Jacquit comes from Andilamena in Madagascar’s rural north. His parents worked in far away villages, so Jacquit had to take care of his brothers and sisters for most of his childhood. As the oldest child, he had to try and balance his own schooling with cooking, shopping, cleaning, and doing the laundry for his six siblings.
Failing to pass the first year of secondary school was a turning point in Jacquit’s life. He became very determined, getting up at 3:30 in the morning to do his homework. In the end, he managed to finish school in the top 1% of his peers.
As a result of his hard work, Jacquit was invited to study with Onja, a social enterprise in Madagascar that trains capable, underprivileged youth into software developers. He was chosen as one of only 19 from across the country.
Growing up was difficult, but I learnt how to deal with problems and to work hard. Sometimes I gave up hope of a better future. But now I am at Onja which is a great opportunity for a good job and a better life.
Over just 2.5 years studying with Onja, Jacquit became a proficient English speaker and skilled software developer. In May 2022, he joined the Who Moves team as a front-end developer, working remotely from Madagascar.
Who Moves is Germany’s first career platform for international IT & tech talents. They match exceptional people with like-minded companies, helping to build dream careers. The job at Who Moves provides Jacquit with an exciting and fulfilling career, and enables him to earn a good salary to help support his family.
I have had a really good experience so far working as a remote front-end developer at Who Moves. What I like the most about my job is that it’s a constant journey of learning and growth. Each day brings new challenges and opportunities to expand my knowledge of cutting-edge technologies.
Jacquit’s initial contract was for one year, but Who Moves were so impressed with his work ethic and his performance in the role that they extended the contract.
Jacquit joined us at an early stage and quickly became the main contributor to our front-end codebase. He is hardworking, always curious and delivers excellent solutions. It is a pleasure to work with him, he is a great fit for any team with high quality expectations for their product and development practices.
We are so proud of Jacquit. Not only is he a valuable part of the Who Moves team, his work shows what can happen when great talent has the opportunity to shine.
To learn more about what Onja does, or to show your interest in hiring one of our talented developers, head to our website at the link below.
Website: onja.org | Facebook: OnjaAfrica
Learn about how Onja's model connects talented young people with remote work in US and European countries...
Learn more about what it's like to work at Onja, and to live as part of our community in beautiful Toamasina.
We talk about why it's valuable to build a socially responsible tech team and explore actionable steps for organisations to achieve this goal, drawing insights from our experience in training talented and underprivileged youth to become software developers in Madagascar.
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