The Africa Digital Access Initiative

The inclusive design of ICT infrastructures is an  opportunity for a better future for young people . The youth also play an important role in developing innovative solutions to address local and global sustainability challenges. Therefore equipping the youth with information and communications technologies (ICTs), data analysis, and other technical skills is vital to the efficiency of practical solutions that can build a sustainable future.

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” Education is at the heart of the 2030 Agenda and has mobilized efforts to ensure that learners everywhere gain the knowledge and skills they need. This StoryMap features two organizations that joined forces to address data gaps related to SDG 4.

SDSN  SDGs Today  launched My School Today to support students, local communities, and governments to geo-reference their schools and education facilities as part of an effort to promote timely information on school locations in Africa. The goal is to promote community and government engagement in the ongoing development of a non-traditional dataset and learn how we can work with education ministries, statistical offices, and other stakeholders to complement official data sources and build technical capacity.

 OSM Uganda , an active partner of the My School Today project has developed a program that integrates geospatial information and ICT skills in educational curricula beyond mapping schools. Earlier in 2022, they launched Africa Digital Access Initiative (ADAI), which provides ICT training and improving access to computers to bridge the digital divide in education.

ADAI seeks to solve the challenge of low access by improving access to ICT equipment, mainly computers (Laptops), to schools and institutions that do not have the financial capacity to buy and maintain computers on their premises. Also, by providing tailor-made digital skills training sessions for schools, universities, and other institutions.

Investing, setting up, and maintaining a computer lab in most schools in Uganda and Africa at large is quite a capital-intensive endeavor. In Uganda, it is estimated that less than 10% of schools have well-stocked and functioning computer labs. Uganda has over 15 million school-going children. It's estimated that only 5% of these children have proper access to computers.  It's also estimated that about 50% of people that join Ugandan universities have not interacted with or do not know how to operate a computer. This is highly attributed to a lack of access to functional computers from an early stage of education.

Through ADAI, schools and institutions hire and pay for ICT education on demand. This system allows schools to pay for computers and skilled trainers only when they need them. For example, after a school has been enrolled, they gain access to the program’s pool of ICT equipment and trainers on a rotational basis, i.e. School A uses the computers on Monday for training in all the classes, on Tuesday School B is scheduled to use them, and subsequently a different school for each day of the week. In addition, school teachers acquire technology skills tailored to improve their work on weekends and during holidays. Thus, our shared basis access model.

The program’s ICT  trainers are equipped with the necessary ICT equipment needed to execute a computer lesson. The equipment includes laptops, tablets or phones, and projectors. The team is also responsible for transporting the computers and trainers to the different schools that are signed up for the program. A school does not need to have large capital funds to set up, run and teach computer classes.

The shared basis access model is supported by the ratio of 1 computer to 3 students at a time. The school is charged $10 USD per laptop for a school day. On top of that, we provide services of tailored ICT studies in relation to both computer studies and geography, Google suite services such as Google Docs, spreadsheets, and meetings that improve collaborative work, especially for teachers.

ADAI is a teacher-led innovation that helps to ensure the sustainability of the program. The initial activities start with equipping teachers with ICT skills through tailor-made training. Over 100 teachers have completed training in the past 6 months of implementation.

Over 30 schools signed up for our program, and we have carried out ICT training in 8 schools. Over 800 students have received training in basic computing skills. 

In order to improve the uptake of STEM lessons among girls, which is specifically very low in Uganda, there are 3 (all-girls) schools in the program currently.  ADAI currently has a pool of 40 laptops and has put in an order for 40 more laptops to enable ADAI to carry out more training in more schools.

My School Today training material and activities are offered as part of ADAI's curriculum. Students participate in mapping schools and other services, contributing to the development of the My School Today dataset.

YOU can support the ADAI by supporting one of the action items below!

1. Inviting organizations, individuals, and institutions that can provide equipment to supplement the current pool of computers. The call includes those willing to donate, but also those who can lend the equipment for a short period of time to be used and returned. 

2. We encourage education-promoting organizations and government agencies to embrace our model of computer training and integrate the use of a shared basis model for ICT equipment for schools that are not able to own their own equipment. 

3. Call to action for education-supporting organizations, institutions, and NGOs to share grants and funding opportunities for some schools to access the pool of equipment ADAI offers.