Across the African continent, EdTech is emerging not just as a solution, but as a catalyst for reshaping the future of learning. From rural classrooms to urban learning hubs, digital innovations are bridging educational gaps, increasing access, and personalizing learning at scale. In Tanzania, the momentum behind EdTech is gaining traction, driven by a vibrant ecosystem of startups, innovation hubs, development partners, and forward-looking government policy.

At Sahara Consult, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation and Carnegie Mellon University, we believe that for EdTech to realize its transformative potential, it must be tested and validated in real-world environments. With this in mind, in May, 2025 we facilitated a dynamic and collaborative testbed exercise as part of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship Program, engaging 12 Tanzanian EdTech startups from the second cohort of Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship program which includes: TUSOME, TechStar, ChemCheemi, The Cube, TekSafari, HM&Y Technologies, Inspire Hatua, Projekt Inspire, Yana Corp, SADG Africa, Swahili DMakers and Kreative Karakana.

We engaged a total of 29 users, comprising 18 learners, 2 parents and 9 teachers. 4 of the learners were children with disabilities, while 2 of the teachers were from the school for children with disabilities.

Why Testbeds Matter: Bridging Innovation and Impact

While many EdTech solutions embrace human-centered design, there is no substitute for evidence generated through lived experiences. Testbeds serve as critical infrastructure for innovation, they provide a structured yet flexible environment where new tools and platforms can be piloted with actual users, including students, teachers and parents.

In our recent testbed session, EdTech Fellows had the opportunity to deploy their solutions in controlled but authentic learning environments. This direct engagement revealed how solutions performed in real-world contexts, uncovering insights related to usability, curriculum alignment, accessibility, and relevance. Just as importantly, the testbed created a safe space for failure, learning, and iteration, essential ingredients for sustainable innovation.

Tanzania's EdTech ecosystem is evolving rapidly. With increasing mobile penetration, expanding internet access, and growing youth demand for 21st-century skills, the country offers fertile ground for digital learning solutions. Government commitments to digital literacy and ICT in education such as the Education Sector Development Plan and the National Digital Education Strategy, underscore the importance of integrating technology into the national education agenda.

At the same time, Tanzanian EdTech startups face common challenges: limited access to testing environments, funding gaps for product development, and insufficient data to prove efficacy. Testbeds like ours help fill this gap by offering structured opportunities for user feedback, academic validation, and stakeholder engagement, all of which are vital for product- market fit and long-term sustainability.

Testbed Highlights: A Collaborative Learning Space

Our testbed brought together a unique mix of participants; users - including primary and secondary school students, teachers, and parents who interacted directly with the EdTech tools; innovators - the EdTech founders, part of the Fellowship's second cohort, whose solutions ranged from adaptive learning platforms to digital libraries and teacher support tools; researchers - from Carnegie Mellon University, who offered critical insights into learning science, usability testing, and the value of empirical data in evaluating EdTech interventions.

“This was our first time participating in a testbed session, and it was quite insightful, from the interaction we had with the users of our product, we have realized that although our product enhances learning outcomes, there is room for improvement to make it user friendly and more efficient for young learners, for instance the core function of our product is 3D printing, but most of the feedback we received today, is that the users have to navigate multiple functionalities to get to printing. From today's experience, I am positive that testbed sessions are vital for EdTech solutions to successfully design human-centric solutions,” said Joshua Macha, Co-Founder, Swahili DMakers.

The session underscored a fundamental truth: innovation without feedback is guesswork. Founders left the testbed with not just data, but deeper empathy for users, sharper clarity on design improvements, and stronger conviction to create tools that are not only functional, but inclusive and impactful.

Toward Systemic Transformation: Scaling with Policy and Partnership

Testbeds, especially in early stages, are invaluable for refining products. But to drive systemic change, EdTech must go beyond controlled environments. Engagement with public schools, policymakers, and curriculum developers is crucial for aligning solutions with national education goals.

Furthermore, collaboration with teachers and officials from the ministry of Education Science and Technology, ensures that solutions are grounded in community realities and pedagogical best practices. Scaling testbed initiatives to encompass diverse geographies and learning needs will generate the breadth of data required to influence public sector adoption and policy integration.

As Tanzania builds its digital education future, the time is ripe to invest in evidence-based innovation, inclusive testing mechanisms, and public-private collaboration. We envision a future where testbeds are institutionalized as part of the national EdTech development pipeline, integrated into teacher training institutions, innovation hubs, and even university-based research centers. On that note, we call on education stakeholders in the government to collaborate with innovation hubs to coordinate EdTech testbed sessions at a larger scale and ultimately establish a national EdTech sandbox.

Sahara Consult, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, remains deeply committed to supporting innovators and advancing inclusive EdTech ecosystems. Our collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University exemplifies the kind of cross-sector alliance required to scale what works, challenge what doesn't, and ensure that no learner is left behind.

EdTech can transform education in Tanzania and across Africa—but only if we build it with, for, and alongside the people it aims to serve.