Information technology industry experts have said there is big disparity between the school curriculum for IT students and what the market wants in Africa, leaving most graduates disadvantaged in the job place.

IT Web Africa quoted a telecommunication consultant Sarah Mudukuti telling a panel of African IT experts at the Mobile East Africa conference in Nairobi, Kenya, that there was a shortage of skill on the continent because of this need gap.

“I think we still need to go back and review our curriculum, as most what is taught there does not reflect on the industry requirements,” Mudukuti,  who is also a trained computer scientist,  said. She added that most of what she learnt in school had to be supplemented with extra reading in order to be updated with the industry standards.

Robert Lamptey, chief executive of Ghanaian startup Saya, told the conference that a lot needs to be done, as most of the current innovators only “know stuff but don’t know how to solve problems.”

“Most developers know different development languages, but most of them still need a lot of training to enhance their problem-solving skills, which is a major requirement for the market,” IT Web Africa quoted Lamptey saying.

Jonathan Endersby, head of special projects at Praekelt,  however said multinationals were to blame for the talent shortage in the industry.

“Qualified engineers are leaving the continent to go work for international companies, leaving very few or no qualified innovators to drive the development agenda,” said Endersby.