In partnership with

A Landscape Review

Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled

and Low-literate People
UNESCO Education Sector The Global Education 2030 Agenda

Education is UNESCO’s top priority because UNESCO, as the United Nations’ specialized
it is a basic human right and the foundation agency for education, is entrusted to lead
on which to build peace and drive sustainable and coordinate the Education 2030 Agenda,
development. UNESCO is the United Nations’ which is part of a global movement to eradicate
specialized agency for education and poverty through 17 Sustainable Development
the Education Sector provides global and Goals by 2030. Education, essential to achieve
regional leadership in education, strengthens all of these goals, has its own dedicated Goal 4,
national education systems and responds which aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable
to contemporary global challenges through quality education and promote lifelong learning
education with a special focus on gender opportunities for all.” The Education 2030
equality and Africa. Framework for Action provides guidance for
the implementation of this ambitious goal
and commitments.

Published in 2018 by the United Nations The designations employed and the presentation
Educational, Scientific and Cultural of material throughout this publication do not
Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever
75352 Paris 07 SP, France on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal
status of any country, territory, city or area or of
© UNESCO 2018
its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of
its frontiers or boundaries.

The ideas and opinions expressed in this

publication are those of the authors; they are not
This publication is available in Open Access necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit
under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CCBY- the Organization.
SA 3.0 IGO) license (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of Authors: Ronda Zelezny-Green, Steven Vosloo
this publication, the users accept to be bound and Gráinne Conole
by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Editor: Susan Curran
Repository (http://www.unesco. org/open-
access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). Cover photo: © Pearson/Sudipto Das

Graphic design: Huieun Kim

Acknowledgements

UNESCO is grateful to Louise Albertyn, Ahmad Saad El-dien Anwar, Ken

Banks, Laura Brewer, Steven Duggan, Hani Eskandar, Matthew Kam, Jacob
Korenblum, Maximiliano Salvadori Martinhão, Bhanu Potta, Jenny Perlman
Robinson, Alex Smith and Jacqueline Strecker for peer reviewing the report;
Mike Sharples for early input into the report; and Huazhen Wu for research
and logistical support.

UNESCO also acknowledges the generosity and continued support of

Pearson as a partner, with particular thanks to Jennifer Young and Emilie
Colker.
4 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Table of contents

Figures and tables 6

Acronyms and abbreviations 7

01 Executive summary 8
01.1 Structure of the landscape review 16
01.2 About the UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy 17

PART I: BACKGROUND TO THE REVIEW 18

02 Introduction 19

03 Scope of the review 21

04 Methods and data sources 23

05 Definitions 28

06 Known barriers to digital inclusion 32

07 Designing for low-skilled and low-literate users: broad themes 38

PART II: REVIEW FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS 43

08 Key focus areas: synthesis of review findings 44

08.1 e-Health services 45
08.2 e-Agriculture services 50
08.3 e-Government services 56
08.4 e-Services for displaced populations 60
08.5 e-Green/environmental services 64
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 5

09 Analysis of the review findings 69

09.1 The design process 70
09.2 The digital solutions 73
09.3 User competences 77
09.4 The implementation environment 81

10 Opportunities 83
10.1 Experiment with the possibilities offered through new technologies 83
10.2 Coordinate digital solution development and implementation efforts 84
10.3 Establish government support to raise awareness 85
10.4 Give attention to digital solutions as key elements 85
in the literate environment
10.5 Stimulate both the supply and demand sides of service delivery 87
for low-skilled and low-literate populations

11 Working typology for digital solutions 88

11.1 The digital solution 89
11.2 User role 92

Appendix A: Focus areas and SDGs 93

Appendix B: Projects described in this report 94

References 107
6 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Figures and tables

Figure 1. Stages of the analysis of the actual digital solutions 26
Figure 2. MIRA Channel in Uganda 46
Figure 3. hearScreen™ operation screenshots 48
Figure 4. Khushi Baby wearable necklace health record 49
Figure 5. Providing training on using the Talking Book 51
Figure 6. Mothers in Mozambique listening to the 3-2-1 Service 52
Figure 7. Crop Specific Mobile Apps screenshots 53
Figure 8. A new user signing up to Mobile Vaani 57
Figure 9. Tarjemly Live app screenshot 61
Figure 10. Ankommen app screenshot 62
Figure 11. Using SMS to turn on the Nano Ganesh irrigation pump controller 65
Figure 12. A fisherman using the ABALOBI app 66
Figure 13. Haller Farmers App screenshots 67

Table 1. Comparison of known barriers 33

Table 2. Mapping of the 32 projects to the DigComp 2.1 Framework 78
7 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
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Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 7

Acronyms and abbreviations

CCPF Chipatala cha pa Foni
CHW community health worker
DCICC Dynamic Coalition on Internet and Climate Change
ICT information and communications technology
ITU International Telecommunications Union
IVR interactive voice response
LDCs least developed countries
M2M machine-to-machine
MOPA Monitoria Participativa Maputo
SDGs Sustainable Development Goals
UNDP UN Development Programme
UIL UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
USSD unstructured supplementary service data
8 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

01
Executive summary

The twenty-first century has seen the emergence designed to be more inclusive, accessible and
of knowledge societies and digital economies usable for people with low levels of skills2 and
around the world. Underpinning these changes have literacy; what skills such people need to utilize
been the proliferation of mobile devices, increased effectively inclusive digital solutions; and what
sophistication of computers, and cheaper and more key characteristics of the overall environment are
widely available internet access. In 2015 the number needed for successful implementation of more
of internet users had more than tripled in a decade – inclusive solutions. It is important to note that
from 1 billion in 2005 to an estimated 3.2 billion (ITU, low literacy in this review includes young people
2016). and adults who are illiterate in the sense that they
cannot read or write.
The digital revolution has changed the way almost
half the world lives and works, learns and socializes. Five development areas and contexts – health,
From a livelihood perspective, it has affected agriculture, government, displaced populations,
many key sectors – including health, agriculture and green and environmental practices – are
and government – and how essential services foregrounded to help us understand the links
are delivered. Business transactions have become between digital solutions, skills development and
dramatically cheaper, faster and more convenient. livelihoods. In line with the holistic development
agenda of 2030, it was decided to focus outside of
But what about those who do not possess the the traditional education lens, considering instead
skills and literacy1 necessary to access the myriad
services of today’s digital world, to fully participate in
knowledge societies? How can digital solutions be
1 In reality, people can have low skills and/or low literacy.
designed to be more inclusive, and how can these However, for the purposes of ease of reading, the report refers to
individuals develop the skills needed to fully utilize people with both low skills and low literacy.

the digital opportunities?

2 It is recognized that any person possesses many skills, and can
be low-skilled in one area of life, for example, digital know-how,
UNESCO and Pearson have partnered to research but highly skilled in a different domain, such as maize farming.
While the term low-skilled is thus somewhat simplistic, it is
the answer to these questions. As a first step, this broadly used in this sense to refer to people who have limited
landscape review seeks to explore how technology amounts of the skills needed to participate in digital activities,
as well as people who are low skilled in a range of livelihood
solutions outside of the education sector can be activities.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 9

areas that contribute broadly to improving livelihoods The projects were analysed from a user-centred
and well-being. The five focus areas represent a design perspective, that is, putting the needs of
cross-section of areas covered by the Sustainable users of digital solutions with low levels of skills and
Development Goals (SDGs) where the use of digital literacy at the centre. The European Commission’s
technologies, especially for development purposes, is DigComp 2.1: The Digital Competence Framework
either well established for users with low levels of skills for Citizens was applied to categorize the
and literacy, such as health, or showing promise, such competences and proficiency levels that may
as for green and environmental services. be required by particular user groups when
using each digital solution. The framework has
The landscape review aims to inform the work of five competence areas: information and data
digital solution providers, development partners and literacy, communication and collaboration, digital
governments – to move towards the development content creation, safety, and problem-solving.
and implementation of more inclusive digital solutions There are twenty-one digital competencies across
and raise awareness of the skills needed to use them. these areas, and four proficiency levels for each
competence: foundation, intermediate, advanced
Thirty-two projects from at least twenty-five countries, and highly specialized, each of which is split into
in contexts both rural and urban, were selected for two steps: a lower and a higher step, depending
this review, to illustrate key characteristics of digital on proficiency maturity.
inclusion for the target audience. The projects were
chosen based on a set of criteria, including that they The analysis considered four elements: the design
had been implemented within the past ten years, process to create the solution, the digital solution
they explicitly addressed the needs of users with low itself, the digital competences needed to use
levels of skills and literacy to improve their livelihoods, it, and the implementation environment. This
and they made use of digital, interactive technologies. approach resulted in the identification of the
Geographical diversity was also a criterion for following observations and barriers.
selection.

© Medic Mobile
 10 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

The design process

Co-designed solutions promote local adoption. Designing

in partnership with users who have low levels of skills and literacy makes it more likely that
effective digital technologies will be developed that address their needs.

Content localization lowers literacy-related barriers to

digital solution adoption. Local content generated by users and in local
languages is important for interactive technology adoption by people who have few digital
skills and a low level of literacy (Agarwal et al., 2003). When considering the content that will
be presented to users with low levels of skills and literacy, the designer should ensure it is
relevant to them and also immediately applicable to their surroundings.
© Gram Vaani
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 11

The digital solutions included in the review

Concerning types of digital Digital financial services: a

solutions, information delivery cross-cutting feature. Although
services were dominant. Of the this theme is still emergent, there were at least
thirty-two projects reviewed for this report, fifteen four projects reviewed that made or make use
were designed as information delivery services. of digital financial services to support workers
These generally included the simple delivery of with low levels of skills and literacy in ways that
information, for example, a maternal health-related enhance their livelihoods.
SMS. Furthermore, apps were the most common
digital delivery channel. Twenty-one of the thirty-two
projects include an app in the total digital solution.
Digital delivery channel
innovations produce usage
efficiencies. Experimentation with
Upon analysis of the solutions, the new technologies, such as wearables, was
following findings emerged: not common among the projects reviewed.
Nonetheless, when new technologies were
deployed, they made for more efficient usage
A media mix promotes use of digital solutions by people with low levels of
by people with different skills and literacy.
competences and proficiency
levels. When solutions offer a mix of media, such
as text and audio, or text accompanied by bold and
Limited delivery channels. As
with offering a mix of media, employing more
relevant graphics, they are inclusive to a wider range
than one delivery channel – such as a website
of users. A number of projects implemented such
and a smartphone app – increases the uptake of
differentiated media offerings.
digital solutions among users with low levels of
skills and literacy. However, maintaining multiple

Simple user interfaces channels is costly, and as a result not all providers
readily offer a choice.
create less intimidating user
experiences. Simple user interfaces with
appropriate content can substantially improve the
usability of a technology for people with few digital
skills and low literacy levels. Examples included
offering audio-assisted navigation or context-
appropriate graphics in the mother tongue, and in
some cases also in second languages.
 12 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

User competences

Most digital solutions most digital solutions required proficiencies at the

intermediate level and not at the lowest step of
reviewed require intermediate the foundation level. The analysis also indicated
digital competences, not areas where more development could happen,
only foundational ones. When such as collaborating through digital technologies,
mapped against the DigComp 2.1 Framework, the netiquette, managing digital identities and solving
solutions reviewed show that a spectrum of digital technical problems.
competences and proficiency levels is needed for
users with low levels of skills and literacy to make
use of digital solutions. All five of the competence Need for ongoing support. Users
areas of the framework were required by users, with low levels of skills and literacy, more than
although the projects were skewed towards other users, need support when learning to use
some particular areas: information and data digital solutions. While many projects reviewed
literacy (thirty-five instances), communication do offer ongoing support, such as helplines or
and collaboration (ten instances), digital content in-person visits by community health workers
creation (four instances), safety (two instances) and (CHWs), it may not be enough or at the right time.
problem-solving (two instances). Not being able to provide sufficient and ongoing
Since the solutions target users with low levels support for this target group can be a barrier to
of skills and literacy, it is perhaps surprising that continued usage.
© Literacy Bridge/Scott Sweeney
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 13

The implementation environment

Including women and rural Cost of access can be

users. The digital solutions reviewed often prohibitive. A well-known barrier to the
considered the specific needs of women, usage of digital solutions is the high costs of
particularly in the health sector where many access. This cost can increase when audio is used
initiatives seek to improve maternal health. Further, as a delivery channel and users need to make
while agriculture and environmental practices voice calls to access information, or when large
sectors often target rural users, there are increasing video files need to be downloaded. While key
examples of digital solutions that encourage urban projects in this review subsidized or bypassed
and peri-urban users to live in a more green way. such costs for end users, this was not seen in
Broadly speaking, as a result, opportunities to every instance.
enhance the participation of some of society’s most
marginalized individuals – women and rural users – It is evident that while the literature and the
are increasing. projects reviewed demonstrated ways in which
people with low levels of skills and literacy can
begin to participate in digital activities, a number
Lack of awareness. With limited of barriers remain. The barriers identified in the
awareness of digital solutions severely curbing projects reviewed mirror, or exist in addition to,
uptake among the intended audience, low known barriers to digital inclusion, such as lack
visibility is an ongoing challenge for the projects. of infrastructure, particularly connectivity in rural
Community engagement, while time-consuming and remote areas, and insufficient user skills and
and resource-intensive, is an excellent way to literacy levels to make use of digital technologies.
raise awareness and support the implementation
environment.

