Teachers across all 15 counties in Liberia are now enrolled in a virtual training programme designed to equip them with educational technology skills, marking one of the most ambitious edtech rollouts in West Africa.
The Spix Foundation, a non-profit focused on digital education infrastructure, launched its inaugural RESPECT Teacher Training Program on 16 February 2026 in partnership with Liberia’s Ministry of Education. The course, titled “Foundations of Educational Technology: Innovating Teaching and Learning in the Digital Age,” is led by Peter Bushnell, a master trainer specialising in ICT integration in education.
Practical modules for low-resource classrooms
The programme comprises 7 practical modules covering edtech foundations and evolution, lesson design for low-resource settings, learning theories incorporating learning management systems (LMS) and mobile apps, ethics and data privacy, and the RESPECT Vision for resilient infrastructure. It is specifically designed for rural teachers who face large class sizes, limited devices, and inconsistent internet connectivity.
The self-paced course includes daily online facilitators, interactive forums, and live sessions to support participants. RESPECT, the foundation’s open source digital library for edtech applications, underpins the training framework, similar to initiatives that have equipped teachers across Ghana with digital skills.
Government backing from Monrovia
Liberia’s Minister of Education, Dr Jarso Maley Jallah, was instrumental in facilitating the launch. The ministry’s team, including Minister Amos Fully, Assistant Minister Nathaniel Cisco, Director Sangay Faeflen, and Director Julia Sandiman, collaborated with the Spix Foundation to bring the programme to fruition.
“Teachers across Liberia are excited about this training and the new opportunity it introduces. They are committed to integrating education technology into their classrooms and using the RESPECT framework to strengthen teaching and learning,” Nathaniel Cisco, Assistant Minister at Liberia’s Ministry of Education, said.
Continental ambitions
The Spix Foundation described the Liberia programme as a first step toward building Digital Public Infrastructure for Education (DPI-Ed) across the continent, with the stated goal of training and certifying every teacher in Africa. The initiative joins a growing wave of edtech investment on the continent, as organisations seek to address the digital skills gap in African classrooms.
Liberia’s participation follows broader momentum in African edtech, including Kenya’s digital transformation partnerships and efforts to build sustainable edtech businesses tailored to the continent’s unique infrastructure challenges.
