As African governments confront declining donor funding and a persistent learning crisis, the Gates Foundation has made foundational learning its top education priority. Benjamin Piper, Director of Global Education at the foundation, spoke with us on the sidelines of the ADEA Triennale in Accra, Ghana, in October 2025, about why investing in early-grade primary literacy and numeracy offers the highest return and why the continent cannot afford to wait.

EA : The statistics are stark: An estimated 90% of African children cannot read or write proficiently. How did we reach this point?

BP : We got here because the system has not fully oriented itself to learning. There are many things that education systems do, but we haven't yet gotten everyone's head focused on the core question of whether or not every child in rural Africa can actually have these essential basic skills. We neglected learning. We neglected instruction. But the evidence is clear, that's a solvable problem.

Many African countries have invested heavily in expanding access to education, building classrooms, and hiring teachers. The infrastructure is there. What's missing is adequate attention to what children are actually learning once they're in those classrooms.

EA : You've described foundational learning as "the basement of the house." What does that mean in practical terms?

BP : Foundational learning is what the rest of education is built on. For young children in the beginning parts of primary school, grades one to three, the question is whether they have the literacy and numeracy skills needed to build the rest of the house. In most countries with good instruction, every child should be able to read, write, and do basic math by age eight or nine. Everything else rests on that foundation. These are crucial skills that unlock a child’s educational success and life outcomes. They unlock potential.

Without these core skills, everything from STEM education to technical training, TVET, and job readiness rests on shaky ground. If you want to fix the situation for children at age 15 to ensure they graduate from secondary school, but they haven't learned the basics at six or seven, it's already too late. They lack the necessary skills.

EA : You've cited successful programs in Zambia, Kenya, and Senegal. What makes them work, and what do they cost?

BP : The learning crisis is fundamentally solvable in Africa. We've seen countries combine the right technical inputs to make real progress, combining this with political will and tangible learning targets communicated down the system. Effective foundational learning programs can cost as little as $4 to $6 per child per year. Now, it's not a magical $6, it has to be spent on the right things.

In most countries with good instruction, every child should be able to read, write, and do basic math by age eight or nine. Everything else rests on that foundation. These are crucial skills that unlock a child’s educational success and life outcomes. They unlock potential.

Zambia's Catch-Up program and Kenya's Tusome initiative are examples of cost-effective interventions that have achieved measurable results through structured lesson plans, teacher training, and strong classroom support. Some provinces in South Africa are experiencing promising results with structured pedagogy. Senegal's ARED program, which recently won the Yidan Prize, has shown substantial impacts with a focus on bilingual education too.
The package includes textbooks, teacher guides, workbooks, and ongoing training and coaching. This can be delivered at $4 to $6 per child per year, with costs decreasing over time as systems mature.

EA :  With donor funding declining, where does financing come from?

BP : Most of the education budget in African countries already comes from domestic resources, largely directed toward salaries, often more than 90% of education budgets. The question now is to make sure that governments can protect education spending so that core elements like textbooks, teacher guides, and training are adequately funded.
While partners such as philanthropy and development agencies can play a supportive role, the primary burden and responsibility remain on governments. I'm encouraged by countries that have decided that this is their problem and they are going to solve it. Many African ministers are already stepping up to protect education budgets and prioritize foundational learning.

EA : The Gates Foundation recently approved a new education strategy. What are your priorities?

BP : Foundational learning is now our top education priority, with a new strategy recently approved by Bill Gates himself. Our focus is on supporting governments, leaders, and local partners in Sub-Saharan Africa and India who are committed to improving learning outcomes.
We're also encouraging greater South-South collaboration, helping African countries learn from each other as well as from nations like India and Brazil. We aim to back African-led efforts such as the new FLIGHT initiative, which empowers governments to design and implement their own evidence-based programs, harnessing African talent.

Foundational learning is the thing to invest in. It's all about what that individual teacher does in the classroom. When we provide teachers with the right materials, support, and training, we see results. Africa's learning crisis can be solved, but only if the continent builds its house on a stronger foundation.

Beyond direct programmatic support, we're investing in innovation projects addressing gaps in numeracy, educational technology, and artificial intelligence. We've launched the Numeracy R&D Program, bringing together partners in seven countries to generate fresh evidence and design effective interventions for early-grade numeracy, an area that has often been neglected compared to literacy.

EA : You mentioned AI. How does that fit into African classrooms that often lack basic infrastructure?

BP : We're investing in responsible AI-based solutions to assist teachers with lesson planning, grading, and language-appropriate instructional support. But for AI to be relevant and effective, local datasets, such as voice samples from African children and teachers, must be used.
We're funding African-based AI datasets that reflect local languages and classroom realities. If we make smart investments, we can make sure it works for our teachers and kids. The technology should serve teachers, not replace them.

EA : What's your message to African education ministers and leaders facing competing budget priorities?

BP : If governments and leaders are worried about secondary education, transition rates to tertiary, or youth unemployment, the evidence suggests that looking at these problems in isolation leads to solutions that come too late. The same child who struggles at 15 could have been taught basic but essential skills at five, six, or seven and would never have to worry about failing exams or lacking job-ready skills. These skills are a gateway for stronger economies.
There's a very close connection between foundational learning and the jobs agenda. Numeracy, the ability to solve problems, is the first step toward STEM education. STEM doesn't begin at 15 or 17. You begin teaching these essential basics when children are quite young and mainly in primary.
Foundational learning is the thing to invest in. It's all about what that individual teacher does in the classroom. When we provide teachers with the right materials, support, and training, we see results. Africa's learning crisis can be solved, but only if the continent builds its house on a stronger foundation.

Interview by Ayi Renaud Dossavi

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