Across Kenya and South Africa, Code Clubs are going from strength to strength. We’re excited to share their incredible progress and positive impact with you and shine a spotlight on our fantastic partner organisations, whose support makes it all possible!

Partnering up to increase our reach

Code Club is a thriving global community of clubs where young people can develop the confidence to create with digital technologies in a fun and supportive space. In Kenya we’ve been working closely with Oasis Mathare, Young Scientists Kenya, Kenya Connect, Tech Kidz Africa, STEAM Labs Africa, and Futures Infinite, while in South Africa we’ve teamed up with Keep a Child Alive and Coder:Level Up.

We used a train-the-trainer model to help our partners in Kenya and South Africa train Code Club mentors. We began by training community trainers from each partner, who then went on to deliver training to club mentors. This has allowed us to reach 1,498 mentors across both countries. Club mentors told us how grateful they have been to these partners for their ongoing support, including providing training and visiting the clubs.

As part of our ongoing evaluation of the Code Club programme in Kenya and South Africa, we’ve collected feedback from our partners, club mentors, and creators via feedback surveys, club visits, and focus groups to help us understand the impact of our work.

Reaching areas of disadvantage

There are 397 Code Clubs running in Kenya and 622 in South Africa — we estimate we’re reaching over 42,000 young people through Code Clubs and nearly 20,000 through related one-off events such as summer programmes.

This broad reach means that young people who might otherwise have had limited or no access to computing are now engaging with coding, and doing so in truly exciting ways. 

One Kenyan Code Club leader, working in a particularly disadvantaged and marginalised area, said Code Club was so important to young people as it means “you don’t have to be left behind”. They shared that such a large number are attending the club — and that many more are wanting to join — because young people are  eager to be “part of the digital future”.

Impact on young people

89% of surveyed mentors reported an increase in their young people’s skills in coding and confidence to engage with emerging technology. 

According to one South African Code Club mentor, taking part in Code Club “changes your perception and thinking…. it’s possible to do things… it becomes a reality because it’s not a really difficult thing. It’s something that you can do step by step and it really changes the mindset. It really redefines how someone thinks.”

Mentors consistently told us that young people are collaborating more, and supporting each other in their learning journeys. One South African young person perfectly captured this spirit: “if they don’t know something, we can teach it to them.” 

Mentors also shared that young people are inspired to continue developing their coding and computing skills beyond club sessions. They’re actively seeking opportunities to deepen their knowledge and are already thinking about how they could use their newfound skills in their future careers.

Empowering Code Club mentors

Overall, club mentors felt well prepared to run clubs and found the training high quality and useful. This is reflected in the high percentage of mentors who agreed that the training increased their skills, confidence, and knowledge, with some partners showing an agreement rate as high as 91%. 

Partners have also worked hard delivering extra training on requested topics such as additional computer skills and mentorship to help mentors feel more confident running Code Clubs.

Continuing to improve

We recognise the unique challenges that can arise when running clubs in areas of Kenya and South Africa where access to technology and the internet isn’t always consistent. We’re continuing to develop resources and support for these clubs, as well as working with partners to better understand what their clubs need.

We’re also continually reflecting on and refining our train-the-trainer model to understand how best to equip community trainers with the confidence and skills they need to train others. 

Next steps

The dedication and hard work of our partners have been instrumental in allowing us to significantly expand our reach and impact in Kenya and South Africa. Alongside this incredible growth, we’ve strengthened our commitment by increasing the size of our teams operating directly from both countries. This means we can continue to grow our support for our thriving Code Club communities.

We’re excited to have a number of new partners setting up Code Clubs over the next year. We look forward to sharing the invaluable insights and feedback we’ve received from our existing partners to ensure our new partners are fully supported and feel empowered to deliver transformative Code Clubs in their areas.

Watch this space!