With a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.12% between 2025 and 2033, Africa’s EdTech market is predicted to go beyond $20 billion by 2030. 

Driven by over 400 million smartphone users and surging demand for mobile learning solutions, Nigeria and Africa at large are currently at the epicentre of this digital learning adaptation.

But behind this growth are innovators building and implementing solutions from ideas, tirelessly working to ensure everyone is included in the edtech disruption. 

These startups are joining the likes of AltSchool Africa, Edukoya and uLesson to bridge the gap in Africa’s educational sector, providing access to quality learning and helping learners of all ages and backgrounds to thrive.

The top 10 edtech startups to watch in 2025 include:

1. Teesas

Since its launch in 2021, Teesas has been ensuring affordable and accessible education. In 2024, it reached over 500,000 families through its app, making quality tutoring affordable. 

The company’s OmoTab 2S, an interactive device designed to make learning engaging for young students, made education even more desirable.

Teesas’ innovation lies in its comprehensive preparation tools for college entrance exams like WAEC and JAMB. In analysing 40 years of past exam questions and providing over 5,000 tutor-led video explanations, the company has enabled 97% of its users to score above 200, with 15 scoring above 300. It has also introduced offline learning solutions to tackle internet accessibility issues, ensuring inclusivity across Nigeria.

The company made waves with its participation in the federal 3MTT program, training over 1,000 students in cutting-edge fields like AI/ML, Cloud Computing, and Product Management. 

Partnerships with government bodies, like the visit from Communications Minister Dr. ’Bosun Tijani, and its collaboration with Adamawa State aimed at revitalizing public education affirmed Teesas’ place among the top edtech startups to watch in 2025.

With over one million learners globally and recognition for its hybrid learning models, Teesas is adequately blending technology, innovation, and inclusivity.

2. TechQuest Academy

TechQuest Academy’s mission to build a tech-savvy generation touched new points in 2024. Named one of Africa’s top 50 EdTech startups by HolonIQ, the company is building impactful initiatives. 

The TechQuest-Gener8tor Pre-Investment Accelerator Fellowship was an outstanding program built on a partnership focused on providing Nigerian startups with mentorship, growth strategies, and access to venture funding.

The Academy has also partnered with the likes of VMware and Huawei ensuring certified training in ICT infrastructure and cloud services for students to learn industry-relevant skills. Added to these, TechQuest launched MissionT, Nigeria’s first indigenous teaching app, which provides STEM and ICT content to secondary school teachers.

Noteworthy community events included a career fair connecting students with experts and the hosting of the Global Fashion Experience, blending technology and creativity to inspire innovation. The founder, Dr. Charles Emembolu, featured in EduTimes Africa, highlighting TechQuest’s first-of-its-kind initiatives like Nigeria’s first university-embedded incubator.

In bridging digital literacy gaps and promoting entrepreneurship, TechQuest is being watched to see how it drives Nigeria’s tech industry forward in 2025.

3. Tespire

Tespire, based in Northern Nigeria, is tackling inefficiencies in school administration with its innovative digital tools. Founded in 2022 by Abdulkadir Suleiman Lapai and Umar Madugu, the startup has simplified revenue collection and administrative processes for underserved schools, enabling them to retain more resources.

In 2024, Tespire began expanding its presence to Abuja’s tech space and announced the upcoming completion of its pre-seed fundraising round. The funds will drive its mission to digitize education, offering tools like internet-enabled tablets to improve school operations.

Tespire’s user-centric approach and focus on underserved regions make it a very important part of the quest for equitable education in Nigeria, placing it among the top 10 edtech startups to watch in 2025.

4. Klas

Founded in 2022 by Nathan Nwachuku and Lekan Adejumo, Klas is bolstering online education with its all-in-one platform that enables users to create and sell e-books, courses, and live classes. 

In 2024, Klas secured $1 million in pre-seed funding, led by Ingressive Capital, with contributions from Techstars, HoaQ, and angel investors. 

This funding is helping the company build educational systems for educators and learners across diverse subjects, including coding, finance, art, and languages.

Klas offers a closed ecosystem where all essential tools—scheduling, payments, community features, analytics, and video conferencing—are integrated seamlessly. 

Unlike competitors that rely on third-party solutions like Zoom, Klas developed its proprietary video platform, KlasLife, to enhance user experience. The platform now serves over 5,000 creators running online schools and 300,000 learners across more than 30 countries.

With a user-friendly design for beginners, Klas has been particularly successful in Nigeria, its primary market. However, its expansion into India and North America reveals that the company has even bigger plans to dominate globally. The startup is also planning enterprise solutions targeting large companies, ensuring its growth continues in 2025.