© Hung Chung Chih/Shutterstock.com

14 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Opportunities

Drawing on the review, a number of opportunities emerged that could help extend the
reach of digital solutions to more people who have low levels of skills and literacy:

Experiment with the Give attention to digital

possibilities offered through solutions as key elements
new technologies. As costs of in creating a more literate
ownership and deployment continue to fall, environment. There is a thread between
experimentation with and evaluation of new people’s needs, digital solutions that support the
technologies has the potential to open new meeting of those needs, the initial skills and literacy
possibilities in the design of digital solutions for required to use the solutions, the development
people whose skills and literacy levels contribute to of those skills and literacy over time through
their marginalization. usage, and improvement in livelihood. In this
context, it is important to regard digital solutions
as contributing elements of a more literate
Coordinate digital solution environment. On the supply side, digital solutions
development and offer opportunities for learning and practising
implementation efforts. Whether digital skills and literacy; on the demand side, if
they were to deliver information, facilitate training they add value to people’s lives, digital solutions
and skills enhancement, or remotely monitor a give impetus to their desire to learn those skills in
patient, there was an abundance of projects which the first place. To help locate digital solutions in
essentially replicated existing approaches used to the growth of the literate environment, the various
reach people with low levels of skills and literacy,
aspects of the thread above should be studied
including similar projects in the same sector
more closely, as is done in this review, especially
and country. Ensuring that existing experience
is identified and drawn upon for lessons and the link between digital usage and skills, and
resources would enhance the efficient use of literacy development.
budgets.

Stimulate both the supply

Establish government support and demand sides of service
to achieve scale. Government serves as delivery for populations with
an influential catalyst for livelihood-related digital
low levels of skills and literacy.
solution uptake among people who are low skilled
The supply of digital solutions to support this
and have low literacy levels, by raising awareness
specific group requires collaboration across the
and potentially subsidizing the costs of accessing
public, private and civil society sectors. For the
these tools. Establishing the active involvement
private sector, incentives such as new customer
of government at the start of an intervention can
acquisition can help drive innovation in the supply
increase the scale and positive outcomes realized.
of digital solutions for people who have low levels
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 15

of skills and literacy. Similarly, demand among this and literacy needed for using digital solutions,
group can be promoted by policies that positively and the development of those competencies
shift local norms towards internet use – for example, through sustained usage, is key to increasing
by women and girls, educating people about how participation over time. Broadly speaking, this
and why they might use the internet, and offering has implications for a number of actors. For
relevant and essential digital services tied to developers of digital solutions, understanding the
livelihood opportunities, among other possibilities. needs and competences of users with low levels
of skills and literacy, and designing with these
users, is important. For organizations offering
Overall, the projects reviewed suggest that when digital skills training, it is necessary to target the
people with low levels of skills and literacy – foundation and intermediate proficiency levels. For
including displaced populations – are enabled to governments it is necessary to create policies that
participate in and benefit from digital technology lower barriers to inclusion for those with low skills
integration in health, agriculture, government and and a low level of literacy, as well as to leverage
green practices, it becomes more likely that such digital solutions in skills and literacy development
solutions will contribute to enhancing their lives programmes in new ways.
in ways that were previously not possible. Without
targeted digital solutions and programmes, they The UNESCO-Pearson Initiative will continue to
will continue to experience exclusion from digital explore these implications and activities through
opportunities. the development of fourteen in-depth case studies
on some of the projects reviewed here, as well as
Inclusive digital solutions provide an entry a set of guidelines – to be released in 2018 – for
point into beneficial digital activities, and in the creating more inclusive and usable digital solutions
process support the development of skills and and policies.
knowledge. More clearly understanding the skills

© Medic Mobile
16 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

01.1
Structure of the landscape review
This report is presented in two parts. The first sets the context and background to the
review, while the second part presents the key findings and analysis of the review.

Part I: Background to the review

Chapter 2: The landscape review informs the efforts Chapter 6: As a way to lay the foundation for the
of the UNESCO-Pearson Initiative, and begins by review, known and general barriers to digital
introducing the context of knowledge societies inclusion – for all people – are described.
and digital economies – increasingly in developing
countries – and the related implications for people Chapter 7: To focus on the target audience of the
who are have low levels of skills and literacy. review, broad themes for designing for users with
low levels of skills and literacy, in particular, are
Chapters 3, 4 and 5: The scope of the review, distilled from the literature. These themes show
research methods for the five focus areas, and key how some of the known barriers to inclusion can
definitions are then presented. be overcome.

Part II: Review findings and analysis

Chapter 8: In each of the five livelihood focus areas barriers observed in digital solution design for, and
of this review, key categories of digital solutions usage by, populations with low levels of skills and
are explored, including example projects and their literacy are highlighted.
related opportunities and barriers around inclusion.
Chapter 11: In the final chapter of this review, a
Chapter 9: An analysis explores the themes across working typology for digital solutions informed by
and within the five focus areas, including cross- the DigComp 2.1 Framework is presented.
cutting issues such as digital financial services, and
the lingering barriers to digital inclusion. Appendices cover the five focus areas and how
they relate to the SDGs, and a table of all projects
Chapter 10: The opportunities for greater digital mentioned in the review.
inclusion that emerged from the themes and
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 17

01.2
About the UNESCO-Pearson
Initiative for Literacy

The UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy is a For Pearson, the partnership contributes to the
partnership between the organizations, started Project Literacy movement. Project Literacy, a
in 2016, to examine and highlight how inclusive campaign founded by Pearson, brings together
digital solutions can help people with low skills a diverse and global cross-section of people and
or low literacy levels use technology in a way organizations to help unlock the potential of
that supports skills development and ultimately individuals, families and communities everywhere,
improves livelihoods. with the vision that by 2030, no child will be born
at risk of poor literacy. Learn more at
For UNESCO, the study of digital skills development www.projectliteracy.com.
and inclusion is timely, given increasing global
digitization, and is closely linked to the broader
Agenda 2030.
18 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

PART I:
BACKGROUND
TO THE REVIEW
In the next chapter, the background which led to the
development of this report is shared. The intention is
establish a foundation from which to understand the
needs associated with digital solution design for people
who are low skilled and low literate.
19 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
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Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 19

02
Introduction

The Qingdao Declaration (UNESCO, 2015d) sub-Saharan Africa, where low literacy levels are
acknowledges the remarkable advances in most concentrated? These groups face a double
digital technologies and the rapid expansion of exclusion in the digital age: from not being about
internet connectivity, which have made today’s to read and write in the traditional sense, and
world increasingly interconnected and rendered increasingly from participation in digital activities.
knowledge and familiarity with digital technologies
essential for everyone. Leveraging information and Even beyond foundation skills such as traditional
communications technology (ICT) for livelihoods literacy – and by extension, numeracy – people
is no longer a specialized skill, but is now, for many, need at least a basic level of digital literacy
fundamental to prospering in life. to be fully functional in a knowledge-based
society, in terms of personal fulfilment and
However, the digital dividends – that is, the development, active citizenship, social inclusion
concomitant development benefits from using and employment. The issue of limited literacy and
these technologies – are not enjoyed by all. The digital literacy is felt globally: according to the
World Bank (2016b) paints the uneven landscape OECD survey of adult skills (OECD, 2016b), almost
that lies beneath the impressive statistics. The 19 per cent of adults in Europe have poor reading
uptake of digital technologies is, in general, skewed skills, 22 per cent have poor numeracy skills, and
towards wealthier males living in urban areas. Six one in four adults have limited experience with
billion people do not have access to broadband, computers. On average 45 per cent of Europeans
4 billion do not have access to the internet, and lack essential digital skills (OECD, 2016b).
2 billion do not have access to a mobile phone.
A number of reasons for this divide are explored The importance of developing literacy and digital
further in the review. literacy skills for inclusion in the knowledge society
is well documented (United Nations, 2003a,
What does this mean, not only for those not 2003b). Education is a central part of the 2030
connected, but for the 750 million people, Agenda, and SDG 4 captures the global aim to
including 102 million young people, who could ‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education
not read or write in 2016 (UIS, 2017)? Or for and promote lifelong learning opportunities for
women, who make up nearly two-thirds of this all’ (United Nations, 2015). The Agenda devotes
group, and those living in South-East Asia and renewed attention to the importance of literacy
20 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

by aiming to ensure that all young people and a Ultimately the research aims to contribute to
substantial proportion of adults, both men and ensuring the necessary skills are developed and
women, achieve literacy and numeracy by 2030. that digital solutions are designed in ways that are
The SDGs are interconnected, and it is important more inclusive of those with lower levels of skills
to note that SDG 4 and the literacy target underpin and literacy.
the achievement of all the other SDGs.
In the next chapter, the scope of this review is
Against the backdrop of an increasingly digitized delineated. The scope is shaped by the questions
world and Agenda 2030, the primary goal of the the review sought to answer and the five specific
landscape review is to present the intersection focus areas the review encompassed. Finally, the
between digital solutions, livelihoods in knowledge target audience, technology types and geographic
societies and digital economies, and low-skilled coverage of the review are outlined.
and low-literate young people and adults.
21 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
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Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 21

03
Scope of the review

Questions

The questions to be explored in this landscape review are:

•• What does the literature reveal about the general barriers to digital inclusion for
all people and the broad design approaches to better include users who are low
skilled and low literate? (Addressed in Chapters 6 and 7)

•• From the reviewed projects in each of the five focus areas, for low-skilled and
low-literate users, in what ways have solutions been specifically designed,
developed, used and implemented? (Addressed in Chapter 8)

•• Collectively considering the sample projects, what emergent themes, specific

barriers and opportunities can be distilled? (Addressed in Chapters 9 and 10)
22 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Selected focus areas of the review

The understanding of exclusion linked to technology use

(referring broadly to the digital divide) is not new, and
●● e-Health services
UNESCO wants to avoid unnecessary duplication of existing
(SDG 3)
work. However, it is timely to give a fresh treatment to
technological inclusivity in an Agenda 2030 and literacy ●● e-Agricultural services
context, particularly for low-skilled and low-literate young (SDG 2)
people and adults, and those who are illiterate and cannot
read or write, in the present period of mass digitization of ●● e-Government services
certain economies. (SDG 16)

●● e-Services for displaced populations

Ideally the UNESCO-Pearson Initiative would consider all
(SDG 8, 10, 16)
areas covered in the SDGs, but given a limited scope it was
necessary to select around five focus areas. This number ●● e-Green/environmental services
allowed sufficient treatment to be given to each focus area, (SDG 3, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
while laying the groundwork for further research across
the SDG spectrum. As noted above, the report’s focus falls
outside of the traditional education lens and rather on the
following livelihood-related areas, shown with the SDGs they
relate to (see Appendix A for a description of the SDGs)

Chapter 4 discusses the research methods for this review and

gives an overview of the data sources drawn from them.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 23

04
Methods and
data sources
The research drew from a variety of different databases and other information sources,
and incorporated systematic and selective review methods.

