Rwanda: Millicom Launches Mobile Education Service in Africa
By Staff Writer
EduMe English service was launched on Wednesday July 9 in Kigali Rwanda by Millicom (MIC), the international telecommunications and Media Company.
EduMe English service is a low-cost mobile English language learning course that is available exclusively to Tigo’s customers in Rwanda by subscription or on demand.
The service is a new and unique way to learn English on any mobile phone, offering students the opportunity to decide when and where to learn. EduMe English is the first product to be launched by EduMe, Millicom’s global educational service using mobile and internet technology to provide access to high quality education in Africa.
Following the launch of EduMe English in Rwanda, EduMe English is due to launch in Tanzania in the coming months.
MIC is planning to launch an additional service in Africa, EduMe Tutor, a phone and Skype-based English language tutoring service in the coming months.
EduMe will also launch an entrepreneurship course under its EduMe Business School brand to Tigo subscribers in Tanzania during the third quarter of 2014. The course is developed in co-operation with GSMA, the worldwide mobile industry body and will mark the introduction of the first purely mobile vocational business school in Africa.
EduMe English is developed by international experts in language learning and follows the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), the globally-accepted framework for language learning.
EduMe English combines listening, reading and speaking training through text lessons, quizzes and audio sessions where students select courses that gradually increase in difficulty. These combine high quality content recorded by native English speakers with instructions in Kinyarwanda, the local dialect spoken by many Rwandans.
As the official language of Rwanda since 2009 and extensively used in business and education, there is considerable demand for accessible language tuition.
A launch event has already taken place in Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, this week attended by the country’s Education Minister, Honourable Mathias Harebamungu, and Youth ICT Minister Honourable Jean Philbert Nsengimana.
“We are very excited to offer millions of people in Africa and Latin America the chance to educate themselves with the help of mobile- and internet technology. We are starting by offering English language training as this is a language that gives people more opportunities and connects people across the world. EduMe English is a groundbreaking new product where people can learn English anytime anywhere. Millicom is all about promoting a digital lifestyle and transforming lives: education is integral to this.” said Hans-Holger Albrecht, MIC CEO and President.
MIC founded in 1990, headquartered in Luxembourg is a leading international telecommunications and media company operating in 15 countries Latin America and Africa, providing digital lifestyle services and giving access to the world, primarily through mobile devices.
Major global telecommunication companies have pitched tent in Africa to get a share of the increased customer base, as countries speed up to digitalize government systems with key emphasis being on education sector, i.e E-learning in schools and higher learning institutions, which has been introduced in many African nations such as Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
E-learning has improved the quality of education and modes of delivery in Africa.