Accenture (NYSE: ACN) and Expo 2020 Dubai have committed to hosting 2,020 hours of coding tutorials for UAE-based primary school students before the World Expo opens on Oct. 20, 2020. The ‘2020 Hours of Code’ initiative will help students build invaluable critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, useful to all students regardless of their career interests.

The ‘2020 Hours of Code’ initiative, announced during the UAE Innovation Month 2019, extends an ongoing partnership between Expo 2020 Dubai and Accenture. As Digital Services Premier Partner and Systems Integrator for Expo 2020, Accenture will host coding skills development sessions for young learners across the Emirates in the time leading up to Expo 2020, enabling them to develop coding and computer science skills in a fun and engaging environment.

“We are proud to announce this important initiative that builds on our robust partnership with Expo 2020,” said Gerardo Canta, who leads Accenture’s Communications, Media & Technology practice in the Middle East & Turkey. “As the UAE strives to cement its position as a digital hub in the region, it is essential that our youth are fluent in coding to meet these aspirations. Though delivering more than 2,000 hours of coding is an ambitious target, it is a testament to our passion and commitment to equipping this nation’s youth with the right tools to succeed.”

Delivered in collaboration with the Expo School Programme, the weekly sessions will take place at the Expo 2020 Dubai Visitor Centre. In addition to providing computers for the sessions, Accenture will lead tutorials in both Arabic and English to ensure that all participating students benefit from the experience.

Mohammed Alhashmi, Expo 2020’s chief technology officer for Innovation and Future Technology, said: “In line with Expo’s theme of ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’, the 2020 Hours of Code initiative will enable young people to explore exciting concepts while developing new skills that will empower them in their future careers. Together with Accenture, we aim to help take our youth’s digital literacy to the next level.”

In recent years, coding has become an important focus for the UAE’s leadership, with the launch of initiatives such as ‘One Million Arab Coders’, announced in 2017 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Accenture has participated in Hour of Code initiatives since 2015. Last year, nearly 2,500 Accenture employees committed to teach an hour of code at local events in their communities, helping to inspire more than 100,000 students around the world to learn coding and computer science skills.