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Good practice Imported

Airtel Madagascar–UNICEF Digital Learning Partnership (Reimagining Education)

Madagascar · Antananarivo · See the Madagascar profile · See the Antananarivo profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 82% 52/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

A tripartite MOU signed in Feb 2023 by Madagascar's Ministry of Education, UNICEF and Airtel gave free access to a national digital-learning platform, starting with 14,000 students in 15 junior schools; by mid-2025 it had reached 86 schools, 51,000 students and 1,300 teachers.

14,000 students
Students with initial free access to the digital-learning platform (initial rollout, from Feb 2023)
15 schools
Public junior secondary schools in initial rollout (2023)
86 schools
Schools connected (as of Aug 2025)
51,000 students
Students benefiting (as of Aug 2025)
1,300 teachers
Teachers benefiting (as of Aug 2025)
57 million USD
Pan-African 'Reimagining Education' partnership value (13 countries) (multi-year)
50 schools
Schools targeted for infrastructure upgrades under 'Adopt-a-School' (target by 2026)
Airtel Madagascar–UNICEF Digital Learning Partnership (Reimagining Education)

Details

Maturity
Scaling
Promoter
Airtel Madagascar, UNICEF Madagascar & Ministry of National Education (MEN)
Period
2023–present
Keywords
digital education, connectivity, ed-tech, public-private partnership, school infrastructure

Context

In February 2023, Madagascar's Ministry of National Education, UNICEF Madagascar and Airtel Madagascar signed a tripartite MOU to expand access to digital learning, forming Madagascar's part of a $57 million pan-African UNICEF–Airtel Africa 'Reimagining Education' partnership covering 13 countries. The initial rollout gave free access to the Ministry's digital-learning platform for students, their wider communities and all Airtel Madagascar network users.

Activities

The programme connects public junior secondary schools to a free digital-learning platform and network access; the Airtel Foundation's 'Adopt-a-School' initiative separately targets school infrastructure upgrades.

Results

The initial rollout reached around 14,000 students across 15 public junior secondary schools in the Anosy, Atsimo Andrefana and Boeny regions. By August 2025, Malagasy media reported the programme had connected 86 schools, benefiting roughly 51,000 students and 1,300 teachers, with 'Adopt-a-School' targeting 50 schools for infrastructure upgrades by 2026.

Conclusions

These are reach figures from partner press communications rather than an independent evaluation; there is no published data yet on active platform use, learning outcomes, or what happens to connectivity and devices once initial funding phases end.

Implementation
Indicative cost
High (€500k–€5M) — Part of a $57 million pan-African UNICEF–Airtel Africa 'Reimagining Education' partnership covering 13 countries; Madagascar-specific budget not separately stated.
Time to results
Long (> 3 years) — MOU signed 10 February 2023; expanded from 15 schools/~14,000 students to 86 schools/~51,000 students by August 2025; 'Adopt-a-School' infrastructure target of 50 schools by 2026.
Staffing & skills
Madagascar's Ministry of National Education (MEN), UNICEF Madagascar, Airtel Madagascar / Airtel Foundation

Conditions for success

  • Free access provided at no cost to students, their wider communities, and all Airtel network users, removing a cost barrier to platform use
  • Delivered via a tripartite structure combining government (Ministry curriculum/platform ownership), a UN agency (UNICEF technical/coordination support) and a private telecom operator (Airtel network access and Adopt-a-School infrastructure funding)

Common failure modes

  • No published data yet on how many students and teachers actively use the platform or on learning outcomes
  • Unclear what happens to connectivity and devices once initial funding phases end

Where it fits

Governance type
public-private-NGO partnership (government ministry + UN agency + telecom operator)
Scale
national, regional rollout across multiple regions
Income level
low-income (Madagascar)

Commonly funded by

Own resources / municipal budget

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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