5. 9jacodekids 

Since its inception, 9jacodekids Academy has focused on training children aged 6 to 16 with skills in coding, robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI). With a mission anchored in technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship, 9jacodekids is changing how young minds approach problem-solving and creativity.

In 2024, the academy gained global attention when two of its students, Fathia Abdullahi and Tobiloba Owolola, were featured on BBC Africa for building robots that addressed everyday challenges. Fathia designed a robot that folds T-shirts, while Tobiloba created one that detects and removes obstacles. 

These achievements reveal the academy’s focus on project-based learning and its emphasis on real-world applications.

Parents have also recognised the academy’s impact, commending its ability to shift children’s interests from passive activities like watching cartoons to more constructive pursuits like coding. Through its design-thinking approach and hands-on teaching, 9jacodekids is building a new generation of tech-savvy innovators ready to tackle global challenges.

6. Edves

Among the top 10 edtech startups to watch in 2025, Edves is one leveraging cutting-edge tools to enhance learning and administration in K-12 schools. In 2024, the company partnered with the Enugu State Ministry of Education to launch the Smart & Green Schools Initiative, aiming to bridge the digital divide and improve education quality in the state.

This initiative involved constructing 260 smart schools and training teachers and students with tablets, ensuring access to modern educational resources. Edves also introduced AI-powered tools to personalise learning experiences and identify at-risk students, enabling targeted interventions to improve outcomes. These advancements align with the state government’s goal to allocate over 30% of its budget to education, a historic achievement in addressing funding and infrastructure gaps.

Beyond its work in Enugu, Edves continues to support schools across Africa by offering comprehensive SaaS solutions that integrate curriculum management, performance tracking, and administrative tasks. Its focus on digitising education and ensuring collaboration among educators has placed it among the top edtech startups to watch in 2025.

7. Semicolon Africa

Another top edtech startup to watch in 2025 is Semicolon Africa which continues to drive digital growth on the continent. In 2024, it made headlines with its collaboration with First Bank of Nigeria Limited, which expanded opportunities for trainees and boosted its influence in Africa’s tech sector. 

Semicolon’s focus on promoting inclusivity shone through its Women-In-Tech Initiative, which promotes the participation of women in Africa’s digital economy through mentorship and community-driven programs.

Another highlight was the December 2024 visit from California’s Transport Secretary, pointing to Semicolon’s prospects for global collaboration. This visit asserted its mission to make Africa a hub for digital innovation and also hinted at future partnerships with California, home to Silicon Valley. With a goal to train one million software engineers by 2030, we are watching to see Semicolon Africa’s impacts across the continent from the new year and beyond.

8. GOMYCODE

GOMYCODE was recognised in 2024 as one of TIME Magazine’s Top 250 EdTech Companies. This accolade shows its influence in enhancing tech education in Africa. 

One of its key achievements was its partnership with Doballi, a Dubai-based recruitment platform. This collaboration has created a seamless pathway for African tech talent to secure global job opportunities, addressing the lack of standardised training for tech professionals across the continent.

In Nigeria, GOMYCODE played a good role in the 3MTT Initiative, which aims to prepare the workforce for a tech-driven world. Again, the startup hosted career development events, such as the Data Analytics: Prospects and Opportunities talk, which empowered individuals with insights into high-demand tech fields. With over 40,000 individuals trained in 30 cities across Africa and the Middle East, GOMYCODE is accelerating Africa’s transition to a digital economy and also facilitating global economic growth by connecting enterprises with vetted African talent.

9. HyperionDev

HyperionDev, headquartered in South Africa, made great advancements in 2024, including raising R95 million ($5 million) to bolster its expansion efforts in South Africa, the UK, and new markets. Its partnerships with institutions like Stellenbosch University, Imperial College London, and the University of Manchester have further strengthened its global reputation.

The company’s impact lies in its mentored coding bootcamps, which provide learners with job-ready tech skills. By the end of 2024, HyperionDev had helped over 2,000 graduates secure roles at top-tier employers, such as Amazon, Barclays, and government entities like the NHS. Graduates experienced a 237% increase in earnings, showing the life-changing opportunities provided by the platform.

HyperionDev’s innovative business model includes university-branded bootcamps, which garnered over 6,000 student registrations in just three months. Positioned within the growing $117 billion online micro-credential market, HyperionDev is expanding its footprint in Europe, North America, and Africa. With a mission to bridge the global tech skills divide, it remains focused on its vision to make tech education accessible worldwide.

10. Transition School

Transition School has earned its place among the top EdTech startups to watch in 2025 due to its achievements and impact in 2024. Known for its commitment to providing accessible, high-quality education, Transition School continues to enable thousands of learners to transition into tech careers within three months through interactive, real-time online sessions led by experts.

