Engeza: delivering lasting impact through technical assistance

Engeza was established to respond to this challenge. It was launched by the Gates Foundation in April 2024 as a two-year technical assistance (TA) fund mechanism, and managed by edt, which provided technical, managerial, and financial oversight. The programme delivered on-demand TA to large-scale foundational learning initiatives across SSA, that were led by, or closely aligned with, government priorities and grounded in evidence.

Engeza’s purpose was to provide targeted, short-term support to governments and development partners at points where better technical input could strengthen the quality and impact of existing or planned investments. The programme was demand-led, but it was also actively managed: edt supported outreach, request shaping, provider identification, assignment design, quality assurance, and learning.

Following Engeza coming to an end in April 2026, in this report, we reflect on the programme’s achievements as well as its lessons. We explore what the programme demonstrated about the potential of short-term TA in today’s education reform landscape – particularly that it can be catalytic when timely, well scoped, technically credible, and aligned with government priorities. A lot of value can also be gained from prioritising local expertise, but due to a limited pool of providers with specialised skills in high-demand areas, there is also a need to build and strengthen an Africa-based TA provider ecosystem.

The report also reflects on what it takes to run an effective technical assistance mechanism, including specific recommendations for future initiatives. These include – but are not limited to – targeting interventions where technical input can improve the effectiveness of larger investments, as well as using mixed delivery models that balance regional expertise and specialist capacity.