NEAR Foundation has indicated it is backing the Kenyan-based blockchain community referred to as Sankore to help educate and train blockchain analysts and developers to offer support to local projects.

Sankore, a Kenyan blockchain community, has signed a partnership deal with NEAR, a Swiss non-profit Foundation, for assistance in launching a regional hub to develop talents in the country and region for a more vibrant Web3 ecosystem. 

Sankore, NEAR to Use the Deal to Accelerate Web3 Development and Adoption 

Sankore has made a name for supporting local projects, such as Kilimo Shwari, a blockchain-based insurance program that assists farmers to deal more effectively with natural disasters. In addition, Sankore supports Ledja, a project developed to help counter fraudulent documentation in Africa by shifting to the NEAR protocol for document verification. 

The deal will also help the initiative by developing talent in the East African region via conferences. According to Kevin Imani, the founder of Sankore, the partnership will help to nurture talents supporting them to become the next blockchain developers. 

Sankore is also known for holding meetups to educate young Kenyans about the fast-growing Web3 and its applications. As Sankore continues to grow, its educational wing has already roped in local universities and colleges. Already, there are 84 students and six graduates who have been certified as developers via NEAR seminars and workshops. 

On his part, the CEO of NEAR Foundation, Marieke Flament, indicated that they are excited by the potential avenues being unveiled in Africa for blockchain solutions. This partnership offers NEAR the opportunity to find and partner with local talents in the continent.

In February 2022, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) asked the public for input on the idea of developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). Then, it published a discussion paper that sought to identify the main pros, cons, and regulatory challenges of using CBDC in Kenya. 

Other parts of Africa have also not been behind by the latest crypto and blockchain trends. In April, the Central African Republic (CAR) passed legislation to allow the use of Bitcoin as a legal tender. South Africa is also racing ahead with its non-fungible token (NFTs) starting to blossom. An NFT of late South African President, Nelson Mandela, was sold for USD 130,000 in March 2022.