Dubai hosted its first government-backed Blockchain developer training program in late October 2017 in partnership with Brooklyn-based Blockchain company and awarded certificates to the first batch of graduates of its inaugural program.
The course is being operated by the ConsenSys Academy, which is among the earliest programs around the world to offer a Blockchain curriculum due to the increasing demand for Blockchain developers worldwide.
According to Blockchain startup founder Joseph Lubin, it is both very rewarding and exciting to witness the awarding of the Ethereum Blockchain-based graduation certificates to the first batch of graduates.
“It is very rewarding to see the first cohort of Blockchain software engineers graduate and especially exciting to witness them awarded their Ethereum Blockchain-based graduation certificates. These EthCerts will be housed in each graduate’s personal uPort IDs.”
So far, the inaugural eight-week online course has attracted roughly 1,300 applicants from 96 countries and all of them were accepted. The course ended with a three-day in-person coding event in which the students work on real-world Ethereum Blockchain projects alongside the developers. The inaugural graduation ceremony saw 58 Blockchain developers from different countries graduate from the course.
The graduate’s graduation certificates were issued as ‘EthCerts’ on the public Ethereum Blockchain through the digital identity application (app), uPort. The ceremony was supported by Dubai’s smart-city government program, Smart Dubai. ConsenSys serves as Dubai’s official Blockchain advisor.
In his speech at the graduation ceremony, Smart Dubai director-general Dr. Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr said that ConsenSys Academy’s program to resolve the global shortage of Blockchain developers reflects their own objectives at Smart Dubai.
“Hosting this first graduating class here in Dubai is a testament to the emirate’s status as a leader in future technologies. ConsenSys Academy’s initiative to address the global shortage in Blockchain developers resonates with our objectives at Smart Dubai.”