The problem
South Sudan has among the lowest connectivity and electrification rates in the world. Internet penetration sits at 13.2%, mobile coverage is concentrated along a few corridors, and most teachers have never used a digital device professionally. Standard EdTech playbooks assume infrastructure that doesn't exist here. UNICEF and MoGEI needed an evidence base that told the truth about these constraints, and a delivery model built for them rather than around them.
What I did
I led the Digital Learning Landscape Assessment: a mixed-methods study combining a structured desk review, key informant interviews across government, telecoms, and implementing partners, and analysis of national connectivity and device-access data. The KII synthesis covered mobile network coverage, teacher digital skill levels, and the state of the education management information system: the operational realities that determine whether any digital intervention survives contact with the field.
The assessment fed directly into strategy. Rather than recommending device distribution or platform procurement, I designed the County Digital Learning Hub model: solar-powered, offline-first centres located at county level, serving teachers for continuous professional development and out-of-school adolescents in accelerated learning programmes. Content syncs opportunistically when connectivity allows; everything else runs locally. Every design decision was tested against two principles: inclusive by design (closing the gender gap in device access, provision for learners with disabilities) and offline-first as the default, not the fallback.
The work also covered the policy layer: alignment with South Sudan's General Education Strategic Plan and analysis of the child online safety implications of the Cybercrime and Computer Misuse Act (2026), so the model could move from recommendation to a government-owned programme.
Deliverables
- National Digital Learning Landscape Report (UNICEF/MoGEI)
- County Digital Learning Hub model: technical design, siting logic, and phasing
- KII synthesis matrix and data-gap resolution framework
- Policy and child online safety analysis
Why it matters
Most EdTech strategies in fragile states fail because they're written for the infrastructure the authors wish existed. This one starts from 13.2% penetration and designs upward. The result is a model a ministry can own, a donor can fund, and a county education office can actually run.
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