The "Try It-Do It Workshops" ("Deneyap Atölyeler") implemented under the leadership of the Ministry of Industry and Technology across 81 provinces in Türkiye are set to expand internationally after receiving the status of the best exemplary project from the United Nations Technology Bank.
As quoted by local media reports recently, the aim of the project is to contribute to the human development of least-developed countries (LDCs) and the development of technology ecosystems.
The project session, presented by the Turkish Technology Team Foundation (T3 Foundation) in 2017 to contribute to the training of young individuals with high technology production competence in Türkiye, and currently ongoing in 100 workshops established across the country, is being held for approximately 15,383 students with 3,000 instructors employed, as per ministry data.
The U.N. Technology Bank, a subsidiary of the United Nations (U.N.) General Assembly, has the status of being the only U.N. institution hosted by the Republic of Türkiye, making the country a bridge for technology aid and assistance, to countries all across the globe. The bank accepted the Try It-Do It workshops as the best example and initiated the "Technology Makers Lab Project."
Niger was chosen as the first country for the implementation of the mentioned project. The main stakeholder of the project was the Presidency of Niger, while the project has been materialized in cooperation with the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBITAK), the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), and T3.
As per reports, it was noted the workshops were equipped by TIKA, while TÜBITAK provided the training curriculum and the equipment necessary for the training. The Ministry of Industry and Technology helped the project by meeting the logistical, accommodation, and training needs of trainers, who are one of the most important building blocks of the project.
The "Deneyap Technology Workshop Orientation Program" was held for trainers selected by the Niger government.
Training sessions entitled "Design and Production", "Robotics and Coding", "Materials Science and Nanotechnology", "Electronic Programming and Internet of Things", "Software Technologies", "Advanced Robotics" and "Cyber Security" were held for trainers.
The project will start in Niger after the training process is completed, and implementation is planned in nine more developing countries after the Western African country.
The project, with the initial aim of preparing the younger generation in Türkiye for a technology-driven future, looks to add on technological development in least-developed countries.
According to the U.N. classification, the least developed countries are low-income countries confronting severe structural impediments to sustainable development. They are highly vulnerable to economic and environmental shocks and have low levels of human assets. Currently, 46 countries globally are listed as LDCs.
