Elimu-Soko Classroom Innovation Funding

Elimu-Soko Classroom Innovation Funding is sponsored by Elimu-Soko. Offers grants to organizations developing low-cost, scalable solutions for teacher professional development in African public schools.

Elimu-Soko | Building resilient African education systems Building resilient education systems in Africa. We match government priorities with proven innovations to create sustainable solutions for quality education across Africa. Rwanda: Scaling teacher training In 2021, we worked with the Government of Rwanda to improve the quality of foundational learning.

Partnering with Rising Academy to provide education skills training on a pilot project, reached 18,000 students, 260 teachers and 40 school leaders . In 2023-24, the Government of Rwanda approved scaling up this program.

Zanzibar: Scaling teacher training In 2023, we worked with the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar to improve the quality of foundational learning with our partner TeachUNITED, who provided education skills training on a pilot project. 20,000 students , 200 teachers , and 40 schools were reached. The government has approved the scaling up of this program.

Government partnerships provide the infrastructure, policies, and resources needed to reach larger populations — all essential for scaling impactful educational initiatives. Targeted educator skills and improved leadership capabilities transform local schools and communities. Higher literacy and numeracy skills improve the education and employability of young people across Africa.

We bridge the gap between successful small-scale education initiatives and government needs. ​ Drawing on decades of experience, we identify evidence-driven, cost-effective innovation and work with governments to ​pilot projects that match their priorities. Successful pilots are the seed for scale, driving systemic change in education.

This leads to: We have decades of experience working with African governments, within the education system, and alongside the non-public sector. We combine evidence-based innovation with user-centric solutions, based on demonstrable impact. We turn the success of the small into a sustainable systems-change initiative.

A scalable, sustainable model that draws together systems and evidence with government and education experience. We are: In 2021, we launched Elimu-Soko – meaning 'education-market' – to align education interventions with government priorities. Since then we have seen the success of our model implemented across Rwanda and Zanzibar, leading to resilient school systems, effective educators, and thriving learners.

By understanding and aligning with government needs, we can identify, pilot, and scale proven initiatives to meet those needs. Working with education innovators who are already demonstrating success, we are able to introduce new solutions, and monitor and evaluate their effectiveness. Scaling up solutions with demonstrable impact bridges the gap between small-scale initiatives and large-scale implementation.

We are able to match and align with each government's specific priorities and provide sustainable, scalable solutions to the specific education challenges they are facing. Elimu-Soko is registered as a pan-African NGO in South Africa and has received a 501(c)(3) Equivalency Determination.

This strengthens our ability to partner with governments and education innovators across the continent, while ensuring resources can be channeled effectively to scale proven solutions. Elimu-Soko is powered by a diverse team of strategists, researchers, and innovators working to expand access to quality learning across Africa and reimagine how education is designed, delivered, and sustained.

Teaching Innovation Lab: EOI FAQs Answers to common questions from our Teaching Innovation Lab EOI info session, covering submission details, eligibility, and how to align with system realities. Teaching Innovation Lab: EOI Info Session Learn how to submit your Expression of Interest to test and scale teacher-focused innovations. This session walks through priorities, eligibility, and key considerations.

Teaching Innovation Lab: Expressions of Interest Open call for innovators to propose and test scalable, affordable approaches to improving foundational literacy and numeracy instruction in public systems. Teaching Innovation Lab: Innovation Agenda A working framework that sets the priorities, evidence base, and design principles guiding the Teaching Innovation Lab.

Press Release: Pan-African Facility for Teacher Training Innovations Elimu-Soko and the Gates Foundation partner to scale cost-effective teacher training innovations across Africa. The Learning Curve: September 2025 UNGA Newsletter Dive into our special edition UNGA 2025 newsletter for key insights into funding shifts, government priorities, and what's next for education in Africa.

Blog: Unlocking Government Resources to Scale-Up Innovations How can we scale what works in public education without relying on aid? The Learning Curve: June 2025 Newsletter Catch up on our latest milestones, partnerships, and lessons we're learning in this edition of the Elimu-Soko newsletter.

Blog: Power in Partnerships – Collaborating to Build Education System Capacity in Zanzibar, Tanzania Sustainably Read the pilot project insight report.

Technology, Content, and Pedagogy to Amplify Drivers of Equitable, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Elimu-Soko: Pioneering Government-Led Educational Innovation in Rwanda Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) Our founding partner, with a large network of specialists across the continent with targeted, in-depth support in each country.

The initiative originated from a strategy review by the Hempel Foundation, which elevated scale as a primary focus for the foundation to address the rapidly escalating learning crisis. Rising Academy Network was our first implementing partner and worked with the Rwandan government to provide teacher training to 40 schools across the country.

TeachUNITED our implementing partner in Zanzibar, provides access to innovative research-based instructional strategies through long-term capacity-building, to train and equip educators. Rwanda Ministry of Education Zanzibar Ministry of Education and Vocational Training We know what it takes to test, refine and deliver scalable education innovation aligned with government priorities. Are you ready to partner with us?

Deep understanding of governments Deep understanding of the ecosystem of education innovators Utilizing a Results-Based Investments (RBIs) approach Small-scale education initiatives are failing without government backing or long-term funding. Donor fatigue sets in, funding is reduced, and successful pilot projects end before achieving scale.

We work differently by ensuring results-based pilots don't simply end, but transform into scalable, self-funded initiatives that drive lasting change across education systems.