Anthony Tattersall, Vice President of EMEA at Coursera
The accelerated adoption of online learning during the pandemic has created new opportunities for large-scale skills development in the Middle East (ME). Many more learners in the region are using online learning to develop job-relevant skills in a rapidly changing economy.
Coursera has over 4.8 million learners in the Middle East. More than 100 organisations in the region use Coursera to upskill students, employees and citizens, including institutions like Abu Dhabi School of Government, Emirate NBD Bank, and Effat University.
Building on the growing momentum we see across the region, we’re excited to share new updates to better serve learners and institutions.
Enabling Arabic right-to-left functionalities
Our recently launched right-to-left functionalities make navigating Coursera in Arabic a more seamless experience for learners. There are more than 400 million Arabic speakers in the world today, and this feature ensures Arabic enterprise learners can easily navigate Coursera, including the homepage, search and browse, assessments, grades, notes, transcripts, and e-mails.
Delivering more world-class content to Arabic-speaking learners
Learners can now access an additional 2,000 courses on Coursera in Arabic. These include world-class courses from leading universities and industry leaders, including Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with Python) by the University of Michigan, English for Career Development by the University of Pennsylvania, and Introduction to Machine Learning by Duke University.
Appointing a regional leader for the Middle East operations
As we double down on efforts to help companies in the region implement their talent transformation agenda, we’re delighted to welcome Kais Zribi as Middle East, North Africa and Turkey (MENAT) Regional Director. He comes with over 20 years of technology and corporate learning experience in leading companies such as Intel Corporation, Samsung and Pearson Education. In his new capacity, he will work closely with our regional customers to support their reskilling and upskilling priorities.
The pandemic has propelled the Middle East towards a future shaped by innovation and technology. We’re excited to help learners in the region develop high-demand digital skills for better career opportunities and engage with organisations to accelerate their skills development strategy.