Taokudi QA Academy brings together more than a decade of hands-on quality engineering, experience delivering on UK public-sector digital programmes, and a long-standing commitment to developing technology talent across Africa.
Taokudi QA Academy was not created from a course template. It grew out of years spent building software, testing complex systems, supporting delivery teams and helping people develop practical technology skills.
Before the current QA Academy, Shafar had already taught more than 100 students across Africa in areas including software engineering, cybersecurity and digital skills. The support went beyond lessons: where possible, students were also helped with practical barriers such as laptops, internet connectivity and learning costs.
That experience shaped an important belief behind Taokudi: talent is everywhere, but access, structure and opportunity are not. Good training therefore has to do more than explain concepts. It should help people practise, build evidence of their skills and understand how professional teams actually work.
“The goal has always been bigger than teaching a tool. It is about giving people the skills, confidence and evidence to create better opportunities for themselves.”
The Academy is built around lessons drawn from real software delivery, public-sector programmes, automation engineering and product development.
Shafar studied Software Engineering at Brunel University, including Artificial Intelligence, software development, algorithms and systems, and later gained ISTQB Foundation certification.
Over more than a decade, Shafar has worked as a QA Automation Engineer and consultant across complex organisations and UK public-sector digital programmes, including Home Office-related delivery, as well as experience with BAE Systems Digital Intelligence and private-sector software teams.
Alongside professional delivery work, Shafar built an education initiative focused on helping learners develop practical technology skills, with training spanning software engineering, cybersecurity and digital skills.
Taokudi QCC — the Quality Command Centre — brings application quality, automated testing, defects, execution evidence and release readiness together. In the Academy, it gives students a realistic environment for practising the complete QA workflow.
Shafar is a Software Quality Assurance Consultant, Test Automation Engineer and software builder whose career has spanned quality engineering, software delivery, AI and technology consulting.
Working across government and commercial environments has shaped the way Taokudi teaches: understand the business risk, test what matters, automate intelligently, gather evidence and communicate quality in a way that helps teams make decisions.
The Academy takes those lessons and turns them into structured practice—so students are not only able to talk about QA concepts, but can demonstrate how they would work inside a real delivery team.
Our programmes are designed around the gap that often exists between completing a course and contributing confidently inside a professional software team.
Students work with realistic applications, APIs, automation, SQL, CI/CD, defects and evidence rather than learning tools in isolation.
Projects, repositories, test evidence and portfolio work help students show employers what they can actually do.
Technical learning is supported by CV, LinkedIn, interview and career preparation so the skills connect to real opportunities.
Equip learners with the confidence, judgement and engineering skills needed to contribute to modern software quality from day one.
Build a respected platform for QA education, talent and quality-engineering capability across Africa and beyond.
Taokudi QA Academy combines the standards of professional quality engineering with the belief that more people should have access to meaningful technology careers.
