ICT student brings drones, VR and AI to children in Chad

Whilst many students are completing their final-year projects from a classroom on campus, ICT student Moussa is travelling to Chad to introduce children there to technology, science, engineering and maths. Using drones, VR headsets and homemade solar panels, he aims to inspire young people to look beyond what they see around them every day.

Moussa, a 28-year-old ICT student, is about to graduate and has already built up an impressive CV. He runs his own company, Abbaly – a digital agency specialising in web development, design and IT consultancy – and is also working on his start-up and final-year project: Coursolo.ai. This is an AI-driven educational platform where children can learn about science, technology and programming.

As well as the online learning platform, Moussa also wants to introduce children to technology in a hands-on way. That’s why he’s currently spending a month in the Kanem region of Chad, the country he comes from. “I’ve been allowed to take all sorts of equipment from Fontys to Chad to introduce children at various schools to new technologies.”

From dream to reality

He calls the practical component of Coursolo.ai ‘From Dreams to Reality’. “A five-day programme in which children not only get to see and use technology, such as drones and VR headsets, but also build things themselves.” To do this, Moussa uses educational construction kits that he brought with him from Fontys.

The children are given individual components and have to assemble a working system themselves. In this way, they build small-scale versions of solar panels, smart irrigation systems and other applications for precision agriculture. “The aim is to teach children to think critically and outside the box. So far, it’s going very well.”

As well as contributing to his final-year research, Moussa derives a great deal of satisfaction from the project. “The children are incredibly curious and inspired. Sometimes, after a full day at school, they still come to my house to ask more questions.” The project also has personal significance for the ICT student. “I’m from here. It feels good to be able to give something back to these people.”

From launch to further development

Yet he isn’t doing it alone, because without IT teacher Frans Mouws, Moussa wouldn’t have been able to realise the project. “He helped me with the idea and made sure I could bring all the equipment with me. So a special shout-out to Frans.

After graduating, Moussa wants to further develop his start-up. Ultimately, he hopes to return to Chad with even more technology and new programmes for children. His dream? “To open a permanent training centre and thus make technology more accessible to young people in Chad.”