The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Rwanda Ministry of ICT and Innovation signed a grant agreement to establish the Rwanda Coding Academy, which will support top technology talent to drive a booming, innovation-driven digital economy in the East African nation. The Academy aims to be a proof-of-concept model school for developing information and communication technology (ICT), among other skills for high school level students who want to pursue a career in coding and computer science. To this end, the grant funding of USD$150,000 from the Rockefeller Trust Fund which the AfDB administers, will support a number of activities including the acquisition of computers and furniture equipment for an ultra-modern innovation center of excellence, Internet connectivity, teacher training, and organisation of job career orientation events. 'This collaboration between the Bank and the Government of Rwanda aims to demonstrate that empowering African youth with demand-driven skills and providing them with opportunities to be part of the ICT ecosystem as early as possible, will enable them to claim their space in the digital sector and be equal drivers of innovative ideas that are shaping the present and the future of Africa and the globe,' noted AfDB Eastern Region Acting Director General Nnenna Nwabufo.