wEquipu, a US-based Google partner through Digicloud Africa focusing on Francophone Africa, has implemented Google Workspace to enhance collaboration and efficiency for a task team working on Niger’s LIRE project to improve education in Niger.
Project Niger LIRE (Learning Improvement for Result in Education), signed in 2020 by the International Development Association and Niger, aims to enhance education access, quality and administration. The project aims to improve the quality of teaching and learning environments across the country. It is driven by the United Nations UNOPS division, which works in partnership with the government of Niger, and is funded by the World Bank
wEquipu co-founder Achille Kombat says wEquipu was approached to assist when a task team working on the project with Niger’s Education Ministry encountered challenges with unprofessional e-mail usage that impacted efficiency, security and credibility.
He says: “The consultant who was working with the team noted that team members were collaborating using their personal e-mails, which was not appropriate for a project this significant. They needed to be able to synchronise and communicate better, and overcome the challenge of e-mails getting lost and important information being missed. There was a level of confidentiality involved in the information they shared, and this was a big concern for them.”
The solution was the deployment of Google Workspace Business Standard, which includes a custom e-mail address with the project’s domain name, along with a range of business benefits. Google Workspace also allows the 30 team members to leverage Google Meet, Chat, Sheets and Docs, collaborating on the same project documents with comments and tracked edits, all within a secure environment users can access from their computer, phone or tablet.
This integration yielded tangible results almost immediately, significantly improving communication and productivity, and bringing robust data security into the project's digital environment, Kombat says.
“Our team implemented Google Workspace in March/April this year, and it solved their e-mail challenge immediately. They soon started harnessing all the other communication tools within Google Workspace too. Now they don't have to look for meeting applications separately, or work in silos on disparate documents. They benefit from real-time co-creation, their documentation is synchronised, workflows are streamlined; with Google Meet, they can have all their communication sessions within Workspace. It definitely helped them move faster, because now instead of waiting for data to be attached to an e-mail, they're working together in real-time. Importantly, they now have more control of their sensitive data,” he says.
Ihiya Awi-Alher, Digital Transformation Specialist for the Niger LIRE Project, says Google Workspace has proved transformative for the team: “Google Workspace has truly transformed the way we work! The new messaging system is a major asset for our communication, and the shared address book allows us to quickly find the necessary contact information. All staff of the Niger LIRE Project greatly appreciate this new work environment."
Kombat hopes the success of this implementation will demonstrate the benefits of Google Workspace and Google For Education to Niger’s Education Ministry leaders. “If they see the value of it, there may be an opportunity to open the whole educational system to using Google For Education and Chromebooks,” he says.
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