30 June 2026 | Bujumbura, Burundi
PEP-supported researcher Michel Armel Ndayikeza convenes education officials and researchers in Bujumbura to examine what Côte d'Ivoire's televised education programme can teach Burundi about designing and evaluating education technology investments.
Researchers, education officials and other stakeholders discuss lessons from Côte d’Ivoire’s televised education programme at the CURDES conference in Bujumbura, Burundi.
A conference organised by the Centre Universitaire de Recherche pour le Développement Économique et Social (CURDES) at the University of Burundi brought together researchers, education officials and other stakeholders to discuss lessons from Côte d'Ivoire's televised education programme.
The event attracted 37 participants, including representatives from the Ministry of Education, the University of Burundi, academia, the private sector and the media.
What the research found
At the conference, Dr Ndayikeza presented findings from his study of the long-term effects of Côte d'Ivoire's Programme d'Éducation Télévisuelle (PETV), co-authored with Carolyn Chisadza of the University of Pretoria. The research examines whether children exposed to televised classroom instruction between 1975 and 1981 experienced lasting improvements in education and employment.
Côte d'Ivoire introduced PETV in 1971 to expand access to primary education while responding to a shortage of qualified teachers. Lessons delivered by experienced teachers were recorded and broadcast to classrooms across the country.
Among the key results highlighted:
- Despite the programme's scale and substantial investment, no lasting improvements in education or labour-market outcomes
- People exposed to PETV were approximately 10 percentage points less likely to reach lower secondary education than those who were not exposed
- No significant effects on upper secondary or tertiary education, highly skilled employment, self-employment or public-sector employment
- No evidence of improvements in the educational attainment of the next generation
The findings suggest that the effectiveness of education technology depends on how it is designed and integrated into the wider education system.
Based on the evidence, the researchers identified several priorities for future initiatives: generating rigorous local evidence before programmes are expanded nationally; aligning technology-supported instruction with curricula, examinations and progression to the next education level; comparing the costs and results of technology-based programmes with alternative interventions; and accounting for the institutional and economic conditions in which programmes will operate.
These lessons are relevant as governments consider investments ranging from television and radio instruction to digital platforms and artificial intelligence.
Testing the findings against Burundi's context
The conference included a keynote address by Prof. Innocent Ntwari on the promises and limitations of education technology in low-income countries. He emphasised that technology could support learning when it responds to a clearly identified educational need and when teachers and institutions have the capacity to use it effectively.
Prof. Ntwari also highlighted the continued relevance of television, radio, and other low-technology tools in areas with limited electricity or internet access. He stressed the importance of investing in teachers, adapting content locally, and accounting for maintenance and replacement costs when programmes are designed.
During the discussion, participants questioned how directly Côte d'Ivoire's experience in the 1970s and 1980s could be applied to Burundi today. Prof. André Nduwimana, Director General of Pre-school, Basic and Post-Basic Education at Burundi's Ministry of Education, raised concerns about differences between the two countries and periods and highlighted teacher and learner motivation as central to education quality.
Participants further discussed whether cost-effectiveness analysis adequately reflects education's value as a long-term investment and whether low-technology approaches remain appropriate as more advanced digital tools become available.
The exchange highlighted the need for researchers to explain clearly how evidence from other contexts relates to local education systems, economic conditions and available technologies.
Based on the evidence, the researchers identified several priorities for future initiatives: generating rigorous local evidence before
Opening the way for continued policy dialogue
The participation of the Ministry's Director General, whose questions prompted substantive discussion about the study's relevance, created an important point of engagement between CURDES and the government institution responsible for basic education policy, opening the way for continued dialogue on how locally grounded evidence can support education policy decisions.
The research was conducted with technical and financial support from PEP, in partnership with the Global Education Analytics Institute (GEAI).
