African innovator and founder, Open G, Alain Capo has been announced the winner of the World Literacy Award for his outstanding contribution in the individual category. He was awarded at a special ceremony held at Oxford University, Oxford, UK, yesterday as a part of the 2023 World Literacy Summit. Five hundred literacy specialists, 40 ambassadors and high commissioners were present during the presentation.
“It’s an amazing honor to receive this award and the global acknowledgment of the work in literacy as we increase access to education and literacy for all,” Capo said.
Today, forty percent of the population in sub-Saharan Africa is illiterate, and tens of millions of people face enormous challenges in life because they cannot read or write.
Imagine a smartphone made by an African for Africans. That’s what Alain Capo-Chichi has accomplished in Ivory Coast with Open G — the first locally made android phone in the West African country.
It is understood that the smartphones are configured to understand 16 out of the 60 local languages spoken in the country. People can use the phone by simply speaking into it.
World Literacy Foundation CEO Andrew Kay said the World Literacy Awards “puts a spotlight on people and organisations doing exemplary and innovative work in the literacy sector.”
“We know the past 24 months have highlighted the need for communities to unite for literacy,” he said.
The World literacy Award “recognizes individuals and organizations annually for their outstanding endeavours that promote literacy learning,” according to the website for the prize.
“In Africa, the problem we have… is that reading and writing are not accessible to everyone. People can use their smartphones much more easily by simply speaking to them,” Allain said.
Currently, the smartphones are available for purchase in Ivory Coast. It joins a list of other smartphones made by Africans, which are competing against foreign brands for market share.
He is an Ivorian entrepreneur, Founder and President of Groupe CERCO. According to information available on his LinkedIn page, he founded the company in 1998. At the time, he was just 20 years old.
Over the past 24 years, Groupe CERCO has grown and expanded its services across the continent, now available in Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Mali, France and China. He is also the President of the International Network of Private Higher Education Institutions in the CAMES area (RIDEPES-CAMES).
He is also an Assistant Professor in Computer Engineering at University of Paris 8 and an Associate Member of the UNESCO Chair in ICTs at University of Bordeaux.
He has been on this entrepreneurship journey since 1998 when he was just 20 years old. Through his work in telecommunications and technology and his advocacy for literacy, Mr Capo is a role model to other innovators in Africa.
His long-term vision is to continue fighting illiteracy on the African continent and provide low-cost, simple-to-use digital tools to bridge the reading-writing gap.
Source: blackwash.blog / Africa.businessinsider.com
