Nairobi, 16 August 2021 – The Commonwealth Education Trust (CET) has received financial contribution of USD50, 000 from the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI). This contribution is aimed at supporting the initiatives of CET to build the capacity of teachers to be more effective in light of the COVID-19 restrictions on movement and social gatherings.
This partnership is mutually beneficial and will enable CET to progress its planned expansion in African and provide thousands of teachers with critical training and learning opportunities, achieving ATI’s ambition to socially invest in education and capacity building across its member countries. It will also create interest, engagement and motivation amongst its network, employees as well as to attract talent in the future.
Teacher preparation and development is critical in building teacher capacity; the global crisis in training and support for teachers is a contributing factor to 9 out of 10 children in Sub-Saharan Africa, leaving school without learning the basic skills in numeracy and literacy. Thus, there is an urgent need to prioritize teacher professional development to effectively implement educational initiatives, policies and curricula to enhance quality teaching and learning as stipulated in goal 4 of the United Nations sustainable development program.
Quote from Manuel Moses, CEO of ATI
“The COVID-19 crisis and subsequent lockdowns have sorely exacerbated the challenge of getting an education across Africa thus creating the largest disruption of education systems in history. As fiscal pressures in Africa increases and development assistance comes under strain, it remains important for DFIs like ATI to seize this opportunity and further support the education sector – and we are proud to partner with CET.”
Quote from Betty Abeng, CEO of CET
“This is an important time for partnerships like this. Innovation is absolutely critical to the new world of sustainability. Working together with a corporation like ATI that shares our mission to improve education, is mutually beneficial and it means we can increase our impact, faster.”
ATI recently introduced its CSR Strategy, with an intention to promote the social and economic wellbeing of its stakeholders. In addition to the donation to the CET, ATI has also made a donation to the Africa CDC for USD250, 000 to support the public health agency in its quest of vaccinating the population in Africa against COVID-19.
Press Release 2021/1608/Nairobi
Press Contact:
Sheila Ongas
Communications Officer
African Trade Insurance Agency
Mobile +254 728 600 180
Note to editors:
About The African Trade Insurance Agency
ATI was founded in 2001 by African States to cover trade and investment risks of companies doing business in Africa. ATI predominantly provides Political Risk, Credit Insurance and, Surety Insurance. In 2020, ATI closed the year with a gross exposure of US$6.3 billion and a net profit of US$39.4 million, owing to a strong demand for ATI’s insurance solutions from the international financial sector and from African governments. Since inception, ATI has supported US$66 billion worth of investments and trade into Africa. For over a decade, ATI has maintained an ‘A/Stable’ rating for Financial Strength and Counterparty Credit by Standard & Poor’s, and in 2019, ATI obtained an A3/Stable rating from Moody’s.
About the Commonwealth Education Trust
The CET promotes quality education in lower-income countries by building teacher capacity and confidence through innovative, digital, high-impact training. Together with governments and local partners, they are transforming education and changing lives throughout the Commonwealth.
Learning poverty affects almost 250 million children around the world, stifling their life chances. It is estimated that up to 80% of children in low-income countries remain unable to read and understand a simple text by the age of ten. CET empowers and upskill teachers so that more children will learn better.
The CET is collaborating with government and programme partners to roll out its EdTech platform, Teach2030, providing opportunities for professional development for as many teachers worldwide as possible. Through its digital training platforms, they have already effective upskilled more than 13,000 teachers in over 40 countries. Today, EdTech represents the pinnacle of innovation and technology in approaching societal change and impact.