Review of reports and

existing digital solutions

The starting point of the study was the analysis The search strategy included examination of a
of previous related reviews. A systematic review, combination of different users (such as low-skilled
including of academic literature, was carried out young people, low-literate and illiterate young
across a range of databases, and covered more than people who cannot read or write, out-of-school
200 documents. young people, low-skilled adults, low-literate and
illiterate adults who cannot read or write), domains
The systematic search was complemented by (such as health, e-health, m-health; agricultural
selective waves of searches in Google Scholar (to extension services, m-agri; e-administration,
allow for a more comprehensive full-text search) to e-government, m-government; displaced
access additional reports and articles from a broader populations, crisis, humanitarian technology; e-green,
disciplinary background. green technology, sustainable development), and
media (ICT, web, personal computers (PCs), laptops,
Finally, to capture work not yet analysed in academic mobile technology, mobile phones, smartphones,
literature, standard web searches of grey literature tablets). Initiatives found that combined the users,
were also carried out. The goal was to collect insights domains and media elements listed above into one
and lessons learned from project websites, blogs, project were coded and entered into a database to
practitioner journals and other notable sources. be considered further.
24 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

The initial literature review also considered existing

digital solutions that could be utilized for deeper
analysis in this review.

Selection of projects to review

A total of thirty-two projects, from an initial list of

fifty, from different countries, contexts both rural Projects needed to have been implemented
and urban, and five sectors were considered for within the last ten years.
this review. Projects were selected by applying the
following search criteria:

Projects needed to be deployed in the

field in real settings: several projects were
academic studies with highly controlled
The target audience of the solutions reviewed
conditions and brief implementation periods.
needed to include, but not necessarily be
Initiatives operating in the field were preferred
limited to, low-skilled and low-literate young
because it was important to show how
people and adults. Some 124 million children
they worked with people in conditions they
and adolescents are out of school – this group
would encounter in their daily lives and over
was also included in the target audience
extended periods.
(UNESCO, 2015a).

Projects needed to have more than one

The use of interactive ICT that allows users to
source through which to refer to their
not only consume information but engage
achievements. This is because UNESCO
with it, for instance through mobile devices
wanted to feature projects that had been
(phones or tablets), PCs and the web. Broadcast
reviewed by others working in the sector, and
ICT, such as radio and TV, was considered only
multiple sources would be an indication of
when used to complement interactive ICT.
this.

While focusing more on developing regions,

The thirty-two projects to emerge from this
the review spanned both developing and
process are presented in Chapter 8 of the review.
developed countries (low, middle and high
Additionally, more detailed information about each
income) and sought to include examples from
project has been collated into a table, which can be
all five major regions.
found in Appendix B.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 25

Analytical framework

A user-centred design approach underpinned the used, it is also important to consider environmental
analytical framework applied to the thirty-two case factors – such as cost and social norms – affecting
studies reviewed. From a development perspective, uptake.
this people-centred approach is related to the UN
Development Programme (UNDP) position – linked Three stages were followed in the project review.
to the SDGs – that people are the primary driver of The first step was to develop the analytical
development (UNDP, 2016). framework. A typology for the digital solutions was
generated (see Chapter 11 for the full typology)
People’s ideas, their way of living, their sense of that detailed the different possibilities in terms of:
empowerment, and the social and political factors
in the places they live all bear on the success •• functions of the digital solutions;
of any potential development intervention. By •• their delivery channels;
putting people first, the design of development
•• range of devices to access the solutions;
interventions can then be made more relevant and
•• user interfaces and media mix options;
with greater potential for positive impacts that the
intended beneficiaries desire. Such a perspective •• content types;
on development includes the need to co-create •• support made available;
solutions with potential users (Nagler, 2017). •• affordances for low-skilled and low-literate
users;
By positioning people at the centre of this review,
the analysis was framed in a manner which •• skills needed to complete tasks with
considered the design affordances observed from interactive technologies.
the perspective of people who are low skilled
and low literate, and how designs might enable The following sources informed (either directly
or inhibit the adoption of digital solutions in the or indirectly) the typology: Conole (2010), Dron
five sectors considered. Further, the framework and Anderson (2007), Horrigan (2007), Innovative
considered the digital competences needed to use Learning (2011), ISO (n. d.), Medhi Thies (2015),
the different solutions, since the UNESCO-Pearson Millwood (2013), Nielsen (1995) and Wenger (1998).
Initiative is concerned not only with appropriate
design of solutions, but how through their usage Second, the typology was used as a prompt
skills can be developed among the target users. to consider the thirty-two projects gathered
Overall, the people-centred approach was ideal during the literature review. To complement
given that low-skilled and low-literate people are the typology from a digital competences
frequently marginalized in terms of the support perspective, the projects were mapped against the
mechanisms made available for them, especially if European Commission’s DigComp 2.1: The Digital
they live in remote and rural areas, since it is more Competence Framework for Citizens (Carretero et
challenging to extend services to these places. al., 2017).

However, digital solutions are not used in isolation The DigComp 2.1 Framework is made up of five
(DDPWG, 2017), thus in addition to considering competence areas containing twenty-one digital
the design process, the solution and the way(s) it is competences, critical to participation in lifelong
26 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

learning in the digital era. As stated above, there Competence area, Competence and Proficiency
are four proficiency levels that can be applied to level.
each of the twenty-one competences. Because
each proficiency level is split into two steps – a Finally, where possible, the actual digital solutions
lower and a higher – the proficiency rating for each of the projects were accessed and viewed by the
competence has eight options. authors, downloaded and used, to understand –
at first hand – the design affordances made that
Using the typology and framework, the projects could support the adoption of these tools by
were deconstructed to understand how digital people with low skills or literacy levels.
solutions were designed for the low skilled and low
literate. The rationale behind certain design choices Based on the key findings of the review of the
was drawn out through documents made publicly projects, the analysis considered the common
available. findings, as well as notable exceptions, across
the whole spectrum of design, the digital
Any issues around the design process and the solutions, the required user competences and
context in which the digital solutions were used the implementation environment. Barriers and
were recorded, to provide a more complete picture opportunities for greater inclusion were sought
of usage and align with the report questions. out.

In Appendix B, the projects were categorized It should be noted that to ensure quality, draft
according to Sector, Country, Function, Delivery versions of the report were peer-reviewed by an
channel(s), Target users, Affordances for low-skilled external international expert group set up for the
and low-literate users and Intended impact, as UNESCO-Pearson Initiative, and final versions were
well as the Digcomp 2.1 Framework elements of validated by a number of UNESCO experts.

Figure 1. Stages of the analysis of the actual digital solutions

Generate working Analyse projects Download and use

typology the digital solutions
__
__
Use typology as a prompt to
Generate the digital solution __
consider the 32 projects in the
typology, comprising functions, review, including DigComp Where possible, download
delivery channels, access devices, 2.1: The Digital Competence and use the solutions, such
user interface and media mix Framework for Citizens. as mobile apps, to enhance
options, content types, support __ understanding of the
made available, and affordances for Deconstruct projects to solutions.
low skilled and/or low literate users. understand how digital solutions
were designed for the low skilled
__ and/or low literate.
Also considered are the users' __
roles and the skills needed to Consider rationale behind
complete tasks with in teractive certain design choices through
technologies. Competences and online documents.
the proficiency levels frame __
Categorize and map projects
and organize the skills required
accordingly.
to utilize the digital solutions.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 27

Limitations

UNESCO acknowledges that the landscape review This report’s review and analysis relies on the
is not exhaustive within focus areas and across all validity of data and methods presented in the
countries, nor was it conducted in an inventory- secondary sources consulted, including project-
style manner. Although the sample size for this related reports, peer-reviewed publications and
review is small in light of the volume of sources conference proceedings.
identified (fifty projects derived from more than
200 sources, as earlier mentioned), the aim was, Limitations notwithstanding, the report makes a
insofar as possible, to review projects that are contribution to painting the landscape of digital
demonstrative of the different deployments inclusion through an analysis of a number of
presently available in the health, agriculture, selected projects. The analysis will inform a series
government, displaced populations, and of in-depth case studies and guidelines for greater
environment sectors for people who are low skilled digital inclusion, and enrich the body of knowledge
and low literate. on how the digital participation of low-skilled and
low-literate users can be increased.
In the application of the DigComp2.1 Framework,
not every possible user group could be considered. Chapter 5 provides some brief definitions of terms
However, the significant number of user groups used throughout this report.
considered still offers a view into the range of skills
and competences required.
28 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

05
Definitions
It is useful to define a few concepts that are used in this review and throughout the
UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy, including user interface and user experience,
livelihoods, literacy, digital literacy, the literate environment, the digital economy
and skills. The goal is to familiarize the reader with the way in which UNESCO
understands these terms in the context of this review and overall project.

User interface and user experience

Much of the report and the overall project are empowerment and an increase in their
concerned with the design of digital solutions. confidence while interacting with a technology, it
Design considerations include the user interface, can safely be assumed that they will use it again
which comprises the components of the digital to help meet their needs. If a user experiences
system that the user will interact with, such as confusion, anxiety, or is altogether unable to
icons, labels and navigation menus. Ensuring use a technology, the likely outcome is that they
that the user interface functions well for its will stop using it (Garrett, 2011). Ensuring the
intended purpose gives way to the creation of appropriate user interface and resulting positive
a user experience, which ultimately determines user experience for low-skilled and low-literate
whether a user will continue using a technology users is essential to successful usage by this group.
over time (Miller, 2005). If a user experiences
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 29

Livelihoods

Livelihoods are often understood in the context of refugee households are integral to many
of a means of earning a living, or providing sectors including health and nutrition, energy,
sustenance for individuals or communities. For environment and education (UNHCR, 2014). The
example, the Global Education Monitoring Report UNESCO-Pearson Initiative has taken this broader
2016 (UNESCO, 2016) notes that in the early 2010s, view of livelihood, considering not only income-
2.6 billion people depended on agriculture for their generating activities, but also enabling capabilities
livelihoods and 1.3 billion were directly engaged and assets, such as being healthy, accessing
in farming. While a livelihood encompasses the government services and living in a greener,
‘capabilities, assets (including both material and more sustainable way. Livelihood in this review is
social resources) and activities required for a means also considered in the context of the emerging
of living’ (Chambers and Conway, 1991), it is not knowledge society and digital economy.
practised in isolation. For example, the livelihoods

Literacy

In contemporary societies, people’s understanding While the definition of literacy itself has changed
of the world is largely mediated by the written over the last decades, it is not the intention of
word – in both print and digital forms. Traditionally, this review to engage in that ongoing debate.
literacy is understood as the ability to read and However, the following shifts in thinking on
write; numeracy is often added as a complement. literacy are notable: from negative to positive
UNESCO (2015b) defines literacy as: discourses, in other words recognizing the many
literacies that people may have even if they do not
meet traditional norms; from a discourse about
eradication of illiteracy to one that promotes
the ability to identify, understand, literacy; and from a dichotomy of illiterate/literate
interpret, create, communicate and to the idea of a spectrum of literacy proficiency
compute using printed and written (UNESCO, 2017). The last point is crucial to
materials associated with diverse understanding literacy as a continuum of learning
contexts. Literacy involves a continuum on which all people are located and along which
of learning in enabling individuals they move.
to achieve their goals, develop their
knowledge and potential and participate
fully in community and society.
30 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Digital literacy

The basic idea of literacy has been widely extended much more than the ability to handle computers
to other domains, including digital literacy, which – just like traditional literacy and numeracy, it
encompasses the digital skills and competences comprises a set of basic skills which include the
required to participate in an information society use and production of digital media, information
and knowledge economy. According to the processing and retrieval, participation in social
UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies networks for creation and sharing of knowledge,
in Education (2011), digital literacy has ‘become and a wide range of professional computing skills’.

