Iraq is going through a transition. Digital transformation is taking hold across many fronts: electronic payments are growing, digital learning is no longer unfamiliar, electricity bills are paid online in some areas, and apps for taxis, food, and e-commerce have become part of daily life. Even at the government level, many institutions have raised the banner of digital transformation.
The challenge here is digital illiteracy — and to understand it we have to start with illiteracy itself. There are frightening figures suggesting that more than 20% of Iraqis cannot read or write, and young people make up the largest share. To fight digital illiteracy alongside basic illiteracy, we have to change how we communicate with every group: moving beyond written and printed guidance alone to include instructional videos, courses, and bulletins that meet people where they are.
That is where the idea of Raqami began — a social-media platform that publishes guidance for navigating the digital world through written posts and videos, and that now offers courses on a range of digital topics via the Cisco Academy. Raising digital awareness helps create jobs and ultimately feeds the digital economy.
It started as a conversation over tea between Niall Ardill, Hayder Akab, and me, and grew into a partnership between Irada Foundation, the Communications and Media Commission, GIZ Iraq, Zain Iraq, the Cisco Networking Academy, and Computiq.
Three months after the official launch, the Instagram posts alone reached more than 1.5 million people, and over 200 young people enrolled in the Cisco courses. We've begun working on other platforms and more content with Yawash Agency. The door is open to everyone to take part, so we can reach all 46 million people and help protect and educate them digitally.