In Nigeria, only 22% of tech graduates are female (National Bureau of Statistics 2022), reflecting deep-seated cultural biases, lack of training support, and socioeconomic barriers such as early marriage and limited access to digital tools. Recognizing this digital gender divide, SustainHerbility Tech Academy (STA) was created to bridge the gap by empowering marginalized rural girls with 21st-century digital skills. Our innovation aims to equip girls aged 9-14 with mobile app development, coding, leadership training, and norm-shifting education that challenges societal stereotypes.
Through a four-phase model of preparation, training, community engagement, and evaluation, STA ensures sustainable impact by not only training the girls but also enabling them to create localized mobile apps addressing real-life community issues. The innovation also promotes gender-inclusive education advocacy by engaging stakeholders like school administrators and the Ministry of Education. SustainHerbility Tech Academy positions its beneficiaries as future innovators and role models, contributing to a pipeline of empowered, tech-savvy female leaders capable of driving change in their communities and beyond. Our efforts were recently recognized by the United Nations Global Youth Initiative, which named STA one of the Top 50 Young Education Innovations in Nigeria, reinforcing our mission to empower rural girls through tech.
SustainHERbility Tech Academy (STA) is a gender-responsive EdTech model advancing digital inclusion in underserved communities. In rural Nigerian schools where girls are often excluded from technology, STA delivers a three-pronged approach: norm-shifting education, digital skills training, and community innovation.
Through interactive sessions, girls challenge societal barriers and develop practical skills in user interface design, mobile app development, and AI literacy. The curriculum is adapted to low-resource settings, with laptops provided and structured internet access to bridge the digital divide.
Since its inception in 2024, STA has empowered 40 rural girls in 2 southwestern states in Nigeria. Girls move from learning to building. Each cohort designs localized mobile apps addressing community needs, from literacy tools for children to platforms that spark STEAM interest. Their work culminates in a Tech Exhibition where they present innovations to peers, parents, Ministry of Education representatives, and school administrators, advocating for gender-inclusive tech education.
Baseline, midline, and endline surveys track shifts in skills acquisition and gender attitudes in the beneficiaries. By embedding STA into school systems and collaborating with stakeholders, we ensure that the model remains scalable, sustainable, and adaptable across diverse underserved communities.
SustainHERbility Tech Academy (STA) is spreading through deep-rooted community partnerships with rural schools and a model of empowering our beneficiaries to become advocates. Rather than traditional marketing, STA grows as the girls themselves inspire a movement using their digital skills and leadership to challenge norms within their communities.
Our major catalyst for awareness is the upcoming SustainHERbility Tech Exhibition in May 2025, where students will showcase their mobile app prototypes to stakeholders, school administrators, and policymakers. This event will expand STA’s visibility, create accessibility for new community partnerships, and drive stakeholder engagement.
In addition, we are scaling through the promotion of students' minimum viable products (MVPs), particularly the STEAMSpark app — an educational platform designed by our students to bring digital learning opportunities to even more rural children. Through the success and adoption of tools like STEAMSpark, STA aims to reach thousands more girls across Nigeria and eventually beyond, creating a pipeline of young digital innovators leading change.
In recognition of its impact, SustainHERbility Tech Academy was named one of the Top 50 Young Education Innovations in Nigeria by the United Nations Global Youth Initiative. This honor has further amplified our visibility and validated our approach, opening doors for partnerships, funding, and broader national reach.
Innovation demands evolution. In 2025, we upgraded STA’s curriculum to include AI literacy, recognising that girls must not only use technology but create and shape its future. This shift moves beyond basic mobile app development to incorporate user experience design, enabling girls to build intuitive, impactful digital solutions for their communities.
To extend reach and build sustainability, we are introducing a "trainer-of-trainers" model starting with the next cohort, enabling graduates to mentor new participants and support peer-led knowledge transfer.
In our pilot phase, 40 girls demonstrated their digital leadership by designing four localized mobile app prototypes, tackling challenges such as literacy promotion, STEAM engagement, and mindfulness practices. These prototypes reflect their creativity and problem-solving skills and are set to be unveiled during the upcoming SustainHERbility Tech Exhibition, creating a platform for public recognition and policy dialogue.
We are also strengthening engagement with education stakeholders by facilitating roundtable discussions with school leaders and government representatives, ensuring girls’ innovations inform education strategies.
These upcoming adaptations sharpen STA’s mission: transforming it from a skills acquisition program into a systemic movement that drives gender equity, digital innovation, and community-led change in rural education ecosystems.
If you want to try SustainHERbility Tech Academy (STA), the first step is to reach out to our team to get access to the STA Starter Toolkit. This toolkit provides everything needed to launch the program, including our curriculum guide, facilitator training materials, and templates for organizing community innovation projects and exhibitions. We encourage implementation partners to work closely with rural or underserved schools and youth organizations, identifying girls aged 9–14 who can most benefit from digital skills, leadership training, and norm-shifting education.
Creating a safe and supportive learning environment is essential, with access to basic technology such as laptops or tablets, and ensuring materials are adapted for low-resource settings where necessary. Local educators or volunteers can be trained to deliver the program effectively, using our gender-responsive teaching approach. Implementation follows STA’s proven four-phase model: preparation, digital skills training, community innovation projects, and a final Tech Exhibition where girls showcase their mobile app solutions to real-world challenges.
Trying STA means not just offering digital education but building a movement. To begin, simply contact us via email or connect with us on our social media platforms. Together, we can create a generation of empowered, tech-savvy young female leaders.
