Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa - TESSA

25/08/2026

25/08/2026

Each year, 11 million young people enter Africa’s labour market, but 40% lack the skills employers need. Bridging this gap is urgent.

In Côte d’Ivoire, student Koffi Anaïs had an idea for a medical monitoring kit connecting rural patients with doctors, but lacked the technical expertise to build it. With UNESCO’s support, she completed her prototype.

In Uganda, student Cosmas Kumarwa benefited from the same programme, helping him bring his concept for a bio-organic fertilizer to market.

Across six African countries, UNESCO’s support to higher technical education has reached over 25,000 students and 1,600 teachers. New curricula are helping connect education with employment and giving young innovators in fields from agriculture to healthcare the skills to turn their ideas into impact.

Discover their stories: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/ideas-impact-transforming-higher-technical-education-africas-youth

25/08/2026

The 2026 Youth Report, , published by the UNESCO and UN Youth Affairs, provides the first global measurement of youth and student participation in education decision-making.

The findings show a clear gap between consultation and influence. While many governments report engaging young people during policy design, only 1 in 3 youth and student organisations say their feedback is taken into account, and just 1 in 5 describe their engagement with government as genuinely collaborative.

The evidence points to participation that remains largely symbolic, limiting the role of youth in shaping education policy outcomes.

➡️ Explore more: https://bit.ly/2026youthreport-pub

01/06/2026

We are excited to start the week with brilliant news!

We are excited and proud to announce that 39 African researchers across 14 countries on the continent have been awarded grants under Cohort 1 of the ACSL Research Grants Programme — an initial $865,000.00 commitment to build the evidence base that African school leadership policy and ecosystems urgently need.

For too long, critical decisions about how Africa's school leaders are selected, trained, and supported have been made without the evidence base they deserve.

ACSL has taken a defining step to change that.

This effort responds to what our Continental School Leadership Mapping report confirmed: that school leadership research in Africa is fragmented, underfunded, and often disconnected from the policy decisions it should inform. For instance, 83% of researchers studied school leadership only as part of broader education studies — not as a dedicated field. Cohort 1 of our grant initiative begins to change that.

The 39 grantees — doctoral holders, postdoctoral researchers, and senior research fellows — will pursue studies across eight thematic priorities, from Afrocentric leadership models and indigenous knowledge systems to school leadership in emergencies and crisis contexts. Every grantee is required to produce a policy brief for their national ministry to close the loop between evidence and action.

This is Africa-led research, grounded in African realities, designed to reach the people making decisions.

📖 Read the full announcement: https://africancentreforschoolleadership.org/acsl-commits-865000-in-cohort-1-of-its-school-leadership-research-grant-in-africa-largest-known-investment-in-school-leadership-research-on-the-continent/

📊 In the next few days, we'll share a breakdown of the data behind Cohort 1.

You will also get a chance to meet everyone of our 39 awardees.



Kenya Education Management Institute-KEMI | Unesco International Institute for Educational Planning - IIEP | ADEA - Association for the Development of Education in Africa | Wuod Othim | UNICEF Africa | Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa - TESSA | Transforming Teaching, Education & Learning - Ghana | VVOB - education for development | ESSA - Education Sub Saharan Africa | FAWE Africa | GEM Report Unesco

26/04/2026

Women and girls must have equal access to:

✅ Quality education

✅ Economic resources

✅ Equal opportunities for employment, leadership, and decision-making

26/04/2026

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prospe...

26/04/2026

There is no single policy solution to education exclusion.

Countries that have made the fastest progress did not rely on one reform alone, shows the new 2026 Global Education Monitoring Report.

Instead, they combined multiple policies, including some that are outside of education, covering labour laws, child marriage, health and infrastructure.

Sustained progress depends on coordinated policies, long-term commitment and continued investment.

Explore more solutions for expanding education access and equity:
https://bit.ly/gemreport2026

26/04/2026

1 in 5 students feel anxious about mathematics, with girls reporting higher levels than boys.
PISA 2022 data reveal large gender gaps in maths anxiety in countries such as Denmark, France, Germany and Norway, while in others, including Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Cambodia, the gap is minimal.

The effects are tangible. Maths anxiety is linked to lower performance, weaker confidence and more limited subject choices.

Over time, this shapes outcomes: women represent just 35% of STEM graduates globally, a figure that has barely shifted in a decade ( data).

Beliefs play a powerful role. When girls internalize the idea that boys are better at maths, their performance declines. Teacher expectations and textbook bias can reinforce these perceptions.

Maths anxiety is neither innate nor inevitable. It is socially shaped and therefore policy-responsive.

Engaging parents, training teachers and reviewing curricula are practical steps towards creating learning environments where confidence grows alongside competence.

➡️ Explore more in the by Anna Cristina d'Addio, PhD: https://bit.ly/3XRxDJ3

26/04/2026

26/04/2026

Women and girls don't just use technology, they build it. ✨

Today is International Girls in ICT Day, and this year's theme says it all: "AI for Development: Girls shaping the digital future."

Artificial intelligence is transforming our world. But who gets to be at the table when it's designed? Girls and young women must be co-creators of this future, not bystanders to it.

UNGEI believes that when girls have access to education and can pursue the career of their choice, they can transform a sector and help communities thrive, economies grow and change a better future for all.

How are you celebrating Girls in ICT Day? Drop it in the comments 👇