The demand for software development talent has been on the rise in all parts of the world and now the attention has turned to African countries. The last 15 years have seen an influx of programs into Africa and Uganda has benefited from a number of them.
Andela was notably the first entrant in the African market launching in 2015, first in Nigeria, now in 5 countries on the continent. In Uganda, Andela has existed since May 2017.
In April 2019, Lambda School, a San Francisco-based coding boot camp that offers a 9-month training program for developers, launched its first Africa cohort in partnership with fintech startup Paystack. Lambda School teaches students entirely online without them having to pay any upfront cost.
Lambda School announced that it is opening applications to students from Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa. They also announced partnerships with Paystack, BuyCoins, Cowrywise, CredPal, PiggyVest, Thrive Agric, VertoFX, and Wallets Africa.
Lambda promises a 9 months’ immersive full stack software development training program with live interactive online classes, at no upfront cost.
Lambda Schools stands out for 2 main reasons; it is completely online-based, meaning all of its students take their classes online. Secondly, is the use of the payment arrangement in a system called Income Share Agreement (ISA), where they are required to pay 17% of the salary they earn from a job that pays at least $50,000 annually for two years.
It is worth going through Lamba School if one is sure that they taking a programming career and truly passionate about coding. Lambda School also comes in handy if one is overwhelmed by the variety of options and programs which may lead to difficulty in making an informed choice.
Alternatives
Unlike Andela that trains its talents through a four-year fellowship and later integrates them into its clients’ teams across the world, Lambda Schools does not burden with the obligation of hiring out its talent to any company.
Another is Microsoft’s Africa Development Centre that was launched in Lagos and Nairobi in the beginning of June 2019. Microsoft plans to hire 100 developers by the end of the year and a total of 500 in 5 years.
Refactory, a recently launched initiative by Laboremus and Clarke International University in Kampala is focusing on technological programs tailored to make tech talents job-ready.
Written by Sam Agona and Jeddy G. Genrwot.
