When Rozalia Alfred Mtawala from Mkongoro Secondary School in Kigoma logged onto Tanzania's online teacher learning platform, MEWAKA, she gained access to training materials that would soon reach far beyond her classroom. More importantly, she became part of a chain of change that is reshaping how teaching happens across the country. "Now that I have learned and joined the MEWAKA platform, I can continue updating myself and I will definitely share this opportunity with teachers who have not been able to access the training," she says. Rozalia is among more than 500 teachers from 25 secondary schools in Kigoma Region who have benefited from pedagogical training supported by Enabel Tanzania through the Wezesha Binti Project. What distinguishes this initiative from typical one-off training programs is its design for scale and sustainability. The lessons learned in Kigoma are now embedded in a national system that is fundamentally changing how teachers teach across Tanzania.

How Change Spreads Through a System
Kigoma has long faced educational challenges that reflect broader systemic issues in the region. A shortage of teachers, limited capacity in teaching methodologies, English language skills, and ICT proficiency have contributed to low performance in national examinations. The shortage of computers, electricity, and internet connectivity has further limited access to modern teaching resources. For girls, these barriers are compounded by social and cultural factors that disrupt their education. In some areas, one out of every three students who begin lower secondary education does not complete it.

The Enabel addressed these challenges by investing in teacher capacity building, but with a critical difference: the training was designed to be shared. Teachers learned practical, learner-centered teaching approaches that could be adapted to their contexts and passed on to colleagues. This created the conditions for systemic change rather than isolated improvement. When teachers like Datius Rwehumbiza and Elifuraha Singo completed the training, they didn't simply apply new methods in their own classrooms. They became advocates for change within their schools and networks. "I believe the methods we learned will be a catalyst for solving the teaching challenges we have in schools," says Elifuraha. "Many teachers still use teacher-centered methods. This training has enabled us to understand how to use learner-centered approaches effectively." This is how systemic change begins: through teachers who experience better methods and actively share them with colleagues.

From Regional Initiative to National Infrastructure
The real multiplication of impact came through institutional partnership. Enabel Tanzania collaborated with the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) and the School of Education Development at the University of Dar es Salaam to formalize and scale the training modules. The pedagogical approaches developed and tested in Kigoma were documented, refined, and integrated into TIE's online library.

This transformation from a regional project to a national resource marks a critical shift. Teachers across Tanzania now have access to the same high-quality training materials that were piloted in Kigoma, accessible through MEWAKA. "This collaboration is evidence of the joint efforts by TIE, the University of Dar es Salaam, and Enabel to contribute to improving the quality of education in Tanzania," says Angela Kabatabaro, Deputy Director General of TIE. The infrastructure for access has been carefully designed to reach teachers where they are. Through a partnership with Airtel, teachers can access the platform and browse learning materials without consuming mobile data via a zero-rating package. This removes a significant barrier for educators in resource-constrained areas.

Systemic Change Accelerated by Curriculum Reform
The timing of this initiative aligns with a critical moment in Tanzania's education system. The launch of the new 2025 curriculum represents a formal shift away from traditional lecture-based teaching toward learner-centered approaches that emphasize active participation and critical thinking. The modules developed through the Wezesha Binti Project directly support this transition. They cover Life Skills and Health Education for Adolescents, Gender-Responsive Pedagogy, Environmental and Climate Change Education, and learner-centered methodologies. Rather than teachers struggling to implement a new curriculum without guidance, they now have access to proven approaches and practical strategies.

Datius Rwehumbiza describes the platform's value: "I will use MEWAKA to continue updating my knowledge. It is a useful platform for a serious teacher to refresh skills and get new ideas that improve classroom delivery." The convergence of teacher training, institutional infrastructure, and curriculum reform creates the conditions for systemic change. Teachers are not being asked to change in isolation; they are being equipped with tools, resources, and peer networks that make the change sustainable.

Extending Change beyond the Classroom
The project's impact extends beyond teachers. For the first time, more than 70 non-teaching staff, including school nurses, counselors, and security personnel, participated in training on values education and life skills. This whole-school approach recognizes that systemic change requires all school staff to understand and support learner-centered practices. These staff members play a critical role in student wellbeing and are often the first to identify vulnerable learners who need support. By including them in the training, the project ensures that the shift toward learner-centered approaches is embedded across the entire school system.    

A Model for Scaling Educational Change
What began as an intervention to improve education outcomes in Kigoma has evolved into a model for how systemic change can be achieved in education systems. The key elements are clear: invest in teacher capacity building, design for sharing and peer- learning, formalize successful approaches through institutional partnerships, align with broader system reforms, and remove barriers to access.

By supporting the development of professional learning modules and making them freely accessible through TIE's online library, Enabel and its partners have created infrastructure for change that extends far beyond the initial 25 schools in Kigoma. The lessons learned in one region are now shaping how thousands of teachers teach across Tanzania, with the potential to reach millions of learners.

The ripple effect of this initiative will continue to expand as more teachers access the platform, adapt the methods to their contexts, and share them with colleagues. This is how systemic change takes hold: not through mandates, but through teachers equipped with better tools, supported by institutional infrastructure, and connected to a network of peers doing the same work.

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