Launched in 2017 by Amazon Web Services as part of an initiative to provide free cloud services to 29 million people by 2025, the AWS re/Start program has seen rapid growth in the past few months.
In fact, the offering has gone from being available in 25 cities worldwide in 2020 to more than 50 in 2021, achieving the feat in six months, which is far quicker than the timeframe that AWS had initially outlined for itself.
On the African continent, six countries in particular have access to AWS re/Start – South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal and Rwanda.
“Last year, as part of our commitment to provide free cloud computing training to 29 million people by 2025, we pledged to double the reach of AWS re/Start from 25 cities globally in 2020 to more than 50 cities in 2021. I’m pleased to announce that as of today, we’ve exceeded this goal—six months ahead of schedule—after hitting that milestone last month,” enthuses Maureen Lonergan, director for Worldwide Training and Certification at AWS.
“AWS re/Start is a powerful program that provides organizations with a pipeline of entry-level cloud computing talent. We have been actively expanding the program around the world since it launched globally in 2019. As of July 1, the program has expanded in 2021 to 27 new cities and 13 new countries, including Kenya, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Denmark, Egypt, and Finland, just to name a few,” she adds.
As part of its mission to make cloud skills training accessible, AWS re/Start does not require previous experience in technology, Lonergan explains. The program is also intentional about recruiting learners from diverse and underrepresented groups.
“We’ve seen individuals with a range of backgrounds, from retail and hospitality to the military and stay-at-home parents, successfully graduate from the program and into entry-level IT jobs,” she notes.
It will be initiatives like the re/Start program that AWS will be leveraging moving forward in order to deliver more free training and skills development for those interested in the cloud and the power it potentially holds.
To find out more about the program, head here.
