Education Finance Rapid Response : Keeping our Promises
Your Impact Report, Spring 202 6
Responding to an Urgent Need
Over the past year and a half, we have witnessed a seismic shift in global philanthropy with the rapid dissolution of USAID and the shift of other global funding sources toward other priorities; for Opportunity International , that impact changed the momentum but not the trajectory of our global education work. Thanks to you, we closed a portion of a $5 million funding gap and worked with in -country staff to continue as many programs as possible.
Keeping Our Promises
While we had to reduce the scope of the original USAID grantfunded project, we were able to continu e working with teachers and children in Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia as well as the other 17 countries where Education Finance works to make affordable, quality education accessible to all children. Even with that bend in the road, in 2025 we showed year -over-year growth reaching 5 million children and releasing $292.5 million in loans provided to schools and learners.
Work Still to be Done
Furthermore , we intend to continue to keep our promises across the countries we serve because, like you, we believe in the urgent need to get and keep children in school. Our years of child learning measurements demonstrate that children gain as much as half a year equivalent of additional schooling linked to Opportunity’s Education Finance initiatives. S chool leader and teacher professional development opportunities and access to school improvement loans have a measurable, positive impact on children in local, quality schools .
Thanks to your timely support, we’ve had the resources to train and equip our EduQuality schools in Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominican Republic, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia to improve teaching, student engagement, and learning outcomes :
• Provide teacher mentors with the knowledge and resources to improve learning experiences for students.
• Increase integration of teaching and learning resources into classroom instruction .
Childhood joy crosses all borders: young learners at an affordable, quality, Opportunity International -supported school in Tanzania.
• Use interactive and participatory learning methods .
• Align curricul a with competency standards , supporting students at all levels.
• Prototype a WhatsApp -based, virtual “teacher assistant” that helps with lesson planning.
What We’re Learning
School Leadership Academies equip emerging schools with business and finance training to put them on a path to being bankable. School leaders learn about financial management and products , and they meet local financial institutions trained by Opportunity in providing financial products for education . Recently , a school in rural Ghana purchased a bus that boosted enrollment by 53% in one year. The school’s journey to securing a first -time loan began with a School Leadership Academy.
How We Are Innovating
We continue to test generative AI solutions with teachers and school leaders, like a virtual “school assistant” that helps leaders to build and implement school improvement plans, and a simila r solution for teachers that makes it easy for them to create custom curricula for their students —both tools ultimately aimed at increasing student success and retaining engaged and informed educators. We’re tackling specific challenges like low connectivity, lack of access to data, and modes of interaction like voice recognition and photos as well as text.
Our Work and Your Investment in Action
In Tamale, Ghana, Barbara opened a daycare center with just four children. Today, Wiggles and Giggles Educational Center offers classes up to Primary 6 (photo below ) Through our School Leader Professional Training , Barbara learned school management, branding, and community engagement. Equipped with better financial management knowledge, classroom delivery has improved, teachers interact more positively with learners, and student performance has risen significantly.
Thank you for helping keep our promise of walking with families we serve, increasing access to education that paves a path out of poverty.
Right now, we need your continued support to fill the education funding gap in Ghana , Tanzania , and the DR Congo .
In addition, we have significant programs that cannot grow to serve new schools without your help in:
• Uganda
• Malawi
• Kenya
• Colombia
• India
Every gift of $1,000 helps a school get the tools, resources, and support it needs to serve students for an entire school year.