PRESS RELEASE
– FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –
Report sets out innovative EdTech Solutions and policy action required to bridge Africa’s digital divide and enable accelerated scaling
- Innovative approaches are needed to overcome digital infrastructure gaps and scale edtech, including offline-first solutions and localised content delivery.
- As few as 2% of primary schools in Africa are connected to the internet in some countries, demonstrating the urgent need for innovation.
- Policy frameworks need to catch up with practical solutions being implemented to enable scale.
- Open-source platforms, teacher training, quality assurance frameworks, and continent-wide standards can drive growth and adoption.
- Urgent solutions are needed to enable African countries to prepare 23 million additional STEM graduates by 2030 to meet growing demand.
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. May 12, 2025 – A groundbreaking report showcased at the eLearning Africa Conference sets out the interventions needed to overcome critical barriers to scalability for the edtech ecosystem. Significant digital infrastructure gaps across the continent are driving an urgent need for innovation, with some countries reporting as few as 2% of primary schools connected to the internet. The report highlights a wave of innovative approaches that are demonstrating the ability to overcome these barriers to transform education.
The comprehensive study, “Leading Perspectives on the State of Digital Courseware in Low-Resource Countries,” produced by the mEducation Alliance and Spix Foundation, consolidates insights from 41 ministry officials, global experts, donors, and implementers, across eight countries across Africa, including Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, Malawi, Tanzania, Liberia, The Gambia, and Zambia.
“This research is critically important because it identifies both structural barriers and practical solutions that have proven effective across diverse African contexts,” said Anthony Bloome, mEducation Alliance Founder and Executive Director. “By documenting innovations from multiple countries and bringing together voices from across the continent, we can accelerate progress through shared learning rather than reinventing solutions in each country.”
The report highlights that despite resource limitations, African countries are demonstrating significant progress and innovation in digital education. In Kenya, the government’s Digital Literacy Programme (DLP) has provided over 20,000 public primary schools with digital devices and trained more than 75,000 teachers, aiming to integrate technology into the curriculum and foster 21st-century skills among learners. Ghana is leveraging digital courseware through its Learning Management Platform (LMP), developed in collaboration with Zambia, to offer pre-recorded lessons and teaching materials aligned with both countries’ curricula, particularly in mathematics and English for grades 7-9, with plans to expand further. The report also notes that Rwanda is advancing digital education through strong policy frameworks and partnerships, such as with the World Bank, emphasising the need for dedicated educational technology strategies that go beyond general ICT implementation. These country-level efforts exemplify the collaborative and adaptive approaches needed to scale digital learning in low-resource environments, as emphasised throughout the report.
“Our findings reveal both extraordinary innovation and persistent challenges in Africa’s digital education landscape,” said John Kimotho, former Director of Educational Media at Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development. “The COVID-19 pandemic pushed practice ahead of policy across multiple countries, with approaches like mobile phones and social media for education thriving despite lack of formal policy frameworks. We now need to codify these successful practices into comprehensive policies that specifically address interoperability, infrastructure, and culturally relevant content development.”
The report calls for decisive action across multiple fronts, including:
- Development of open-source platforms and data-sharing protocols to enable access to educational content without being locked into proprietary systems
- Prioritisation of offline-first approaches that function seamlessly without requiring continuous internet connection
- Investment in teacher professional development specifically focused on digital pedagogy and practical classroom integration
- Creation of quality assurance frameworks that prioritise accessibility, affordability, and adaptability to local contexts
- Establishment of continent-wide standards for digital learning platforms to improve scalability and compatibility
This research arrives at a critical juncture, as African countries work to prepare 23 million additional STEM graduates by 2030 to meet growing demand in engineering, healthcare, and information technology sectors. According to the World Economic Forum
The full report is available at the mEducation Alliance website here
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Note to editors
About The mEducation Alliance
The mEducation Alliance is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organisation focused on strengthening the education ecosystem to bring wondrous learning. Initially formed in 2010, the mEducation Alliance is the largest multi-stakeholder convening platform for government and donor policymakers, other investors, researchers, and practitioners to work together, particularly in lower-resource, developing country contexts.
About The Spix Foundation
Founded in 2023, the Spix Foundation focuses on empowering individuals through informal, offline, and self-directed learning, with particular emphasis on creating accessible educational opportunities in underserved communities.
For interviews and further inquiries:
- Effie Akinyi | Director of Communications | mEducation Alliance | effie@meducationalliance.org
David Amira | Senior Consultant | Africa Practice | damira@africapractice.com
