Educational Technology (EdTech) has significant potential to improve educational outcomes and address widening skill gaps across the Global South, with significant investments in the sector being made over the last decade. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated growth in the sector,  with remote learning related technology being in high demand.

EdTech presents a wealth of opportunities to enhance learning outcomes by augmenting traditional teaching methods, offering customized learning tools, and enabling more effective monitoring and evaluation through data-driven insights. The potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to revolutionize EdTech is vast—its impact is yet to be fully realized.

Research shows that the impact of these investments on learning outcomes and education management has been inconsistent at best. The push to integrate AI into education and prepare a nation’s workforce to be ‘AI-ready’ has led to the further adoption of technologies and policies related to AI without sufficient time for reflection and learning from best practices. Governments across the Global South face significant challenges in selecting, procuring, and implementing these technologies effectively and at scale. Knowledge gaps, policy uncertainties, and capacity constraints hinder the ability to leverage EdTech for meaningful educational transformation. These challenges highlight the urgent need for targeted capacity-building efforts to help governments make informed decisions about EdTech investments.

Recognizing this need, IDRC launched a three-year global initiative in 2024 aimed at strengthening the capacities of key educational stakeholders — particularly technical teams within ministries of education — to improve learning outcomes and increase access for vulnerable students in low- and middle-income countries. This initiative not only builds technical expertise among policymakers but also fosters the development of policies, tools, guidelines, and frameworks to ensure responsible and effective EdTech implementation.

In Asia, this initiative includes five organizations working at the intersection of education and technology policy. These organizations are leading projects in Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam to address capacity gaps through research, policy development, and training.

In Bangladesh, mPower Social Enterprises (Limited) will develop evidence and tools to enhance the decision-making capabilities of national and sub-national educational authorities in Bangladesh to assess and foster appropriate and effective use of EdTech.

The Cambodian Development Resource Institute (CDRI), with the active involvement of all stakeholders, will generate evidence, develop capacity-building tools and create a community of practice to enhance the capabilities of Cambodian and other regional education decision-makers in evaluating and implementing effective EdTech products and services.

The Foundation for Information Technology Education and Development Inc. (FIT-ED) in collaboration with the Department of Education (DepED) of the Philippines and SEAMEO Innotech will collaboratively develop a continuing professional development (CPD) program for school heads and supervisors on appropriate use of EdTech for subsequent institutionalization by DepED.

In Sri Lanka, LIRNEasia will focus on enhancing the ability of policymakers and national stakeholders to make more informed decisions about two key types of EdTech: educational management information systems, which are established but not well-implemented in the country, and artificial intelligence, which is emerging and not yet fully understood.

The Vietnam National Institute of Educational Sciences’ research will aim to understand  the importance of roles of management personnel, school leaders, and head teachers in facilitating the integration of EdTech in schools, and identify how those roles can be optimised via training interventions.

Rather than operating in isolation, these projects will collaborate as a network, ensuring that collective learning and shared insights create a greater impact than individual efforts alone. Therefore, in addition to its role in leading the Sri Lanka project, LIRNEasia has been selected by IDRC as the Asian partner responsible for bringing these five projects together. Our role includes coordinating network activities, synthesizing knowledge generated from these initiatives, and translating key findings to facilitate cross-country learning within and beyond the network.

About the organisations:

mPower Social Enterprises Limited (mPower) assists organizations and development projects in data-driven process and intervention design, technology development, implementation, and research. It specializes in designing and deploying scalable, sustainable solutions that enable its partners to maximize the impact of their development efforts.

Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI) is a leading independent research institute focusing on development policy in Cambodia. CDRI works to produce independent, objective, high-quality, policy-relevant development research, maximize its accessibility to policymakers, influencers, and stakeholders, and influence policy in five key domains (including education and innovation).

Foundation for Information Technology Education and Development, Inc. (FIT-ED) is a non-profit organization in the Philippines that helps people and communities harness ICTs to enable learning in powerful and meaningful ways. It develops, tests, and replicates sustainable ICT models for improving educational outcomes and broadening access to education.

LIRNEasia is a pro-poor, pro-market digital policy think tank working in several sectors in the Asia-Pacific, focusing on marginalized communities. Key among these are telecom, ICT, and digital policies. For more than 20 years, it has conducted rigorous research, shared evidence-based insights, and engaged stakeholders to drive impactful policy changes through collaboration and advocacy.

Vietnam National Institute for Educational Sciences (VNIES) is a national think tank that advises and assists the Ministry of Education and Training in all areas of operation. It has laid a strong foundation for building a Vietnamese education system that is both modern and reflective of national identity. VNIES helps address priorities within the education system, such as digital transformation.