People of Dzaleka and its wider community
Remy Gakwaya
Also known as Rémy Gakwaya
Burundian technologist and educator who founded TakeNoLab in Dzaleka and helped expand access to coding and digital skills in the camp.
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Technology education
Remy Gakwaya came to Dzaleka from Burundi in 2008. He learned computer programming through courses supported by Jesuit Refugee Service at the Jesuit Worldwide Learning centre.
In 2016, Gakwaya founded TakeNoLab, a refugee-led technology learning group. UNHCR reported that its first students sometimes practised on printed keyboard diagrams because the group had too few computers and faced frequent power cuts.
AppFactory
Gakwaya later taught at the Dzaleka AppFactory, which opened through a UNHCR and Microsoft partnership. The programme trained young people to build software around local needs. Projects reported by UNHCR included tools for new arrivals and information about distributions.
UNHCR’s 2018 profile also recorded Gakwaya’s work to involve more women and girls in technology training. These details describe the programme at the time of that report and should not be read as its current operating status.
Community mapping
TakeNoLab was the local partner for MapMalawi’s 2022 Dzaleka Mapping Project. It helped involve young people with knowledge of the camp in mapping buildings, water points, schools, health facilities, and other infrastructure.
References
Sources
- 1Refugees learn to code a new future in Malawi
UNHCR, 13 September 2018
- 2Teaming up with technology
UNHCR, 2018
- 3MapMalawi's Dzaleka Mapping Project
Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team, 18 June 2022
Related entries
Education
Dzaleka AppFactory
A software-development training programme launched in Dzaleka in 2017 through Microsoft 4Afrika and UNHCR's Connectivity for Refugees initiative.
Education
Education in Dzaleka
Public, private, community, and post-secondary education in Dzaleka, including the Malawi curriculum and long-running scholarship and digital-learning programmes.
Infrastructure
Dzaleka Mapping Project
A MapMalawi initiative that combined drones, OpenStreetMap, field mapping, and community training to document buildings and essential services at Dzaleka.
Institution
Refugee-led organisations in Dzaleka
Organisations founded or led by refugees that provide education, advocacy, technology, livelihoods, arts, protection, and mutual support within Dzaleka and beyond.
Place
Dzaleka Refugee Camp
A long-established refugee settlement in Dowa District, Malawi, opened in 1994 and now home to a large, multilingual community from the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa.
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