In 2024, Transition School expanded its reach, surpassing 30,000 active learners from over 10 countries, supported by a network of 100+ expert instructors. These instructors delivered workshops across trending fields such as web development, no-code applications, UI/UX design, digital marketing, data analysis, and AI. Popular offerings included “Learn PowerBI Basics in 4 Hours” and “Introduction to Data Visualization with Python,” which blended foundational knowledge with practical applications, preparing learners to excel in data-driven roles.

Transition School also introduced free and accessible courses, such as “Master Digital Marketing Basics” by Paul Adewumi, and provided recorded sessions like “Technical Writing for Beginners” by Vladimir Izmalkov. These offerings broke down limitations to education, making it possible for learners from diverse backgrounds to acquire skills without financial obstacles.

The platform’s emphasis on project-based learning further enhanced its work. Workshops such as “Create Your First Chatbot Without Code” and “Build a Membership Site Using Webflow” provided students with hands-on experience and tangible portfolio projects. This practical approach helped learners stand out in the competitive tech industry.

In January 2025, Transition School announced a collaboration with LemFi, scheduled to launch very soon. The #CodeWithLemFi initiative aims to combine Transition School’s expertise with LemFi’s vision to change lives through tech education. This strategic partnership sets the ball rolling for what is expected to be a great year for the startup.

These nations have effectively leveraged EdTech to tackle major educational challenges such as resource shortages and teacher deficits, offering scalable, cost-effective, and high-quality learning materials.

Africa faces similar challenges, but the potential for EdTech here is particularly significant as the continent prepares for a demographic shift that will see its youth population represent over 40% of the global total by 2030.

This presents a critical opportunity for African countries to embrace EdTech as a key part of their educational strategies.

However, despite many governments dedicating around 5% of their GDP to education, the demand continues to outstrip the available resources.

Traditional education systems, often marked by overcrowded classrooms and a lack of trained teachers, are increasingly strained under the growing population.

UNESCO estimates that sub-Saharan Africa will need an additional 17 million teachers by 2030 to achieve universal primary and secondary education.

EdTech offers a promising solution by enabling remote learning, which can ease the pressure on physical classrooms and allow students to learn at their own pace.

Platforms like Edukoya in Nigeria and Kidato in Kenya are leading the way with online learning tailored to K-12 students.

Edukoya’s offerings, including 24/7 exam preparation tools and personalized performance tracking, demonstrate how technology can make quality education both accessible and affordable across the continent.

Similarly, ULesson has expanded its presence in Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, and Ghana, helping students prepare for international exams with a freemium model.

However, the digital divide remains a significant barrier to realizing the full potential of EdTech in Africa.

With only 27% of sub-Saharan Africa having internet access, a large portion of the population is excluded from these digital advancements.

The World Bank estimates that $100 billion is needed to provide universal, good-quality, and affordable broadband access across the continent by 2030.

This investment must go beyond infrastructure, with 20% dedicated to building user skills and developing local content to ensure that EdTech solutions are relevant and effective.

Despite these challenges, innovative solutions are emerging. Companies like Syafunda and Snapplify are addressing connectivity issues by deploying “Wi-Fi boxes” preloaded with educational content to schools without internet access.

Additionally, Eneza and M-Shule in Kenya are using SMS-based platforms to reach students without smartphones, ensuring that education continues even in remote areas.

These efforts are crucial in narrowing the digital divide and enabling EdTech to thrive in challenging environments.

Globally, Africa’s EdTech landscape shares similarities with other developing regions like Southeast Asia and Latin America, where localized content and mobile learning platforms have successfully reached students in remote areas. India’s experience, particularly, offers valuable lessons.

Despite the surge in EdTech adoption during the COVID-19 pandemic, India’s sector faced significant challenges post-pandemic, including layoffs and a re-evaluation of business models.

This underscores the importance of sustainable, long-term strategies that complement rather than replace traditional teaching methods.

To ensure EdTech’s success in Africa, it must be thoughtfully integrated into existing educational frameworks. Rather than replacing traditional classrooms, EdTech should support teachers by providing remote coaching and enriching the learning experience.

This requires a collaborative effort from governments, private sector players, and civil society to create an environment where EdTech can flourish.

Policymakers need to prioritize infrastructure, support local content development, and equip educators with the skills to effectively use these new technologies.

Therefore, while the challenges of implementing EdTech in Africa are substantial, the potential benefits are even greater.

By addressing the digital divide and fostering inclusive growth, EdTech can play a transformative role in African education, equipping millions of young people with the tools they need to thrive in an increasingly digital world.

The success of this transformation will depend on collective action, sustained investment, and a commitment to long-term value over short-term gains.

As Africa stands on the verge of this educational revolution, embracing EdTech is not just an option—it is essential for securing the continent’s future.

*Mahmood Owolabi is the Co-founder, Transition School. Email: mahmood@transitionschool.uk.