GALWAY, IRELAND – 2026-02-12

Alison, the world’s largest free online learning platform, announces its official partnership with WAWUAfrica, a transformative digital platform amplifying African women and youth entrepreneurs. This collaboration equips WAWUAfrica’s community, including over 500,000 graduate women, with access to 6000+ CPD-accredited courses, targeting Nigeria’s goal to skill 10 million citizens and addressing UNESCO data showing 9 million African girls aged 6-11 are unable to access schooling. Launching immediately, the initiative drives economic inclusion across Africa by bridging skills gaps in a region where sub-Saharan female primary completion rose from 48.5% in 2000 to 68.5% in 2023, yet tertiary enrolment lags at 80 women per 100 men.

Tackling Africa's Women and Youths Education Barriers

Africa’s women and youth power local economies but face systemic gaps: sub-Saharan girls lag global secondary completion rates (96 per 100 boys) and represent just 35% of tertiary STEM graduates worldwide. WAWUAfrica bridges markets, mentorship, and funding, now supercharged by digital transformation demands post-pandemic. This partnership meets surging demand for job-ready online skills training, directly supporting the Nigerian government's youth training drives.

Core Partnership Features and Scale

WAWUAfrica becomes an official Alison Publisher, enabling content monetisation through private cohorts exclusively available to WAWUAfrica learners, combining Alison’s CPD-accredited courses with in-person facilitation and support to ensure a hybrid, always-on learning model which is accessible to women no matter their economic, employment, or personal circumstances.

WAWUAfrica Learners gain access to curated courses through their accounts on desktop and also Alison App, co-branded diploma programmes customised for African markets, and premium marketplace placement upon certification. Joint mentorship cohorts launch alongside success story campaigns, activated through WAWUAfrica's Federal Ministry meetings. High-demand sectors like digital marketing and AI literacy drive initial rollout.

Transformative Benefits for Learners and Economies

Women and youths gain globally recognised certifications, boosting employability, freelancing, and business growth, enhanced by “skills-to-commerce” visibility on WAWUAfrica and Ojaewa beauty market, attracting clients and investors. Employers access a talent pipeline of certified African professionals, entrepreneurs and artisans; learners benefit from CPD-accredited Certificates and sponsored courses in digital marketing and project management. Impact metrics echo WAWUAfrica’s track record: empowering 800,000+ youths, now amplified for sustainable income and leadership.

Strategic Quotes from Partners

Olivia Cosgrove, Head of Government Solutions, Social Impact & Strategic Projects, said: “With 9 million African girls denied schooling, this partnership ignites real change, delivering free, certified skills to WAWUAfrica’s women, transforming potential into independence and economies into powerhouses of progress.”

 

Emmanuel Lennox, CEO WAWUAfrica: “Alison’s world-class training supercharges our mission: from 500,000+ women and youth entrepreneurs to millions skilled for global markets. Together, we shatter barriers, proving African women lead when given the tools to thrive.”

Forward Vision and Next Steps

Immediate next steps include account configuration, platform training, and WAWUAfrica's Federal Ministry presentations, unlocking a global recruitment pipeline connecting certified women and youths to employers worldwide. This reinforces Alison's commitment to education without borders, targeting 10 million African women and youths by 2030 through sustained collaboration and donor-backed expansion.

Alison and WAWUAfrica will co-launch advocacy campaigns highlighting women-led and youth success stories, while expanding multilingual course access (starting with full Spanish offerings). The roadmap accelerates with bi-weekly strategy calls over six weeks, custom proposals repurposed for World Bank, Mastercard Foundation, and Irish Aid grant applications, and seamless Free LMS adoption for WAWUAfrica's scaled delivery.

Multimedia/Resource links:

• Set up Free LMS for team learning in 5 minutes
• Make smart talent decisions with Alison’s Psychometric testing
• Read success stories from organisations like yours 

Ends.

About WAWUAfrica

WAWUAfrica is Africa’s premier integrated leadership and organizational excellence ecosystem. Built on the WAWU Framework Wisdom, Adaptive, Whole-System, Ubuntu we empower individuals, transform institutions, and build resilient economies across the continent. From our roots in women’s economic empowerment, we have evolved into a comprehensive leadership ecosystem serving corporations, governments, educational institutions, and social enterprises across Africa.

Mission:

To catalyse Africa’s sustainable development by building world-class leadership capacity, advancing organizational excellence, and creating inclusive economic ecosystems.

Vision:

To be Africa’s most trusted partner for leadership transformation and institutional capacity building.

Our Integrated Service Portfolio

Leadership Development Suite

PEA Framework

• Proof: Evidence-based methodologies, case studies, ROI metrics
• Economics: Sustainable business models, value creation frameworks
• Adoption: Change management, cultural integration, scalability models

Specialised Training Academy

4E Framework

• Expose: To global best practices and local innovations
• Equip: With practical tools and frameworks
• Enable: Through mentorship and implementation support
• Evaluate: With rigorous measurement and continuous improvement

Organisational Transformation Services

SHAPE Framework

• Skills Audit: Organizational capability mapping
• Health Diagnostic: Cultural and operational vitality assessment
• Aspirations Alignment: Vision-mission-strategy coherence
• Psychographics Analysis: Leadership mindset and behavioral patterns
• Environment Scanning: Market positioning and competitive analysis

About Alison

Alison is a global leader in free online learning and skills development. With over 50 million registered Learners across 193 countries (as of October 2025), Alison empowers individuals, communities, and organisations to upskill quickly and effectively — at zero cost.

The Alison platform provides immediate access to over 6,000 free, CPD-accredited courses, covering essential areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Cybersecurity, Digital Marketing, Project Management, Business Operations, Healthcare and Sustainability. Courses are created by a mix of independent experts and global leaders, including IBM, Stanford and Microsoft.

For organisations, Alison offers a Free Learning Management System (LMS) that enables unlimited Learners to access thousands of courses with no upfront cost. A premium version with advanced analytics and customisation is also available. Alison's offering includes a full suite of assessments and psychometric tools, including a Workforce Personality Assessment, Mental Health & Wellbeing, English Language Proficiency, Numeracy, Verbal and Abstract Reasoning tests.

To further support career development, Learners also gain access to a Career Guide, a Resumé Builder, and the ability to study offline through the Alison App.

In 2025, Alison is launching a Global Recruitment Service to connect employers directly with skilled, motivated Learners. The platform is also expanding its reach with multilingual versions, starting with full Spanish, French, and Hindi offerings — reaffirming its mission to make education accessible to anyone, anywhere.

Founded in 2007, Alison pioneered the concept of free, large-scale online learning and is recognised as the world’s first MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) platform. Today, its mission continues: to break down barriers to learning, helping people gain skills, build confidence, and improve their lives — no matter where they live or what they earn.

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Media Contact

If you would like to learn more about this Press Release, or Alison, please contact the Alison Media Team at [email protected]