The use of education technology (EdTech) presents a significant opportunity to improve learning outcomes and foster socio-economic development in low-and-middle-income-countries (LMICs). The GSMA Mobile for Development in collaboration with the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) undertook research earlier this year to explore the potential of EdTech to address critical issues in the education sector in LMICs, with a case in focus on the Philippines. The Philippines scores among the lowest globally in terms of student performance in reading, science, and mathematics. Underperformance at the school and university level has significant social, developmental and economic impacts, holding back the country’s future workforce and reducing global competitiveness. Digital technologies have the potential to alleviate some of the critical challenges faced in the education sector including poor learning outcomes to disparities in access to education in rural and urban areas, inadequate resources in public schools, teacher shortages and teacher quality, among others.

Digital education is increasingly supplemented student learning both within and outside the classroom, accelerated by extended school closures during the global COVID-19 pandemic. This shift has revealed gaps in implementing digital education tools, and it is important to build an enabling environment for the deployment and scaling of EdTech interventions.

The presentation will present 6 use cases of EdTech being deployed across LMICs, including the Philippines, and spotlight a number of EdTech initiatives in countries including India, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Vietnam. It will present some parameters that may be used by EdTech providers and educators to assess the effectiveness of EdTech solutions, and provide some key recommendations to enhance the adoption of EdTech in LMICs.