Literate environment

Literacy should be seen in the context of lifelong those activities within society that impel different
and life-wide learning (Hanemann, 2015). It not is population groups to acquire and maintain given
a skill developed once in life, in primary school or levels of competence in reading, writing and
at an adult education centre, and then considered numeracy or that afford them opportunities for
as complete. Literacy development takes place using those skills to their benefit and the benefit of
throughout life, in and outside of education. As the their families and communities’ (Easton, 2014).
UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) (2017)
points out, ‘there are many resources in different The demand side of the literate environment
spaces or places – at home, in the community, at has traditionally received less attention than the
work, in the (electronic) media, on the internet, and supply side, but this is changing. Emphasis on
in cultural centres, libraries, museums, etc. – which strengthening the demand side is ‘about linking
complement and enhance literacy classes’. Such literacy to economic, social and cultural activities
complements constitute elements of a literate which people want or need to develop in their
environment. daily lives’ (UNESCO UIL, 2017). Referring to sub-
Saharan Africa, Easton (2014) highlights that digital
The provision of life-wide opportunities to acquire technologies are becoming significant factors in
and practise literacy skills is the supply side of the creating this link from the demand as well as the
literate environment. The demand side, however, supply side. The role played by digital solutions
is as critical. It is made up of ‘the forces that in the context of both the supply and demand of
create an objective need for literacy – that is, all literate environments is key to this review.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 31

Digital economy

The concept of the digital economy – one and the development of related digital services
fundamentally changed by the internet in terms of and products, has seen widespread digitization of
buying, selling, remunerating and communicating economies. As an example, China-based Alibaba,
– was first proposed in the 1990s (Tapscott, 2014) the world’s largest e-commerce platform by sales
and, for obvious reasons, was concerned largely volume, supports an estimated 10 million jobs,
with developed countries. Since then, the broad or 1.3 per cent of China’s workforce (World Bank,
uptake of the internet and mobile technologies, 2016b).

Skills

The World Bank (2016b) makes clear the Two tensions converge around livelihoods in a
relationship between livelihoods and digital digital world: the skills and literacies needed to
technologies in a global context. However, it participate in increasingly digitized economies; and
cautions that reaping digital dividends depends the livelihood opportunities presented by digital
on the availability of a range of ‘analogue products and services, which create and enforce
complements’, including developing the skills the demand for developing the necessary skills. In
people need to best leverage the digital economy. the context of these push and pull forces, ensuring
While this review is mainly concerned with people learning in non-formal and informal contexts for
with low digital skills, those with low skills in other and through the use of digital technologies has
areas are considered. Traditionally, being low- much potential to help low-skilled and low-literate
skilled is regarded as referring to adults with below people develop the capacities and skills needed to
lower-secondary levels of education. The level of capitalize on opportunities for improving their daily
education has been criticized as a poor indicator lives and livelihoods.
of skills, though (Tuijnman et al., 1997), as people
develop new skills, and lose old ones, throughout Nevertheless, as will be shown in the next chapter,
their lives. there are at least four major barriers that contribute
to limitations in the number of people who can
There is thus a spectrum of low-skilled to high- be reached with digital solutions designed to be
skilled people, and low-literate to high-literate inclusive for those with skills or literacy-based
people. The primary focus of this review is on low- needs.
skilled and low-literate young people and adults.
32 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

06
Known barriers
to digital inclusion
Given the well-documented social and economic benefits associated with digital
inclusion, why is it that billions of people remain excluded? There are a number of
known barriers to digital inclusion, which are worth briefly describing in order to
illustrate the broader context in which all people, including the target audience of
the review – people with low skills and low literacy levels – find themselves. More
nuanced barriers and design responses are explored in the following chapters,
including the key findings and analysis of the landscape review itself.

In an analysis of seven major publications in recent UNESCO reviewed a further two reports – by
years, Schmida and colleagues (2017) found UNHCR (2016) and IGF (2015) – to add to the
consensus regarding the principal barriers to understanding of the barriers, summarized in
increasing digital inclusion: Table 1.

•• lack of infrastructure;
•• low incomes and affordability;
•• user capabilities (that is, lack of basic literacy
and digital literacy);
•• incentives (such as lack of cultural and social
3 The barriers use the terminology from one of the reviewed
acceptance of internet use, awareness and reports (McKinsey & Company, 2014) and while, as Schmida et al.
(2017) point out, there are some minor variations in the reviewed
understanding of the internet, and available
publications of the definitions of the four barriers, overall they
and attractive local content).3 can be classed as presented here.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 33

Table 1. Comparison of known barriers (adapted from Schmida et al., 2017)

Proposed barriers
Source literature
Low income and
Lack of infrastructure Users’ capability Incentives
affordability
Connecting the Next X X X X
Four Billion (Schmida
et al., 2017)

Connecting Refugees X X X
(UNHCR, 2016)

IGF Policy Options for X X X

Connecting the Next (Usability)
Billion
(IGF, 2015)

Offline and Falling X X X X

Behind (McKinsey &
Company, 2014)

Digital Inclusion X X X X
(GSMA, 2014) (Appetite)

Digital Enablement X X X X
(Huawei, 2015) (Ability) (Ability) (Appetite)

State of X X X X
Connectivity 2015 (Availability, or (Affordability, (Readiness, which (Split between:
(Internet.org, 2016) proximity of necessary including costs of includes skills, Readiness and
Infrastructure, devices and data awareness, and relevance (i.e. is
including mobile packages relative to cultural and social useful, relatable, and
access, networks, income) acceptance) accessible content
adjacent infrastructure, available to the user?))
and access innovation)

Internet for All (World X X X

Economic Forum and (Availability) (Under Skills, (Split between:
Boston Consulting awareness, and Readiness and
Group, 2016) cultural acceptance) relevance)

Connecting the X X X X
World (Availability) (Under Usage, or (Under Usage, or
(PwC, 2016) demand simulation demand simulation
including local including local
content and ICT skills) content and ICT skills)

ICT & SDGs X X X X

(Ericsson & Columbia (Under Usage, or (Under Usage, or
University, 2016) demand simulation demand simulation
including local including local
content and ICT skills) content and ICT skills)
34 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Lack of infrastructure

Seven billion people – 95 per cent of the global countries (McKinsey & Company, 2014). Again, rural
population – live in an area that is covered by users in developing countries generally experience
a mobile cellular network (ITU, 2016). However, the slowest internet access, making them second-
this coverage is nuanced in terms of locality and class users. Within the rural population, particular
quality; that figure belies the unevenness between groups may be further disadvantaged. For
and within countries. For example, unique mobile example, only 17 per cent of rural refugees live in
subscriber penetration ranges from 84 per cent in areas with 3G coverage (UNHCR, 2016).
Europe to 44 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa (GSMA,
2017b). The International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
(2014) predicts that quality of access is likely to
In terms of locality, mobile broadband networks become the key distinction between rural and
(that is, third-generation – 3G – or above) cover 84 urban households. However, even in many urban
per cent of the global population, but reach only areas access can be very slow or nonexistent.
67 per cent of the rural population (ITU, 2016). The A necessary component to providing access is
high cost of capital and ongoing expenditure of adjacent infrastructure, such as roads and grid
mobile carrier networks means that deployments electricity needed to support mobile cellular
tend to be in densely populated, urban and peri- towers. Having to rely on expensive power and
urban areas (USAID, Caribou Digital and Digital maintenance in rural areas drives up the cost and
Impact Alliance, 2017). Beyond mobile, while reduces the quality of access, making it unlikely
in many developed countries fixed broadband that network carriers will invest there.
penetration is high — over 40 per cent in France
(OECD, 2016a) — in Africa and the least developed Access is necessary for digital inclusion but it also
countries (LDCs) it remains below 1 per cent (ITU, needs to be affordable, as highlighted by SDG 9C:
2016). ‘Significantly increase access to information and
communications technology and strive to provide
Access needs to be considered in terms of quality, universal and affordable access to the Internet in
which varies dramatically between and within least developed countries by 2020.’

Low incomes and affordability

Internet access is considered to be affordable if and emerging countries that it regularly surveys
an entry-level package of 500 megabytes (MB) met the 5 per cent affordability target – for those
of data can be bought for less than 5 per cent of citizens earning the average national income.
average monthly income (Broadband Commission, More importantly, though, not one of the fifty-one
2011). The Alliance for Affordable Internet (2016) countries met the affordability target for those
found that twenty-five of the fifty-one developing living in poverty, a group comprising 1.9 billion
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 35

people. Even within this group, the cost range Affordable Internet, 2016; GSMA, 2017b). Moreover,
can vary greatly: in Latin America, for example, ICT while in general the price of devices continues to
services can take up between 5 and 44 per cent decrease, they are still not affordable for everyone.
of a poor household’s income (Katz and Callorda, When bundled together with the cost of mobile
2015). data and services, the total cost of ownership
remains one of the biggest obstacles to achieving
High service costs, including data package and the universal access pledge of the SDGs, especially
Wi-Fi monthly subscription fees, are one of the for low-income earners and those already
major drivers of this affordability issue (Alliance for marginalized.

User capabilities

Once people have affordable access, they need illustration, across Africa, seven in ten people who
the skills to be able to use meaningfully digital do not use the internet say they just don’t know
tools and services. Low basic literacy and digital how to use it (World Bank, 2016b).
literacy levels present barriers to such usage. Across
thirty-three countries the Survey of Adult Skills While basic literacy is usually seen as a precursor
(OECD, 2016b) found that a sizeable proportion of to digital literacy (Schmida et al., 2017), this
adults had poor reading skills (18.5 per cent) and sequence is becoming questionable as low-literate
poor numeracy skills (22.7 per cent). Around one users begin to use very basic digital services. The
in four adults has no or only limited experience interconnectedness of the forms of literacy is
with computers, or lacks confidence in their ability undeniable, regardless of which is needed first.
to use computers. The lack of digital literacy and
related skills is seen as ‘excluding many citizens The World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting
from the digital society and economy. It is also Group (2016) highlighted how unnecessary
holding back the large multiplier effect of ICT take- complexity and onboarding of digital solutions
up on productivity growth’ (European Commission, can also hinder adoption, including signing up for
2010). The Digital Agenda for Europe seeks to services, first-time set-ups, using the phone system
address the digital literacy deficit to better exploit and connecting other devices. Designing usable
the potential of ICT for innovation, economic digital solutions for low-skilled users is a key part
growth and progress. Findings like the OECD’s are of supporting their inclusion, and is explored in
more pronounced in developing regions. As an further detail in Chapter 9.
36 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Incentives
Beyond access, affordability and skills, the literature proposes the importance of demand-
side incentives to use the internet. People need to be aware of it, see its relevance, and be
living with social and cultural norms that accept usage.

Awareness Content also needs to be understandable.

