In December 2024, Sahara Consult in partnership with Mastercard Foundation closed the first chapter of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship with an impactful Demo Day which allowed participants from the first cohort of the program to showcase their innovative technology-enabled education solutions to stakeholders. In attendance were, education stakeholders, EdTech entrepreneurs, government representatives, development partners, academicians, students, technology providers, media as well as investors and venture capitalists.

The Demo Day was an exhilarating event which entailed thought-provoking dialogue sessions which delved into the Tanzania EdTech ecosystem, with panelists deliberating on some of the areas that would require collaborative efforts to attain an inclusive EdTech ecosystem with potential for robust growth in the near future. The key topics of discussion focused on: EdTech Ecosystem and the Future of Education, Access to Finance in EdTech, as well as Gender Inclusion and People with Disabilities in EdTech.

Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Amos Nungu, Director General COSTECH (Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology) commended the EdTech startups for the great milestones and linking their solutions with the government policy in digitizing teaching technology by ensuring equitable and inclusive education for all.

In his remarks, Sahara Consult CEO, Mr. Jumanne Mtambalike averred that, “Sahara Consult would continue to work closely with the government and education stakeholders to ensure that in the near future, Tanzania has a robust EdTech ecosystem with solutions that are tailor-made for Tanzania's context and inclusive for all learners and users.”

Eliud Chemweno, Head, EdTech Ecosystem at the Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning emphasized the urgency of having a digitized technology in the education system, saying: “Given the current wave of technological advancement across the globe, there is a necessity to integrate education innovation with government education policies to realise the full potential of EdTech ecosystem in the education sector.”

The first cohort of Tanzania's Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship comprised 10 EdTech startups that presented their innovative education solutions that address various challenges towards access to quality education. The solutions ranged from school management systems to STEM kits. The EdTech startups which were part of the program were:Taifa Tek, MITzKITS, Kilimanjaro Planetarium, Smartdarasa, Shule Yetu, Smartcore, ShuleSoft, Fiqra Academy, Infotaaluma and Mtabe .

The Fellows shared their success stories since joining the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship. Musa Mishamo, founder of Kilimanjaro Planetarium, an EdTech startup which focuses on space science has managed to expand their reach to underserved communities in the Maasai land of rural Tanzania, giving young students in one of the most under-resourced rural Tanzania, opportunity to learn practically about space science.

Mishamo's platform is one example of hundreds of solutions that the country can leverage to expand reach to learners in under-resourced areas.

As Sahara Consult kicks-off implementation of cohort 2 of the acceleration program, the tech hub looks to engage more EdTech startups keen on reaching the most marginalized groups of learners and users through their innovative EdTech solutions. As an implementing partner of the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship in Tanzania, and a thought-leader in the EdTech ecosystem, Sahara Consult is working closely with the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and innovation to explore Tanzanian EdTech startups that would bring impact in education by participating in the program.