Portuguese and local African languages like Swahili, Zulu, Twi, etc.
4. Experiential – A homework and workspace component allows students a chance to have hands-on practice with the concepts they are learning. Students also have to establish a business and track business progress and performance on the platform.
5. Interactive – The platform includes various interactive resources including game features, videos, audio, puzzles, popups, chat functions etc. to make the learning process fun and engaging. Testimonials, tips and tutorials, sourced from alumni and volunteers, will also be embedded.
6. Modular – Content is presented in modules which can be completed within a one-hour block.
7. Glossary of Terms – Students have access to a quick reference glossary defining key business, financial and economic terms and concepts.
8. Quiz – After each module, students complete a short quiz to test their understanding of the content.
9. Self-Assessment – Pre- and post-selfassessment of competences acquired, capturing students’ sense of initiative and entrepreneurship with a particular focus on creativity, teamwork, perseverance, resourcefulness, self-confidence, taking initiative and responsibility.
10. Final Test and Micro-credential – Students have the option to complete an international qualification, the Entrepreneurship Skills Pass, which certifies that a candidate is highly enterprising and uniquely qualified to start a business or to be successfully employed.