“I enjoy the classes very much,” says Nila Mraidha, of the computer programming lessons she receives through a project called Kids Go Coding in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The Kids Go Coding programme currently reaches 100 underprivileged children in two Dhaka schools, but Bangladesh needs tens of thousands of computer programmers and Kids Go Coding has ambitious plans to offer its programme nationwide.
To help more children like Nila gain valuable programming skills which can enhance their future job prospects, the British Council is supporting Kids Go Coding to turn itself from a 'project' into a social enterprise – a business that trades to tackle social problems and improve people’s lives.
The British Council is providing Kids Go Coding with business consulting delivered through two organisations: the UK’s Bethnal Green Ventures and Bangladesh’s Better Stories. Together, they are providing legal, financial, management and other support that Kids Go Coding needs to achieve its social mission and scale out across the country.
We’ve also produced this short video about Kids Go Coding. It’s one of four new videos we’re launching on the eve of the Social Enterprise World Forum to raise awareness of the positive impact that social enterprises are delivering in communities around the world.
To learn more about social enterprise and find out why it’s growing globally, join us on Twitter @SocEntGlobal