Approximately 80 per cent of online content exists
Around the world many people have insufficient only in ten languages (World Bank, 2014), of which
knowledge or awareness of the potential usefulness English is dominant. It is estimated that over half
of the internet, and as a result simply do not go (55.8 per cent) of web content is in English, a
online. In Africa, almost four in ten say they do not language understood by 21 per cent of the world
know what the internet is (World Bank, 2016b). (GSMA and Mozilla, 2014). It is hoped that the
While the technology landscape in India has rise in usage of platforms such as Facebook and
changed rapidly in recent years, 69 per cent of YouTube will lead to more local user-generated
survey respondents cited a lack of awareness of the content and help reduce global information
internet as a reason they were not online in 2013 asymmetry. However, for now 85 per cent of the
(IAMAI, 2013). user-generated content indexed by Google still
comes from the USA, Canada and Europe (World
Of those who know about the internet, some do
Bank, 2016b).
not see any meaningful reason to use it. In 2013, a
third of non-internet users (34 per cent) in the USA
did not go online because they had no interest in
doing so or did not think the internet was relevant Social and cultural acceptance
to their lives (Zickuhr, 2013). Interestingly, even in Internet usage in many societies is not seen as
the USA, cost and difficulty of use were also cited as socially or culturally acceptable for all members.
reasons for not using the internet. Social norms, among other reasons, can favour
men and their use of technology. For example,
The prevalence of digital content and services young men in urban contexts are significantly
that are interesting, relevant or useful for people more connected than older, rural women
is critically linked to internet adoption and usage (World Bank, 2016b). Gender differences, fed by
(World Economic Forum, 2015). Such offerings ‘acceptable’ social norms, result in wage gaps,
range from entertainment and news content to especially for those living in poverty, where
education, health and financial services, and include women, on average, earn 30–50 per cent less than
essential government utilities. The rise of mobile their male counterparts (Alliance for Affordable
money as a driver for digital inclusion is highlighted Internet, 2016). Gender wage gaps lower the
later in this report. The linkage between digital possibility of women – and female-headed
solutions and livelihoods is increasingly evident, and households in particular – affording internet
is the very focus of the UNESCO-Pearson Initiative, access. Further, youth practices with mobile
examined from the perspective of people with low phones, such as instant messaging and social
skill and literacy levels. networking, can be treated with suspicion by
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 37

socially conservative institutions such as schools usage. They need to be addressed in a holistic and
(Walton, 2009), parents and the media (Chigona et systemic manner. They are influenced by a broad –
al., 2009). and enabling or restrictive – environment of policy,
economics and social norms.
As shown above, internet usage is not even; it
varies between regions and countries, across While the barriers elaborated in this chapter can
cultures and between genders. The unconnected present substantial challenges to the adoption of
are mostly the urban poor, marginalized groups interactive technologies for people who are low
(women in particular) and those living in rural skilled and low literate, progress has been made
areas (Schmida et al., 2017). However, even in to identify the design affordances that might
developed countries, usage is not uniform. Simply lower these barriers. In the next chapter, the broad
ensuring internet access does not automatically themes identified in the design of digital solutions
translate into adoption and actual benefits. The for this particular marginalized population are
barriers listed here are intertwined; each alone is a outlined.
necessary but insufficient component of internet
38 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

07
Designing for
low-skilled and
low-literate users:
broad themes
This chapter considers more closely the practical ways in which technology has
been designed and deployed to suit users with low skills and low literacy levels.
Both Chapters 6 and 7 respond to the first question of the landscape review.

People possess and exhibit a variety of characteristics additional support to make use of a technology
that make designing the ‘killer technology’ a are frequently underserved and excluded (Medhi
challenging endeavour when trying to address the et al., 2011). Nonetheless, an increasing number of
needs of every possible user. If these users also have projects and programmes that involve technology
low literacy or few digital skills, the design difficulty is creation with low-literate and low-skilled users in
further compounded (Lalji and Good, 2008). mind are helping to establish an evidence base by
which designers can understand broad themes
As a result, technology design tends to consider in developing effective digital solutions for this
the needs of those who are fully literate in all group of users.
domains and similarly skilled, while those who need
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 39

In a literature review of digital solutions to access the information they seek (Chaudry
for low-literate and low-skilled users, the et al., 2012). When deciding which graphics
following eight design themes emerged: to use, it is more effective to use those that
are realistic and that are clearly labelled and
portray what is to be learned in a meaningful
manner (Choi and Bakken, 2010).

A voice- (or speech-)

based computing interface
remains one of the most Linear and hierarchical user
effective tools that can be interfaces are often too
deployed to reach low- complex for low-literate
literate and low-skilled and low-skilled people to
technology users (Sherwani, 2009). navigate. Relationship-
As discussed earlier, textual literacy can pose
based and non-linear user
a significant barrier to technology uptake for interfaces help present
low-literate users, but oral and aural literacy content from interactive
(in the absence of any disabilities) can serve ICTs in a more digestible
as viable channels of interface through which
these users are enabled to use interactive
manner (Eshet-Alkalai, 2004).
technology.
Linear interfaces, or designs where menu lists
are presented from top to bottom, are made
more byzantine when these lists have multiple
columns or integrate hierarchies whereby
User interfaces that selection of one choice leads to a set of sub-

incorporate graphics choices. The likelihood that low-literate and

low-skilled users will drift too far from engaging
substantially improve the with the desired task at hand is increased in
usability of a technology such design scenarios.
appropriated by people
Alternatively, nonlinear user interfaces which
with low literacy and few consider the relationships between items
digital skills. This is achieved by displayed through a device screen and present
aiding the identification of activities they can these relationships in ways that make sense
complete through recognizable depictions of to low-literate and low-skilled people can
that activity with pictures instead of through drastically improve the navigation experience
text. for these users.

Graphics have also been found to support task

completion by low-literate and low-skilled
users when appropriating technologies,
particularly the colour and spatial orientation Local content generated
of graphics which can help users recall how by the users themselves or
40 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

others with long-standing solutions in ways that appeal to a need to

be socially connected can contribute to the
familiarity with their uptake of the technology among people who
community, and in local have low literacy or few digital skills (Patel et
languages, is particularly al., 2010). This is because once these users have
important for interactive access to technologies that work for them or
enhance their lives in meaningful ways, the
technology adoption by user experience can inspire them to spread
people with low literacy or awareness of the technology to others whom
who have few digital skills they think might benefit from it.
(Agarwal et al., 2003).
As this adoption scales among this population,
The usability of a technology is not limited to it in turn fuels demand that could create a
how people interact with the technology; it virtuous circle whereby low-literate and low-
includes the accessibility of the content being skilled users adopt interactive technologies
conveyed. When considering the content that designed with them in mind with greater
will be presented to low-literate and low- frequency. This undoubtedly represents an
skilled users, designers should make it not only opportunity to narrow the digital divide
relevant to them in terms of the topic but also through inclusive measures that transcend
immediately applicable to their surroundings. literacy and skills barriers..

Local content use can enhance the users’ ability

to understand and interpret the information
received, and potentially to act on this
information in ways that could be useful to Designs targeted to people
them. Medhi Thies (2015) also notes that user- with more education and
generated local content can be created and skills and higher literacy
shared through voice-based user interfaces.
Video has been utilized to create local content
levels are sometimes also
as well, an example of which will be seen later useful for people with less
in one of the thirty-two projects reviewed. education and skills or lower
literacy levels (Medhi Thies, 2015).
Personal assistants activated by voice
commands such as Siri, Cortana and Alexa,
Integrating social elements and wearable devices like FitBit (which
to the user experience for automatically generates user health and fitness
technologies used by low- data through a connected device worn on

literate and low-skilled the wrist) are more sophisticated interactive

technologies that all have the potential to be
people bolsters the spread useful to this population.
and adoption of these
technologies by other users The reasons for this include that they integrate
design affordances that are ideal for users
like them (Raza et al., 2012, 2013). with fewer skills and lower literacy, such as
Allowing users to share content or digital
voice-based interactions to facilitate access to
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 41

information, and remote data collection that

more skills or higher literacy
can occur with minimal effort from the user
apart from wearing the technology.
is helping someone less
proficient with technology,
To date, the high costs of ownership can help lower barriers tied
associated with the devices that can be used
to users’ capabilities (Medhi Thies,
to access these user interfaces (as an example,
2015).
iPhones which can cost hundreds of dollars)
have contributed to poor uptake of these Low-skilled and low-literate users are not the
technologies for low-skilled and low-literate only ones who try to appropriate interactive
people who often also have low incomes. technologies for purposes that might enhance
their livelihoods, work or social participation.
Volunteer or professional intermediaries,
or other community members, could have
sufficient knowledge or have received the
Participatory design training needed to support this group in task
methodologies, including completion with technology.
co-designing solutions,
work best when creating While these intermediaries or community
members might not be much more proficient
digital solutions for low- in technology appropriation than the target
literate and low-skilled population, digital solution design which
populations (Lalji and Good, 2008). anticipates use cases where assistance is given
to those with less education and training has
The development of interactive technologies been observed. The health and agriculture
that address the particular needs of users with sectors in particular frequently apply multi-
low literacy or who have few digital skills, when user scenarios that involve people of varying
done in concert with these users, can help skills and literacy levels. One example,
remove the (often subconscious) bias built into described below, is Khushi Baby, which has
the technologies that are designed by people a range of users across the digital spectrum:
who are literate and more highly skilled than mothers, nurses, health activists and district
the users they intend to serve. officials. CHWs with varying degrees of skills
and literacies are paired – stronger users with
The use of participatory methodologies those with weaker skills.
requires time investments so that designers
understand the users and their surroundings
with detailed granularity, in ways that help
produce a technology that is fit for both the
people and purpose. The design themes outlined above highlight
practical approaches to designing technologies
with low-literate and low-skilled people in mind.
Nonetheless, the sector for which the technology
is being designed also carries considerations,
Digital solutions designed challenges and opportunities different from – yet
for more than one user, still related and specific to – this population, moving
especially when a user with beyond these themes in best practice.
42 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Attempts to include low-literate and low-skilled

users in sector-specific digital transformation
processes must then be undertaken with the
knowledge that these users will encounter
situational dynamics that require agile and
responsive technological designs. In turn, these
designs should support their ability to complete
tasks in domains in which they may have
little experience. Ensuring that both the user
interfaces and the user experience make positive
contributions to how low-literate and low-skilled
people appropriate technologies in different
sectors meant to enhance their lives is therefore a
balancing act that will require ongoing innovation.

In the next chapter, attention turns to the review of

the thirty-two projects across five sectors that were
identified for inclusion in this report. The aim is to
highlight and analyse the design affordances in
these projects that help put digital solutions within
reach of more people.
43 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
Landscape
World
Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 43

PART I I:
REVIEW FINDINGS
AND ANALYSIS
While the first part of the report addressed the first
question and laid the foundation for the review, the
second part presents the actual review findings and
analysis.
44 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

08
Key focus areas:
synthesis of
review findings
In this chapter, in response to the second question of the review, the five areas
examined – health, agriculture, government, displaced populations, and
green/environment – are presented with a focus on the design affordances
observed in the thirty-two projects that were reviewed. Each section begins
with a brief overview of a focus area's relationship with digital technologies,
followed by a listing of the different functions observed in the digital solutions
reviewed for the sector (see Chapter 11 for further information on how
function is defined in this report).

