The open nature of this weeks discussion led me through many various searches until I found a site that included elements I was looking for: relatively recent, elearning, business and developing environment.
http://www.medibtikar.eu/+Development-of-the-E-learning-in+.html
This article seems almost like a public relations piece but it contains a number of conditions, according the cube analysis model, indicating that the country of Morocco is a viable and sound market for the development of electronically supported learning.
Market Focus – Private and Public institutions providing e learning for students and employees. I think that areas of vocational training and higher education would provide the major focus area with public schools being targeted at a later time.
Types of Offerings – The majority of use would most likely come in the form of services or “flexible training opportunities to individuals, businesses, and government bodies”.
Who is the buyer? – Increased government sponsorship for elearning projects and the establishment by the finance ministry of a distance learning service indicates a solid ‘lighthouse’ customer. As well, the president of Ibn Zohr University is an advocate for the establishment of a Virtual Moroccan Campus.
Global Markets– I would infer that the infrastructure required to support the development of elearning is not in place as of yet, but Morocco seems to be stable enough and indications from the growing use of information technology favor the continued development of communication technologies including Internet.
Development of the Market– I suspect that at this time Morocco is a market that supports the import of content & infrastructure, although national policies and the need for local content would favor indigenous suppliers if they could meet the needs of the market. It would be interesting to explore why there is such a high cost for the development of training platforms and modules. Is it because these elements have to be imported from other countries or is it due to problems with local companies that have been formed?
Learning Technology Competing with Other Forms of Learning – In this aspect of the cube learning technologies are competing with existing systems. It has been deemed necessary to support the implementation of elearning with personal tutors and it should be recognized that implementations of elearning would complement conventional training already in place.
Anyone been to Morocco lately? What do you think?
