From Jõhvi to Zhytomyr and Nairobi: //kood expands tech education to Ukraine and Kenya

In 2021, we opened our first campus in a small town in Estonia with a not-so-small ambition — to make high-quality tech education accessible to everyone willing to work for it. Just a few years later, we’re proud to say: we’re growing.

With support from ESTDEV, //kood is launching new peer-learning programmes in Ukraine and Kenya. These pilots will support adult learners with limited prior experience to reskill into software developers using our proven, peer-to-peer learning model.

Why Ukraine and Kenya?

Both countries are bursting with talent — but access to fast, practical IT education can be limited or disrupted. That’s where we come in.

In Ukraine, our new initiative kood/Zhytomyr is run in partnership with Zhytomyr Polytechnic State University, a leading tech university with a strong digital focus. The programme is delivered in a hybrid format to support consistent learning despite the ongoing war.

“The shortage of developers is real, and not just because of the war. We need learning models that work fast — ones that let people reskill quickly and solve real-world problems,” says Dymytrii Grytsyshen, Vice-Rector at Zhytomyr Polytechnic. “The peer-learning method behind //kood is exactly the kind of innovation that helps us move forward.”

In Kenya, the first phase is a three-week Selection Sprint — an intensive bootcamp in Nairobi hosted with GreatWell Training College. Learners who pass will begin a year-long remote programme to become full-stack developers. The entire programme is delivered via our cloud-based platform, making high-quality education accessible from anywhere.

“These are just our first steps in Ukraine and Kenya,” says Taavet Hinrikus, co-founder of //kood. “While in Estonia we created //kood to accelerate the training of IT talent, in these new countries we’re giving people tools to shape their own future — and strengthen their communities along the way.”

“Ukraine remains our most important development cooperation partner,” adds Margus Gering, ESTDEV’s Head of Development Cooperation for Ukraine. “By supporting such projects, we help strengthen Ukraine’s tech education — especially digital skills in vocational training — which are vital for rebuilding the country.”

What stays the same?

No matter the country, the core of //kood doesn’t change:

• 100% practical coding & problem-solving
• Peer-learning model — no lectures, no teachers
• Cloud-based platform, scalable anywhere
  

Whether you’re in Jõhvi or Nairobi, we believe learning to learn is the most powerful skill of all.

What’s next?

📍 100 students will start in Ukraine this autumn
📍 50 learners will join the Sprint in Nairobi this July

We’ve now welcomed over 1100 students into our programmes. Our alumni work at more than 100 companies across Estonia, and we can’t wait to see where our new graduates take their skills next!