In honour of International Literacy Day, Binance, the world’s leading blockchain ecosystem, and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider, is celebrating the graduation of the first cohort of the Blockchain for Women Bootcamp which took place on August 27, 2022. This year’s theme, ‘Transforming Literacy Learning Spaces’, aligns with the blockchain giant’s continued efforts to make crypto learning inclusive for all through both online and offline platforms.
In March 2022, the company kicked-off the 8-week bootcamp in collaboration with Utiva, an edtech company helping young people attain digital skills, with a goal to equip women in Africa with blockchain education, tools, and skills. About 3000 applications for the bootcamp flooded in within a week, reflecting the number of eager learners. Among the applicants, 300 of them were selected to participate in the bootcamp.
This commitment to supporting crypto literacy for women stems from the fact that women remain disproportionately under-represented in the industry with 95% of crypto users being male, according to Global Crypto User Index. The bootcamp provided African women with learning and networking opportunities, as well as resources required to kickstart their blockchain journey.
As part of the course, students understand the basics of blockchain technology, how crypto trading works and how the blockchain is applied in real-world contexts. The hybrid-model lectures were concluded with a demo day where participants built and showcased real-world projects based on their bootcamp learnings. The members of the winning team were awarded cash prizes and all successful participants received certificates.
One student, Esther Nwanagu, 24 said: “I have always wanted to learn about blockchain; this made me dive into programming (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) so I could be a blockchain developer. Upon seeing the email from Binance, I realized it was related to what I was aspiring to be. So I decided to join the program.”
“My favorite lessons were the first few lessons from Mr Tosin. He taught us that we can be anything we want in the blockchain space and that there are limitless opportunities.” – Zainab Owolabi.
Zainab plans to join the blockchain industry to make an impact, especially in areas where she can help other women.
“The last few years have seen an exciting uptake in blockchain technology – with more individuals and institutions adopting newer systems. However, women remain underrepresented in this revolution and we at Binance are committed to closing this gap. This is why we are truly humbled to be equipping more African women with the skills, resources, and network they require to thrive in the blockchain industry.” said Hannes Wessels, Country Lead for Binance in South Africa.
“The importance of blockchain education remains a core tenet for us at Binance and we are thrilled to continue to enable more women to have access to this transformative technology through female-focused educational initiatives, networking opportunities for women in blockchain, upskilling courses and lots more. We wish all 300 women the best in their respective journeys.” said Carine Dikambi, Francophone Africa Lead at Binance.