Next the projects, categorized by function for each sector, are summarized
and the design affordances noted which could support adoption of the
digital solution by people who are low skilled and low literate. Further project
information can then be retrieved from the table in Appendix B.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 45

08.1
e-Health services

In the past two decades, the attempts to improve of interactive technologies for the purpose of
the availability and quality of health care have health-care provision. It is quite common for these
increasingly turned to experimentation with ICT. additional groups to also be low skilled and low
The use of interactive technologies in health care literate, and not well trained.
has been propelled by a combination of ambitions
to make more efficient use of limited resources What follows is an exploration of the opportunities
(Demiris et al., 2008) and to support a lack of trained and lingering barriers to contend with when
personnel to cope with geographically distributed, implementing digital health solutions for the target
growing and ageing populations (Blaya et al., 2010). audience of the review in the following categories:

Electronic health, or e-Health as the field is known, •• information delivery service;

has also been adopted to lower costs (Schweitzer •• training and skills enhancement;
and Synowiec, 2012) and increase the effectiveness •• financial services;
of health-care interventions (Free et al., 2013).
•• remote management, support, diagnosis,
Essentially, the use of ICT in health-care provision
and monitoring.
has been positioned as a transformative way to help
ensure that more people can access vital services
that will help keep themselves and their families Information delivery service mobile health
healthy throughout every life stage. solutions are designed to provide people with
content to help them, and often their families,
Villaire and Mayer (2007) define health literacy as improve their health literacy. Health promotion
a person's ability to comprehend and to act on and behaviour change are often the intended
information received to care for their self. Research outcomes of such interventions.
has shown that people who are low skilled and
struggle with reading and writing literacy by In the USA in Atlanta, a programme called
extension also experience difficulties with health Text4Baby is designed to provide low-income
literacy (Pignone and DeWalt, 2006; Sanders et al., pregnant women and mothers of children under
2009; Singleton and Krause, 2009). the age of 1, many of whom have low literacy, with
an opportunity to learn about how to have healthy
Accordingly, many e-Health solutions designed pregnancies and children (Gazmararian et al., 2012).
for people who are low skilled and low literate
frequently attempt to provide information in simple A programme in Bangladesh similar to Text4Baby
language and highly accessible formats. However, called Aponjon also targets low-skilled and low-
where such information is not easily simplified for literate women and their families with health
these populations or where more sophisticated education messaging to ensure they have safe
functions are required from a digital solution, people pregnancies and deliveries (Ahsan and Raihan,
such as CHWs, other frontline health workers, and 2013).
infomediaries can become involved in supporting
low-skilled and low-literate groups in the adoption Both m-Health interventions integrate simplified
 46 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

text in their messaging to reach women who have information related to their pregnancy or children
low literacy. The simplified text is complemented of the age of theirs. Voice-based support and
by vivid graphics not only to convey information reminders are programme design elements critical
through another means, but also to deepen to the ability to reach low-skilled and low-literate
understanding about their pregnancy or the needs people by reducing barriers to understanding
for their family, often with actions they should information shared in text form.
take to promote healthy outcomes. The design
affordances enable both projects to reach low-skilled MIRA Channel is a general health-care information
and low-literate women in impoverished contexts, delivery service available in India, Afghanistan and
and with an increased positive impact on the health Uganda which specifically targets women who
outcomes for the women’s health and that of their live in rural areas and have few resources (ZMQ,
babies and families, with correlation to the digital 2014b). This digital solution adapts an ‘edutainment’
solution established. approach to health promotion for critical issues
by sharing content that is both educational and
First launched in 2011, the Chipatala cha pa Foni entertaining to heighten users' engagement, and
(CCPF) service in Malawi is a helpline accessible to even includes games and other interactive media
low-skilled and low-literate populations in rural areas as part of its offerings (ZMQ, 2015).
of the country. This toll-free service connects health
centres with communities that are remotely located The content for the app can be seen in one
and have limited access to health-care workers window, and this content is accompanied by
(VillageReach, 2017). Users can access the service for localized pictographs and simple text so that semi-
free by dialling a short code to connect them to a literate women can easily navigate the menu (ZMQ
health centre (Malawi24, 2016). Development, 2017). The emphasis on pictographs
is also supported by audio messages so that the
Low-skilled and low-literate people involved in same content can be conveyed even to women
maternal and child health-care provision can who cannot read.
receive reminders via text or voice messages about

Figure 2. MIRA Channel in Uganda

© ZMQ\Hilmi Quraishi
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 47

Training and skills enhancement digital solutions have recently given birth (Medic Mobile, 2016). In
are being designed to respond to the specific Nepal specifically, where most of these workers
needs of frontline health workers. Just as important are semi-literate, the skills needed for reporting,
as a patient who receives health information at patient monitoring, and communications with
the right place and time is that a community patients and central offices are low.
health worker (CHW) is equipped with the right
knowledge to provide treatment, give advice, and The SMS syntax that Medic Mobile uses is
facilitate further care, if necessary. intentionally simply to support those with weak
reading literacy skills to enter information with
The presence of CHWs is crucial especially in areas more ease (Medic Mobile, 2016). The training the
where few fully trained doctors can be found, since female CHWs received to use the app helped
they serve as a bridge until a time when medical them learn how to use a phone, and through this
professionals with more extensive training can work also improved their reading and writing skills
be reached. Despite the need for CHWs, there is a through practice with the SMS syntax for reporting.
dearth of people trained to carry out much of the
critical health-care work needed in many countries Another offering from the MIRA suite of services
around the world, particularly in developing is the MIRA Worker Toolkit. This digital solution
contexts. For example, according to Fagan and provides training for CHWs within the MIRA
Jacobs (2009), for every 100,000 people the United programme to reach pregnant women and
Kingdom has approximately four audiologists and children so that they can register them with the
sixteen speech therapists. Contrasting these figures local government and visit them on a regular basis
with eighteen countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the to provide health-care advice (ZMQ, 2014a). The
authors found that citizens in these countries had training and advice to support decision-making
virtually no access to an audiologist or speech for MIRA workers is made user-friendly for the
therapist at all; South Africa was the highest low-skilled and low-literate workers through use of
performing in this area, with one audiologist and pictographs and audio messaging.
two speech therapists for 100,000 people. This
situation underscores the need for digital solutions Financial services can be offered in the health
which promote training and skills enhancement sector by providing vouchers to incentivize
opportunities for workers who are themselves desired behaviours. In some instances, this may be
low skilled and low literate, or who serve such achieved by making subsidies available through
populations. mobile phones for people to visit a health-care
facility for care that they might need but are
To this end, the Nigerian government launched the unable to afford. Other interventions can also
m4Change project in Northern Nigeria to provide support CHW interactions with populations that
low-skilled CHWs with a mobile application that have taboos that inhibit their access to care.
bolsters their ability to make decisions while
facilitating maternal and child health care for As an example of this, a project undertaken with
women with low literacy (McNabb et al., 2015). The the government in Uganda called Claim Mobile
application makes use of vivid graphics in the user was designed to incentivize low-skilled CHWs to
interface to guide CHWs through their decision- provide health-care visits for people who have
making processes. sexually transmitted infections (Ho et al., 2009a).
To do this, an application was created that enabled
Medic Mobile has implemented a programme in the CHWs to receive vouchers by mobile that
twenty-three countries to support female CHWs they could then exchange for money from the
in their outreach to women who are pregnant or participating aid agency. The vouchers were
48 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

presented on their phones and could be redeemed steps that are needed to conduct an accurate
on the spot, requiring few digital skills on the part hearing test.
of the CHWs.
Some of the sequences for conducting the hearing
Remote management, support, diagnosis and test are also automated so that errors can be
monitoring in the health sector aims to care minimized. To ensure that possible hearing loss
for, diagnose and track patients at a distance. patients are directed to the right place, geotagging
hearScreen™ is a South African innovation which technology is used to match the people with their
addresses the gap in detecting hearing loss in nearest audiology health-care experts (Pollard,
children and adults in underserved communities. 2017).

To allow non-professionals to administer hearing

loss tests – and thereby alleviate the severe lack
of trained health staff in many communities – the
app was designed to be usable by people with
low skills and who have low literacy. The design
integrates large icons that clearly signpost the

Figure 3. hearScreen™ operation screenshots: (from left to right) home screen, signal presentation and results page
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 49

Khushi Baby is a digital solution in India where children

are provided with a wearable necklace that contains
their vaccination and health records (Khushi Baby, 2017).
The design considerations implemented to appeal to
low-skilled and low-literate populations in northern India
included that the necklace was made to look culturally
appropriate (UNICEF, 2015). This wearable device was co-
designed with the mothers whose babies would wear
the necklace (Tewari, 2016).

Inside the pendant strung on the necklace is a near-field

communication (NFC) chip which allows vaccination

© Khushi Baby
and other health records stored to be shared remotely
to an app installed on a smartphone or tablet (Shelton,
2014). Mothers who provide the Khushi Baby service
with their contact details also receive automated audio
Figure 4. Khushi Baby wearable necklace health
reminder messages in their mother tongue to help them
record
understand why they need to adhere to their baby's
vaccination schedule, and when the next vaccination
session will be held.

As discussed earlier in this chapter, remote and rural

areas face challenges in providing much needed health-
care services to people who are low skilled and low
literate. Moreover, the CHWs that may encounter most
of these people often have few skills and low literacy
themselves. In such circumstances, the entire chain of
care for health services could benefit from interventions
which enable low-skilled and low-literate people to
participate and help them lead healthy lives.

Despite the wide range of considerations to be made in

the health sector when designing digital health solutions
for low-skilled and low-literate populations, taking care
to strike the right balance is of paramount importance
since weak or ineffective interventions could result in
negative consequences for these populations.
50 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

08.2
e-Agriculture services

Agriculture has long made use of technologies to technologies have also been used in different areas
support the efficiency and speed of completing of digital agricultural extension work (Aker et al.,
work processes. Tractors, fertilizers and crop dusters 2016).
are all farming technologies which, since their
creation and introduction, have helped boost Yet despite the opportunities made available
agricultural productivity and output. For nearly through digital technologies to people working
six decades, agriculture extension services have in the agriculture sector, ICT adoption by farmers
been provided to help distribute vital information, and others employed in the agriculture sector is
including about agricultural technologies, far from ubiquitous (Ali, 2012). The reasons are
to farmers and other employees working in complex, but many are linked to the circumstances
agriculture in developed and developing contexts in which the agricultural labour force works – such
(Aker, 2011). as the absence of connectivity – as well as how
the technologies introduced to support their work
As noted earlier, more than 2 billion people rely are designed. A major barrier to ICT adoption
on the agriculture sector as their main source by agriculture workers is simply that they lack
of income (UNESCO, 2016). In Latin America, awareness that such digital solutions exist (Fawole
South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa the number of and Olajide, 2012).
people in the agricultural labour force amounts
to more than 550 million (GSMA, 2016a). Since To a certain extent, the design of digital solutions
the availability of digital technologies has grown, for low-skilled and low-literate agriculture sector
transformations have taken place in how, where workers requires considerations similar to what
and when agricultural extension work can occur was seen in the health sector. Yet the more
(Nakasone et al., 2014). overtly communal nature of information-sharing
in agriculture, as well as the need to integrate
In their examination of the promises and pitfalls knowledge that has often been tested and proven
observed with using ICT in agricultural work, Aker, locally (instead of through more rigorous scientific
Ghosh and Burrell (2016) documented more than methods as in the case of health), adds to the
140 digital agricultural initiatives globally. Digital complexity of the solution design. The different
technologies have helped farmers become more digital solutions available for use in agricultural
empowered in the marketplace by connecting extension work therefore cover a range of needs
them to people who may buy or sell their products, that agricultural workers have:
and even support their use of digital financial
services, such as loans, to grow their businesses •• information delivery services;
(Aker et al., 2016). •• small business management tools;
•• training and skills enhancement;
Many of these interventions are made possible
through mobile phones (Aker and Mbiti, 2010; •• financial services.
Furuholt and Matotay, 2011; GSMA, 2016a).
However landlines, computers and web-based
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 51

The typology of solutions to these requirements and information literacy, were not always effective
can be offered primarily via voice, text and on the when provided only in text message form.
internet, though there are digital technologies in
this sector that integrate video or even mobile Aker recommends combining a voice-based
money, as in the case of financial services, which approach with information made accessible
also makes use of unstructured supplementary through answers to questions that farmers are
service data (USSD) technology. These four likely to have, in order to eliminate the literacy
categories will now be explored further to challenges associated with texting. Even then, the
understand how the digital solution design author acknowledges that voice-based services
addresses the circumstances of people who are are imperfect as well because of the inability to
low skilled or low literate. produce realistic natural speech of good quality,
which she recommends mitigating through
Information delivery services in the agriculture exchanging authentic audio files with agricultural
sector seek to build upon the knowledge farmers extension information.
already possess by providing them with current
information that has been contextualized and, Talking Book is a digital solution available to
where possible, is immediately actionable farming communities in Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda
(Halewood and Surya, 2012). and Uganda. Spearheaded by a non-governmental
organization (NGO) called Literacy Bridge, Talking
In a review of different agricultural services that Book adopts a technology not often seen in
make use of digital technologies, Aker (2011) information delivery to rural stakeholders: a low-
found that information and market advice services, cost and programmable audio computer.
particularly for poorer farmers with low digital

Figure 5. Providing training on using the Talking Book

© Literacy Bridge/Scott Sweeney

 52 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

With a simple and easy-to-navigate user interface, Talking Book users can also interact with the audio
low-skilled and low-literate communities in these computer as they access hyperlinks embedded
four countries can gain on-demand access to over in messages and by taking quizzes. Even people
100 hours of content that is locally relevant and who have a visual disability can use the device
tailored to their language, dialect and particular by navigating with the guidance of indentations
agricultural needs (Literacy Bridge, n.d.). The aim is found on the ruggedized and long-lasting battery-
to promote both learning and behaviour change powered device (ARM, 2016).
that will enhance their productivity in agriculture,
as well as improve their health and livelihoods. A design element that drives the collaborative
nature of this intervention for low-skilled and
The content accessible through Talking Book low-literate rural populations is that people can
has been developed in partnership with local record their own knowledge in the audio library
stakeholders, and makes use of storytelling as a and when connected with other Talking Book
mechanism to deliver information (ARM, 2016). In devices, this locally generated knowledge can be
addition to instructional content, songs, dramas, exchanged (E-Agriculture, 2017b). Because Talking
interviews and personal stories have been included Book was designed with low-skilled and low-
to add variety and entertainment to the learning literate individuals in mind, the user experience
experience, transmitting information in a way that from start to finish caters to their needs so that
is familiar and more likely to be recalled by the information on agricultural best practices – and
intended audience. other topics – reaches those who need it most.

