Addis Ababa: The Validation Workshop on Scalable Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) Practices to End Learning Poverty in Africa was officially opened today. The two-day gathering, held at the African Union Commission (AUC) Headquarters in Addis Ababa from July 22 to 23, 2025, marks a significant step forward in the collective effort to address the continent's learning crisis and ensure that every child acquires the essential foundational skills they deserve by age 10.
According to African Press Organization, the workshop brings together technical experts from 25 Member States, along with representatives from the African Union Commission, UNICEF, the Gates Foundation, and other development partners. The goal is to validate the research findings constituting the mapping of scalable good practices for foundational literacy and numeracy across the continent.
The continental Foundational Literacy and Numeracy mapping resource being validated is an essential step toward reversing the trend of learning poverty. It seeks to gather, synthesize, and spotlight effective, evidence-based, scalable practices that have shown success across diverse African contexts. Examples include structured pedagogy in Uganda, mother-tongue based instruction in Ethiopia, and targeted instruction by learning level in Zambia. These practices are not merely case studies but are considered blueprints with promise for large-scale systemic change, said Prof. Saidou Madougou, Director of the Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (ESTI).
