German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s special representative for Africa, Dr Günter Nooke, joined senior ICWE executives at a breakfast meeting in Berlin in July to discuss technology and education in Africa.

Dr Nooke, who also recently attended the eLearning Africa 2015 conference and ministerial round table in Addis Ababa, heads the German government’s initiative to develop cooperation and business with Africa.

At the Berlin meeting, he led a discussion about the prospects for African economies in the light of this year’s eLearning Africa Report, which highlights the importance of technology-assisted education in securing continuing growth.

Germany’s Federal Ministry for Cooperation (BMZ) has identified cooperation with Africa as a top priority of the German development agenda. Since 2003, the German government has become one of the African Union’s strongest partners and the third largest donor.

Dr Nooke believes that Africa now offers “significant opportunities” for German companies in the education, technology and communications sectors.  He was joined at the meeting by Rebecca Stromeyer and Astrid Jaeger of ICWE and by Dr Harold Elletson, Editor of the eLearning Africa Report, who presented the results of a comprehensive survey of educators and technology practitioners working in Africa.