Originally sourced from Third Sector.
Vollie and Youth Agenda are using technology to connect and educate Kenyan youth as the digital age sweeps through the sector
An Australian mentoring program is using technology to strengthen their community outreach on the other side of the globe.
Online marketplace Vollie and Youth Agenda have partnered to connect young people in Kenya to Australian professionals with their smartphones in a move to support young Kenyans to get into the workforce.
Youth Agenda’s CEO, Susan Mwongera, said she is frequently approached by young people who are seeking support but were previously unable to access it.
“Most young adults in Kenya possess a smartphone, so we posed the question, what if these devices could be used to connect with successful professionals in Australia?”
The collaboration will see Vollie connect Australian professionals with a specific skillset to those requested by Kenyan youth to give them the best chance at a career. Once connected, the two parties will skype and email throughout the mentoring program.
Vollie, an online volunteering platform that provides skilled individuals with an opportunity to volunteer remotely, has utilised existing technologies to connect youths in Kenya.
Vollie CEO, Matthew Boyd, said: “Vollie already has the technology in place and networks within Australia to make this collaboration truly successful. The possibilities are life-changing and that’s exactly what our two organisations strive to achieve.”
The project was established during conversations between the two organisations at Nexus Australia 2018 and has since resulted in a 2018 NAB Nexus Collaborator Award.
The technology-based project will commence with an initial group of 100 Nairobi based students, split equally between male and female Kenyan youth, and at least five per cent of the group will include individuals living with some form of disability.
“We hope to connect, inspire and transform lives through this ground breaking collaboration, with the mentoring component to encourage entrepreneurial thinking and execution, while developing networks, growing ideas and inspiring one another,” Boyd said.
