Historic Public-Private Partnership between SAP SE and German Government Boosts Digital Skills Development in Developing Countries

 

DURBAN, South Africa, 4 May 2017,-/African Media Agency (AMA)/- By the end of 2016 SAP SE and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) signed a historic agreement to strengthen tech entrepreneurship in developing countries under the BMZ’s Make-IT initiative. The agreement aims to bring together key public and private sector players in Germany, Europe and continents such as Africa, Asia and Latin America to foster IT start-ups in developing countries and emerging economies worldwide.

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, will implement the programme on behalf of BMZ. Make-IT starts in Africa in two pilot countries, i.e. Nigeria and Kenya. “We seek to foster IT startups because they have a great potential to create jobs, generate revenue and find creative and innovative solutions to pressing issues faced by citizens and their societies,” says Dr. Jan Schwaab, Head of the GIZ Programme “Make-IT in Africa”. “We strongly believe that start-ups can contribute to sustainable and inclusive economic growth if they manage to overcome the many hurdles they face – in particular getting access to markets and key partners from industry. We are proud to partner with SAP and other major German and European IT companies to support tech start-ups and their ecosystems, with greater market access and exposure.”

Under this umbrella SAP SE and GIZ agreed to jointly run the first Make-IT project worldwide in Nigeria. This project will combine the skills and experience of local and international GIZ experts with SAP’s successful Startup Focus-Program. This will ensure that tailored input meets the specific needs of each startup, including but not limited to design thinking experts, access to financing partners, access to leading edge technology, deeper collaboration with local accelerators, mentors etc. to maximize the probability of commercial success for each startup.

For more information, visit the website of the “Make-IT initiative”, visit the SAP News Centre or access the webpage
at http://www.bmz.de/de/mitmachen/Wirtschaft/Make_IT/index.jsp. Follow SAP on Twitter at @sapnews, follow SAP Startup Focus @SAPStartups

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of SAP Africa.

For more information, visit the SAP News Center. Follow SAP on Twitter at @sapnews.

About SAP
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About the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is headed by the Minister Dr Gerd Müller. The BMZ defines the principles that guide German development policy. It specifies priority areas, signs agreements with partner countries and secures financing for development cooperation. All efforts are informed by the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Since the MDGs were adopted in 2000, information and communication technologies (ICT) have been an accepted instrument in international cooperation. German development cooperation advocates the dissemination and use of ICT in partner countries, in order to leverage its potential to drive sustainable development and bridge the digital divide. Modern ICT is a key instrument in about 280 projects and programmes implemented in over 75 countries across the many different sectors supported by German development cooperation.
https://www.bmz.de/en/

About Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a federal enterprise with worldwide operations. We support the German Government in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development. We are also engaged in international education activities around the globe. Through our work we assist people and societies in shaping their own future and improving living conditions.