Empowering Educators and Learners in Sub-Saharan Africa
For technology to transform education, educators and students must have the skills to harness its potential. With over 60 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s population under the age of 25, the continent is home to more young learners than anywhere else. Here’s how we are investing in local innovation and equipping teachers across the region to shape the future of learning through equitable access and training.
Building Tailored AI Tools to Support Foundational Literacy
Today, we are announcing a new partnership between Google DeepMind and Fab AI, supported by joint funding from Google.org and the Gates Foundation. Fab AI, a non-profit dedicated to education in low- and middle-income countries, will lead a cohort of local innovators across Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa to develop bespoke AI tools built on open Gemma models. Google DeepMind will support the work with compute credits and technical expertise in areas where AI has the potential to support teachers in areas proven to positively impact learning outcomes.
In large, resource-constrained classrooms across the region, access to generative AI tools run on small language models (SLMs) offers a powerful solution. They can operate on low-cost devices and adapt directly to local languages and national curricula. Local developers will focus on tools that support three core areas for educators: planning high-quality curriculum-aligned lessons, providing timely diagnostic feedback and assessment, and offering practice-based teacher coaching.
The program aims to support up to 500 teachers and 15,000 students in its first phase, with the potential to reach over 2 million learners in the future. We will share resulting datasets, evaluation suites, and open-source models publicly so the wider education ecosystem can adapt and scale them.
Expanding the Google AI Educator Series Across Sub-Saharan Africa
Keeping educators at the center of learning also means equipping them with the skills to navigate new technology with confidence. That is why we are expanding our free Google AI Educator Series to teachers across Sub-Saharan Africa, beginning with teachers in South Africa in partnership with the South African Council for Educators (SACE).
Delivered via virtual and in-person sessions, the curriculum is designed by educators, for educators. It gives teachers practical ways to responsibly integrate AI into their work—helping them craft engaging lessons, streamline administrative work, and tailor instruction to diverse learning needs while earning micro-credentials along the way. Following the South Africa launch, we plan to expand the series to Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana in 2027, working with partners including Ubuntu Hub to engage educators. By strengthening local partnerships and supporting continued learning beyond initial training, the initiative aims to help educators translate AI skills into meaningful classroom practice.
