The COVID-19 pandemic demands a significant shift in how we live, work, and socialize. It has therefore made it necessary for society to prioritize innovation to meet immediate challenges caused by the pandemic. The ensuing response is also producing inspiring innovative solutions, catalysing the use of digital technologies, proving that necessity is indeed the mother of invention. 

Between June and August 2020, we conducted a deep dive into sectors on the African continent that have been significantly affected by the impact COVID-19 using a 5-step sectoral approach analysis. This approach provided a mechanism to identify the challenges associated with the pandemic, review interventions and innovations in the select countries, and measure how these interventions were supported, compared to the strength of the sectoral innovation systems in each of the countries. The 5-step sectoral approach analysis compiled insights from key stakeholder interviews, desk research, Twitter sentiment analysis, and a qualitative survey. The analysis covered Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, and South Africa. More about our methodology and approach can be found here.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), COVID-19 closures have affected about 70% of the world’s student population – which is approximately 1.2 billion students across 146 countries. Here are some of the innovations in the education sector that private, public and international institutions resorted to as a result of the pandemic:

Kenya:

1. To support the continued learning of students during the closure of schools, Longhorn eLearning Platform provided access to its curriculum platform.
2. Kenya used EduTV Kenya and Kenya Education Cloud to enhance teaching and learning for its 15 million students out of school as a result of the closure of schools.
3. The fact that the post-COVID-19 world will be more digital, and every business seeks to digitise it’s learning experience, Tustawi has developed a state of the art and user-friendly platform that keeps employees’ focus on acquiring the knowledge and skills they need to perform and remain competitive.

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