Ruto puts Kenya at centre of Accra Reset push to make African skills portable

NAIROBI, Kenya - President William Ruto announced that Kenya would spearhead the implementation of Masterkey, a digital platform aimed at making African skills, qualifications, and work experience portable across borders. Addressing the Accra Reset’s high-level convening during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, Ruto emphasized that Masterkey serves as a publicly governed digital skills and work wallet, allowing individuals to securely share verified records of their qualifications and employment experiences with employers and other authorized parties.

Highlighting the importance of African leadership in shaping technology and governing rules, Ruto stated that the initiative would help scale African capabilities and open up cross-border opportunities. Masterkey will operate through Kenya’s eCitizen platform, with core access and sharing designed to be free for citizens. A pilot program will focus on integrating existing training and employment channels before a broader rollout.

The initiative aligns with the Accra Reset and Global Reset Dialogues, emphasizing the connection of domestic employment, remote work, and lawful international mobility. It aims to enable participants to issue verifiable records that can be checked for issuer authenticity and status, allowing individuals to accumulate career records across different platforms and institutions.