Education financing in Africa must move beyond expanding access to ensuring that technology broadens opportunity rather than deepens inequality, the Regional Portfolio Director for Africa at Luminate, Toyin Akinniyi, has said.
Speaking at the Bold Action Session on Education during the Sterling One Foundation hosted 2026 Africa Social Impact Summit in Lagos, Akinniyi challenged policymakers, development partners and private sector leaders to place equity at the centre of education investments as artificial intelligence and digital technologies rapidly reshape learning and employment.
“Africa has the youngest population on Earth. Education remains one of the clearest levers we have for the future we say we want,” she said. “The question we must keep asking is whether the technologies we are funding expand opportunity or gradually narrow it for those least able to push back.”
She warned that the rapid pace of technological innovation is outstripping the ability of many education systems to adapt, creating a widening gap between classroom learning and the demands of future labour markets.
According to Akinniyi, the intersection between education and technology should become a priority for governments, philanthropies and investors because decisions taken today will determine both who gains access to quality education and who will build tomorrow’s technologies.
“Get that intersection right, and we compound progress. Get it wrong, and we compound our current socioeconomic challenges,” she said.
She noted that every investment in education technology should be assessed against a fundamental question: whether it expands access to quality education or reinforces existing inequalities.
Akinniyi said Luminate’s partnership with the Sterling One Foundation through the Business Coalition for Education reflects the need for governments, philanthropy, business and civil society to work together to build more inclusive education systems.
The session formed part of discussions on sustainable education financing at the Africa Social Impact Summit, where participants examined how investment models can deliver long term learning outcomes while preparing young Africans for an increasingly digital economy.
With Africa projected to account for the world’s largest youth population over the coming decades, speakers at the session stressed that education financing must evolve beyond funding classrooms to supporting innovation, digital inclusion and equitable access to opportunities in the future workforce.