Figure 6. Mothers in Mozambique listening to

the 3-2-1 Service
© Viameo
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 53

Another information delivery service that eschews Continuing the theme in co-designing solutions
the need for low-literate and low-skilled populations to help ensure local relevance and usability, Crop
to access the internet to obtain life-enhancing Specific Mobile Apps leverages the increasing
content is the 3-2-1 Service by Human Network uptake of smartphones to reach low-skilled and
International (HNI) and Viamo. low-literate farmers throughout India (Jayalaxmi
Agro Tech, 2014). The apps were developed in
Available in a number of sub-Saharan African close partnership with rural farmers, as opposed to
countries, including Ghana, Madagascar, Malawi, farmers who are near city centres and might have
Mozambique, Nigeria and Zambia, the content for better skills or higher literacy levels.
3-2-1, which helps people grow crops local to their
area, was determined by the locals’ needs from Through the creation of a multilingual suite of
the start (E-Agriculture, 2017a). Additional content Android apps covering topics in agriculture, animal
channels are available, including health, water and husbandry and horticulture, Crop Specific Mobile
sanitation, and microfinance. Apps was designed to help give farmers information
they need at the right time. The overall goal is to
Users access the content by dialling 321, a toll-free encourage their adoption of best practices that
number. This number is kept intentionally brief, will support sustainable agricultural development
simple and memorable so that low-skilled and (Jayalaxmi Agro Tech, 2014).
low-literate users have fewer barriers to access the
content (E-Agriculture, 2017a). The app makes use of large icons to depict the
crops on which it has information available.
The content is produced in local languages and These icons, while sometimes rendered as artistic
insofar as possible made actionable to users, impressions as opposed to photos of real crops, are
regardless of their age or gender (HNI, n.d.). To lifelike and labelled with their meaning in English or
aid the navigation of the 3-2-1 menu, low-skilled the local language chosen by users (Jayalaxmi Agro
and low-literate users are guided by a friendly Tech, n.d.).
automated voice, which makes the service available
24 hours a day.

Figure 7. Crop Specific Mobile Apps screenshots

54 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

These visuals are accompanied by audio-based sanchalaks, act as infomediaries to provide hands-
guidance so that low-skilled and low-literate on support.
farmers who use the apps do not become lost in
the menu navigation. Automatic reminders are Training and skills enhancement is also a
also integrated into the app design to help farmers method through which digital technologies have
stay on schedule with vaccinations needed for the been used to support positive outcomes for
animals they take care of, and for the timings of agricultural sector workers. This is done by helping
when to irrigate crops or administer fertilizers and them to develop vital skills they will need in the
pesticides (Team YS, 2015). Reminders, as seen in performance of their jobs, and also to help them
the chapter on health, are vital if low-skilled and understand newer approaches that have been
low-literate people are to adhere to best practices established in the sector and which may help
that are time-sensitive. boost their own productivity (Afedraru, 2015; World
Bank, 2016a).
Small business management tools are perhaps
more complex in terms of the content they make Delivering sophisticated training via image, text
available to farmers, but are critical in helping or voice-based platforms has been stymied by the
their businesses grow and run more effectively. difficulty of creating multimodal user interfaces
One of the most popular aspects of these tools that are still simple and straightforward to use
is marketing and connecting farmers to the for someone with low skills and low literacy
wider agricultural supply chain where they live. (Bali et al., 2013; Cuendet et al., 2013). This has
By making these connections, farmers can make prevented wider adoption of these ICT media for
their products available to more potential buyers, these purposes. The circumstances have given an
learn about market prices and price their crops opportunity for video to emerge as a medium to
accordingly, and conduct business with people help bridge the skills gap.
they might not otherwise encounter in their local
area (Cespedes, 2013). For farmers with low skills or One organization and project that has pioneered
low literacy, such tools can be crucial to providing a community-based approach to video-based
them with a sustainable source of income by training provision is Digital Green. The NGO works
lowering barriers to trade. with local communities and gathers their interest
in producing the videos in part by highlighting the
The e-Choupal project in India is an example of one special status among the community that often
such initiative. A private-sector-led intervention, comes with being seen in a training video (Gandhi
e-Choupal seeks to unlock the business potential et al., 2009). Videos are co-produced, digitized, and
of farmers in rural areas (Ali and Kumar, 2011). stored in a database online or copied to a DVD, so
Computers facilitate access to tools that help they can be screened in public in the participating
farmers to manage and market their businesses community.
more efficiently, to place orders for new agricultural
inputs to improve their yields, and to conduct This intervention combines local and relevant
business online with customers they might not content and is delivered in a format that is easy to
otherwise encounter in their village. comprehend even for people with few skills or low
literacy.
The farmers who use e-Choupal work with a
farmer who has been trained by the private sector Access to financial services in the agriculture
partner, helping to lower the skills and literacy sector is a major barrier to people working in
barriers that might otherwise prevent adoption the industry who have low skills and low literacy
of such a service. These trained farmers, known as levels. This is because, whether in Latin America
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 55

or the European Union, farmers regularly need The advantages of payments on the Smart ID
to invest to purchase new equipment, seeds or cards include that growers no longer have to
other inputs that could improve the quality and accept a discount on the full amount they are paid
type of their outputs (Rostrán et al., 2015; Tropea by cheque in order to obtain cash. Further still,
and de Carvalho, 2016). However, banks are because the Smart ID card is tied to their identity, it
often unwilling to lend to farmers with smaller is safer to use it than to transport cash, which could
enterprises or whose fortunes are vulnerable to potentially expose them to robbery.
shocks arising from climate change or other forms
of crop destruction, because of the risk that loans The commingling of interactive technologies
will not be repaid. and agriculture to serve the low skilled and low
literate has been used to support the activities
In a brief which examined agricultural finance, of farmers in different countries around the
the World Bank (2015a) proposed that new world, but with varying degrees of success. The
technologies, particularly mobile banking and roadblocks to widespread adoption of different
mobile finance, can help farmer integration into digital technologies in this area stem in part from
agricultural value chains. For farmers who are low the fact that farmers are in full-time employment,
skilled or low literate, digital agriculture solutions which does not allow them much time to engage
that make use of mobile technologies in this in activities (like those outlined above) that could
manner have potential to enhance their access to further enhance their work.
credit and increase productivity and income, and
thus support the growth of their businesses. Time availability then becomes another roadblock
which can preclude the growth of farmers’
The use of digital financial services has helped businesses and development of their skills,
establish awareness that ways of conducting irrespective of whether digital technologies are
financial transactions related to agricultural used to reduce the time demand. The design of ICT
activities are available that are more affordable, solutions for the agriculture sector should therefore
less travel-intensive and secure (IFC, 2014). In seek to maximize efficiencies where possible, while
Kenya, One Acre Fund (OAF) gives farmers loans ensuring locally relevant content that is engaging
using M-PESA, a mobile money transfer service and interactive is shared through the media to
(Waldron and Amusin, 2017). These loans serve as which agricultural workers have access.
credit for farmers to purchase agricultural inputs
such as fertilizers and seeds. Farmers in the OAF
programme, on average, earned 48 per cent more
for their work than did their peers who were not in
the programme (Waldron and Amusin, 2017).

In Colombia, Cédula Cafetera Inteligente, a

scheme led by a coffee growers' federation, seeks
to increase efficiencies in the processes through
which low-skilled and low-literate growers in
remote areas receive payments when coffee is
purchased from them or they receive subsidies
from the government (Marulanda et al., 2015). A
Smart ID card is issued which enables the growers
to have an electronic form of payment instead of
the cheques that had been issued previously.
56 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

08.3
e-Government services

As seen in the preceding chapters of this report, issues’ (United Nations, 2016, p. 3).
the design of digital solutions for people who are
low skilled and low literate has many facets to be Nevertheless, the survey acknowledges that
considered. A complex user interface, a lack of when bespoke, specialized or more technically
localized or actionable content, and unfamiliar complex solutions are needed, governments
logos, photos and symbols can all inadvertently with fewer resources often struggle to take
contribute to a user experience which discourages advantage of ICT in ways that can reach more
people from using a technology that was originally parts of the populace. This means that, compared
conceived to promote participation and inclusion. with countries with more resources and more
advanced ICT infrastructures, developing
As governments increasingly turn to digital countries must addresses greater challenges to
technologies to support efforts to provide utilize e-Government to reach people who are
services to their citizens, it is imperative that these low skilled and low literate.
solutions reach those who are most vulnerable.
But what does e-Government mean, and how can The deployment of e-Government solutions for
technologies help people, including those who are people with low skills and low literacy has been
low skilled and low literate, to access it? seen in:

Electronic government, or e-Government, is the •• information delivery services;

application of technologies to facilitate interactions •• citizen engagement;
within a government and between a government •• identification services or digital identity;
and its citizens and businesses (World Bank, 2015b).
•• participatory governance.
A government might offer services electronically
to increase efficiency of its operations, to help ease
The majority of these solutions make their
access to information or to provide services to
content available on websites that are accessible
users irrespective of their location.
with personal computers. However, as mobile
In the latest edition of its e-Government survey, has become established as the medium most
the United Nations (2016) suggested that the frequently used to access the internet (Smith,
ability of governments to facilitate access to 2016b), it has become necessary to develop
digital services for their citizens, including those offerings that can be used on basic phones,
who are vulnerable, is not always affected by the feature phones and smartphones in addition to
financial resources they have available: ‘In general, PCs, to reach more citizens. The ways in which
a country’s lower income level is not an obstacle different digital solutions have been designed
to posting basic public sector information online for people who are low skilled and low literate to
on national portals or using social media and other facilitate their access to government services will
innovative means for consulting and engaging now be unpacked.
people on a broad range of development-related
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 57

