Who we are

The Digital Skills Accelerator Africa e. V. (DSAA) is an independent non-profit association based in Cologne, Germany. By offering expertise, a great company network, and funding opportunities, the DSAA supports its member companies in implementing training programmes and creating sustainable jobs in the ICT and BPO sector in Africa. DSAA e. V. projects take place in Ghana, Rwanda, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, and Morocco. The association is supported by the Special Initiative “Decent Work for a Just Transition” of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), which is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH among others.

Key competences of the DSAA

Development and funding of practice-oriented and demand-driven training programmes that meet international standards and company-specific needs.

Provision of research results, studies, and advisory service.

Access to a company network that allows to share knowledge, best practices, and to create synergies.

Empowerment of marginalised groups, such as people with disabilities and women in tech through cooperation with local NGOs and sensitization trainings for member companies.

Creating business opportunities for companies and job opportunities for individuals.

Why we are doing what we are doing

Until 2030, European businesses expect 1 million open positions in the ICT sector.

COVID-19 increased businesses’ openness to new markets as lockdowns disrupted local operations.

Furthermore, the pandemic increased the acceptance of remote work significantly.

In Africa, an immense, growing youth population offers an enormous talent pool while the labour pool in Asia and Eastern Europe is beginning to get saturated.

However, 67% of businesses see competency gaps in technical skills and soft skills and define this skill gap as major barrier when it comes to working with Africa.

Without requisite digital skills, Africa will lag and miss the many opportunities that technologies and digitalisation offer for development and improved well-being.

We believe in the potential and motivation of the African youth and thus, want to take an active role to train young people for working with the European market, to close the skill gap, and to bring Africa and Europe closer together.

Our member companies

In 2019, the DSAA was founded by the three companies AmaliTech, GetINNOtized, and Majorel with the aim to develop an overall company network that believes in the potential of the African labor markets and wants to drive the cooperation between Africa and Europe. Since then, the DSAA came a long way. Today, 18 companies are part of the DSAA.

Namely, the following ones:

Our growth targets:

Our association

From its local office in Cologne, Germany, the DSAA works with six countries in Africa. The headquarters of the association is in Germany as it was first founded by three companies being present in Germany in cooperation with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Meet our team

Mara Brinkmann

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Mara Brinkmann
Marketing & Communication Lead
Mara studied business administration, marketing management, and business psychology. After several years of working experience in the marketing management for international food brands, Mara wanted to focus on people rather than products in her daily work. The DSAA e. v. was the perfect match! As a certified mediator and speaker, Mara also moderates DSAA e. V. internal workshops and represents the association at external events. Meet her at webinars and summits on business opportunities in Africa! She’s definitely looking forward to it!
Ulrich Busch

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Ulrich Busch
Treasurer
 
Nina Gebauer

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Nina Gebauer
Consultant for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Nina Gebauer is a business psychologist with over 6 years of professional experience in the fields of management consulting, management diagnostics, HR development, organizational development, leadership and coaching. Additionally, she supports young women and men through coaching and mentorship enabling individual, personal and professional growth.
Martin Hecker

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Martin Hecker
Chairman of the Board
Martin Hecker is the Founder and CEO of AmaliTech, a social business that empowers youth in sub-Saharan Africa through the creation of sustainable jobs and continuous learning opportunities in the tech sector. Previously, Martin led the Technology Advantage Practice in Central and Eastern Europe as a Senior Partner and Managing Director of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and built an IT consulting firm in Latin America that belongs to one of the largest IT service providers in South and Central America.
Mark Maas
Mark Maas

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Mark Maas
Deputy Chairman of the Board
Mark holds a Masters degree in Strategic Management form Rotterdam Scholl of Management. With 20 years professional experience, he, among others, has worked in Corporate Development for an international media conglomerate, led Group Strategy and M&A for a global Euronext-listed business services provider and is currently CEO of a CX Transformation Services business with presence across 15 countries. While working in fast-growth markets, Mark got impressed by the largely untapped pool of young talents. As a founding member of DSAA, he believes in the sustainable impact of market-oriented training & development programs on elevating employability and advancing career opportunities.
Svenja Schauten

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Svenja Schauten
Deputy Managing Director
Svenja has an academic background in foreign languages, economics and EU cooperation management. With a track record in public administration and EU institutions, Svenja dedicated her professional path to international development cooperation in the digital sector. In her role as Deputy Managing Director of the DSAA e. V., Svenja is responsible for managing the branch office in Cologne and developing the start-up structures of the association.
Dr. Eva Lena Richter

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Dr. Eva Lena Richter
Project Manager
Eva has an academic background in business administration, economics, and Chinese studies. Her PhD project focused on skilled labor migration to China, encompassing regulatory and legal facets. Prior to her role as DSAA e.V., she managed projects at GIZ on the field of industry standardization. As the Project Manager for Project Development & Implementation at DSAA e. V., she eagerly looks forward to advancing your ideas from inception to fruition!

Join our team

Currently no open positions!

We have currently no open positions available. Feel free to contact us via the “Apply now” button with an initiative application.

Contact us

We are looking forward to hearing from you!
Get to know more about the DSAA, its member companies, and how the association can support your business by contacting us.

EGYPT

Côte D’ivoire

Ghana

RWanda

morocco

senegal

Did you know?
The time zone of Africa is the same or very similar to the CET / European time.

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