How can artificial intelligence (AI), simulation learning and other emerging technologies move beyond promising pilots to create lasting opportunities for young people?
This question was at the heart of a Strategy Lab organized by the UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa (UNESCO ROSA) in collaboration with Nudle during UNESCO Digital Learning Week 2026 in Paris.
Entitled “Beyond the pilot: Scaling simulation and AI learning for inclusive, lasting youth impact,” the session brought together education leaders, practitioners, researchers, technology partners, policymakers and youth representatives to examine what it takes to make digital innovation inclusive, scalable and sustainable in low-re
Higher education institutions across Africa are increasingly expected to prepare young people for rapidly changing, technology-enabled workplaces. Yet many institutions continue to face limited connectivity, uneven infrastructure, constrained budgets, varying levels of educator readiness and unequal access to emerging technologies.
Against this backdrop, the Strategy Lab focused not simply on what new technologies can do, but on a more practical challenge: what does it take for digital innovation to work in different institutional realities and continue beyond the pilot stage?
Participants at the UNESCO Learning Week in Paris, France
Drawing on experiences from UNESCO’s TECH SPARK Africa, Technology Empowerment and Competency Enhancement for Skills, Professional Articulation and Knowledge Innovationinitiative, UNESCO ROSA and Nudle shared examples of how simulation-supported learning, offline AI and cross-device approaches can expand opportunities for practical and workplace-relevant learning.
These examples demonstrated possibilities for institutions where access to specialized training equipment or reliable internet connectivity may be limited. At the same time, they provided a starting point for a broader discussion about the conditions needed for such innovations to be effectively integrated and sustained.
Technology alone is not transformation
A key message emerging from the Strategy Lab was that scaling digital transformation requires more than scaling technology.
Through group discussions, participants considered the realities institutions face when adopting emerging technologies and explored practical conditions for sustainable implementation. Discussions highlighted the importance of infrastructure and connectivity alongside educator capacity, curriculum alignment, accessibility, institutional ownership and long-term sustainability.
Digital transformation matters most when it improves learning and expands opportunities for young people.
This shifts the focus from introducing stand-alone technological solutions towards strengthening the institutional environment in which technology is used. For digital innovation to move beyond a pilot, it needs to respond to local realities, complement existing teaching and learning strategies, and be accessible to both educators and learners.
The discussion also underscored the value of approaches designed for different ree, can help reduce dependence on continuous connectivity or specialized hardware, while simulation-supported learning can complement physical practical training where equipment and opportunities for hands-on practice are limited
Keeping young people at the centre
Ultimately, the value of digital transformation lies not in the sophistication of the technology itself, but in whether it improves learning and expands opportunities for young people.
For UNESCO ROSA, this principle is central to TECH SPARK Africa, which explores how digital technologies and stronger collaboration between higher education and industry can support practical skills development, employability and more equitable access to learning opportunities.
The insights generated through the Strategy Lab will contribute to continued reflection and implementation under TECH SPARK Africa and to wider discussions on how higher education institutions can adopt emerging technologies in ways that are inclusive, context-sensitive and sustainable.
Held under the Digital Learning Week 2026 theme “Education in the age of AI: Facts | Frictions | Frontiers,” the session reinforced a clear message: the frontier is not simply having access to more advanced technology, but making innovation work for more learners, in more contexts, and ensuring that its benefits can last.
Related items
This article is related to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
SDG 4 – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
