Africa Blockchain Institute (ABI) has announced it will begin operations in Rwanda in 2020, making it the first blockchain school in the country.
Currently operating in Ghana, the school intends to offer five courses namely; blockchain essentials certification course, blockchain developers’ course, enterprise blockchain course, blockchain for lawyers and blockchain for impact.
"Blockchain for lawyers is designed to introduce legal professionals from the lens of how smart contracts, like legal contracts, allow mutually distrusting parties to transact and even cooperate with one another across a wide variety of trust models,” explained Kayode Babarinde, Executive Director of Africa Blockchain Institute.
Rwanda has identified blockchain— a shared ledger that can be used to record and share information in real-time—as one of the new technologies it intends to support alongside robotics and artificial intelligence as it steps up efforts to become a tech hub.
Therefore, the school is critical for training professionals, entrepreneurs and policymakers with capabilities to exploit the emerging, disruptive technology.
Currently, most of the blockchain technologies in Rwanda are non-African products.
For instance, Spenn mobile banking application is Norwegian, Xphone (a blockchain mobile phone) is Singaporean by PundiX while Circular’s system used in tracking minerals is British.
Why Rwanda?
Babarinde said that they chose Rwanda because it is gradually becoming the technology hub of Africa, demonstrated by many tech businesses opening shop in the country.
"The Rwandan economy has been growing steadily, earning a reputation as one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies,” he said.
The leadership of the country, he said, is very forward-looking and supportive of technology.
"The country encourages innovation, thereby creating an enabling environment for businesses to thrive. The ease of doing business is great, and the policies are very supporting,” Babarinde.
In collaboration with the Rwanda Blockchain Association, the school will also support in streamlining regulatory framework of emerging technologies.