As an example of information service delivery rehabilitation workers who liaise with government
for e-Government, Mobile Vaani is a voice-based and serve as reporters to ensure that citizen
community-messaging platform that is used by feedback about the information they receive is
local governments in India (Bihar, rural Jharkhand addressed (Gram Vaani, 2017a). This further layer
and Madhya Pradesh) to reach low-skilled and of reach to provide information to low-skilled and
low-literate people with information they might low-literate individuals goes the last mile and
otherwise be unable to obtain. This digital solution represents an end-to-end digital solution which
is an example of participatory governance uses multiple channels to provide vital information.
because users can also create and share with the
community any grievances that may require them
to lobby local government. In the USA, 18F is an arm of the government
which works with other agencies to begin or
The service makes use of interactive voice response improve citizen engagement (GSA, 2017). Using
(IVR) technology, but also helplines and integration a combination of open technologies, agile
with radio, apps and text messaging to reach methods and user-centred design principles,
targeted users, most of whom are socially excluded 18F has employees across the country that have
and living below the poverty line (Gram Vaani, collaborated to create guides that help make
2017c). US government content accessible to more
individuals. This includes people who are low
The service has even touched the lives of people
skilled and low literate.
with disabilities by providing an audio-based social
media platform through which they can listen Although they may have some skills and literacy
for job opportunities, share their stories, and seek developed by the time they reach the fourth
support to live with dignity, engaging government grade, children at this age still may not have
support when needed as well (Gram Vaani, 2017b). highly sophisticated digital skills or ease in dealing
with written text if any operations or content are
Extending its reach further, Mobile Vaani relies
complex.
on local community engagement with the
support of volunteers and government-appointed

Figure 8. A new user signing up to Mobile Vaani

© Gram Vaani
58 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

To address these design considerations to promote In Cambodia, the UNICEF Birth Registration
children’s engagement with national parks, 18F Programme involves a partnership between
held design sessions for fourth graders (aged UNICEF and the General Department of
about 9–10) where they could experiment with Identification (an arm of the Ministry of Interior)
their ideas for the design of a website to promote to develop an IVR system to resolve issues around
their engagement with parks and other public birth registrations (UNICEF Cambodia, 2016).
lands (GSA, n.d.). Once these ideas were amassed,
content designers created text for the website that By training low-skilled and low-literate health
would be intelligible for a fourth grader, including officers in 146 communes to use their mobile
the legalese and privacy information. phones to receive IVR calls which assess their
supplies and help them replenish shortages
The graphics for the website were made visually of birth registration forms, the Cambodian
appealing to this population through use of government has ensured it can receive immediate
bright colours and the inclusion of family photos feedback that enables it to provide supplies more
featuring people enjoying different parks during quickly and help prevent children going longer
the daytime, since children of this age found night- than necessary without proper identification.
time scenes to be frightening. 18F measured its
success in knowing that young people can use the Participatory governance (as seen earlier in Mobile
web in a way that increases their connection to the Vaani) has been explored as a counterbalance to
US government’s resources. the government to citizen (G2C) models explored
thus far by enabling low-skilled and low-literate
people to have opportunities to engage the
The promise of e-Government for identification government in two-way instead of unidirectional
services, or digital identity, has been a challenge communication.
for many people who are low skilled and low
One area where participatory governance
literate. As an example, knowing how or where
has seen great potential for marginalized
to register births has been a long-standing
populations is in participatory monitoring and
challenge with which this particular population
reporting. Participatory monitoring enables local
has contended for hundreds of years. Dating from
communities to have a voice in the matters that
the 1500s, churches often facilitated records of
affect them directly through their involvement in
vital statistics, and beyond churches village elders
identifying projects and programmes they would
or other community leaders were responsible for
like to work on in their community, proposing
doing so and passing this information to future
solutions, reviewing processes to see whether
generations (Brumberg et al., 2012).
changes made are having their desired effect,
As the spread of ICT has increased, governments and using feedback to make modifications and
have sought more efficient ways to maintain changes where relevant or necessary (Parkinson,
information about new citizens through 2009).
digitization. But given that in many developing
This form of e-Government involves a shift
contexts populations of maternal and child health-
in power dynamics from centralized to local
care providers may themselves be low skilled or
management, which also means a change from
low literate, adding technology to this situation is
inclusion only of people who have strong skills
not guaranteed to be a quick fix to ensure all births
across multiple domains and who are literate, to
are recorded accurately.
encompassing those who are low skilled and low
literate.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 59

Three years ago, Monitoria Participativa Maputo, solution works from two perspectives to give
or MOPA, was conceived as a mechanism to help people a voice. Its website demonstrates in clean
citizens in Mozambique's capital city report on and streamlined graphics how a user moves from
waste services and issues (van Egmond, 2016). detecting a problem to seeing the solution to the
Like 18F, the creators of MOPA adopted a user- waste problem resolved in real time on the web
centred design approach to create a mobile (MOPA, 2017).
platform where people who might previously
been excluded from civic participation could now These are just a handful of the digital solutions
request these services from the city. that have been developed in e-Government to
promote participation of people with low skills
MOPA uses both a mobile and a web-based and low literacy. Though considerable progress
platform to help citizens engage with the has been made to reach these users in developed
municipal government, including those who contexts, efforts still regularly fall short, and are
own micro and small-sized businesses. Users can unfortunately generally worse in developing
make reports with USSD and voice-recognition contexts (Naqvi and Al-Shihi, 2009; Nabafu and
technologies whether they have a basic phone or a Maiga, 2012; Choudrie et al., 2013; Hassan, 2013;
smartphone (MOPA, 2016). Ziemba et al., 2013; Smith, 2016a).

By enabling simple user interfaces via USSD for Because of the scope of life-enhancing services
users with some literacy skills to report the need for that governments can provide through interactive
waste collection, and providing citizens with the digital media, ensuring that all citizens – regardless
ability to notify others when they encounter issues of skill or literacy level – can access these services
with waste in their community so that action can should be a priority as work is undertaken to
be taken to remove this waste, MOPA as a digital design sustainable approaches in this area.
60 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

08.4
e-Services for displaced populations

The number of people on the move as a result of by displaced populations are also diverse: for
forced displacement hit a high of over 65 million example, many refugees fleeing Syria have high-
people in 2016 (Edwards, 2016). From Colombia level occupational skills (Dettmer, 2015; Redmond,
to Syria, Belize to South Sudan, people are fleeing 2015). But, even if they arrive in the host country
violent conflict, political instability, natural disasters with skills, legal and language-related barriers may
and persecution. Alarmingly, more than half of prevent them from applying these skills, or the
these people are children (Edwards, 2016). skills they have might not be useful in the context
to which they moved, necessitating retraining or
When examining where people migrate as they upskilling.
seek refuge, the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) (2017) reported that the top ten As the forced displacement crisis has become
countries that host refugees are low and middle- exacerbated, digital solutions have been explored
income countries which often have few resources as potential mechanisms to support people by
with which to support displaced populations – providing the services they need not only to cope
even when outside aid is provided. Compounding with their move, but also to adjust to their new
the challenge is that in many cases, people have environment. Accordingly, these solutions have
migrated to contexts where they do not speak any sought to address challenges in the education
of the major languages in use. system, from primary through to tertiary level,
health and legal services, and general translation
These issues are exacerbated for women, the support, among other areas.
elderly, and people with less education. For
children, this presents significant hurdles because Due to the myriad sectors in which ICT has been
their low literacy in the host country language acts deployed in response to the forced displacement
as a significant learning barrier in the classrooms crisis, much digital solution design for low-skilled
they join (Dryden-Peterson, 2015; Dijkshoorn, and low-literate people who are displaced can be
2016). categorized as:

In the case of adults, language barriers in the •• information delivery services;

host country inhibit not only their educational •• translation support;
progression but also their ability to seek
•• training and skills enhancement.
employment (Fric and Aumayr-Pintar, 2016; Davis,
2017). Therefore, it can be said that, in comparison
with the health and agriculture sectors where As in other application sectors, mobile is the most
people at least have oral literacy for the languages frequently used – though not the only – ICT tool
in use, displaced populations tend to have to provide support to people on the move. In the
prolonged periods of disruption to their schooling, case of refugees, the reasons relate to the fact
creating lower literacy levels. that nearly three-quarters of households have a
mobile phone and over 90 per cent live in areas
The technical and digital literacy skills possessed where connectivity can be accessed via 2G mobile
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 61

networks (UNHCR, 2016). Another digital solution with a similar approach to

user interface and user experience is the ‘Arriving
Although mobile use by displaced persons is not in Berlin’ interactive map created by a group of
always characterized by displays of strong digital four refugees who migrated to Berlin (Ehrari et al.,
literacy skills (Rutkin, 2016), displaced people n.d.). The map is available in English, Farsi, Arabic
who do own mobiles tend to have a degree of and French, languages common among the large
familiarity with their use that provides a foundation migrant and refugee population in Germany. The
on which digital solutions can be built. ‘Arriving in Berlin’ map features colour-coded icons.
It presents an intelligible and simple way for those
Information delivery services for forcibly displaced who might have low digital skills or limited literacy
people and migrants can offer vital access to topics in the host country language to gather information
that can help ease their transition into life in their quickly, although its use does demand some
new host country. However, for this information familiarity with digital devices.
to be most effective in the contexts where these
populations are displaced, the content must be Digital solutions that facilitate translation
localized and presented in the languages with support are also being created to help displaced
which the refugees and migrants are most familiar. populations increase their ability to communicate
in their host countries. The creative mind behind
One approach to achieving this is to involve Gherbtna also made Tarjemly Live, an on-demand
displaced people with good skills and literacy in interpreting and translating service for Syrian
developing solutions that cater to the specific skills refugees in Turkey (Kahraman, 2016). The designers
and literacy levels of their displaced community. intentionally simplified and limited the number
One example is an app called Gherbtna, which of steps required to use the app, which makes
is targeted at the Syrian refugee community in it suitable for those with low digital literacy,
Turkey. The Gherbtna app and platform provide
content in Arabic about topics important to the Figure 9. Tarjemly Live app screenshot
Syrian refugee community, including how to
open a bank account, a list of jobs they can apply
for, how to obtain a residence permit, and even
how to establish a business in Turkey. However,
one lingering barrier to its extensive use is raising
awareness of its existence among a low-skilled and
low-literate group of people who are distributed
throughout a vast country.

InfoAid is a digital solution from Hungary that

provides information services to displaced people
located in that country. This app was created
and is maintained by a group of committed
volunteers, and is available in Arabic, Urdu, Farsi
and English to help refugees learn about services
available to support them (Kozyra, 2016). The user
interface of the app, available on both Android
and iOS smartphones, is intentionally basic to aid
navigation through the content.
62 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

and helps users avoid getting lost in the process of Hello Hope in Turkey is a digital solution that
sourcing an interpreter or translator. combines information delivery, translation
support, and training and skills enhancement in
Through a partnership with digital solution developer one app, Again, it is targeted at Syrian refugees
Souktel and the American Bar Association (ABA), a fleeing the civil war. Turkcell, a mobile network
Mobile Legal Info Service was launched in 2015 to operator in Turkey, integrated Arabic-language
serve Syrian refugees to Turkey. It combines translation tools into its operations to reach the refugees,
support, legal advice, and a matching mechanism since only about 10 per cent of them spoke
to pair refugees and migrants with lawyers (Kuchler, Turkish (GSMA, 2016b).
2015). Syrians can send an SMS in Arabic to the
platform. This message is then translated into English The approach included employing Arabic-
for response by an American lawyer volunteer from the speaking staff in mobile phone shops and call
ABA. Their response is then directed to a Turkish lawyer centres to provide information to the refugees.
who can begin to help the Syrian migrant or refugee Eventually, this gave way to the creation of
locally. The localization and simplicity employed here a variety of Arabic-language products, such
helped to lower barriers for people who, because of as phone-based translation and interpreting
their limited digital skills and/or knowledge of Turkish, between Turkish and Arabic. This was the
might otherwise have been unable to obtain such starting point for Hello Hope.
assistance.

As refugees prepare to develop their mastery of the

Figure 10. Ankommen app screenshot
host country language, digital tools for training and
skills enhancement can provide low-skilled or low-
literate displaced populations with the flexibility to
learn at their own pace. Two apps available for Android
and iOS smartphones, Språkkraft Reading Coach
(Språkkraft, 2017) and Ankommen (Goethe Institut,
2016), available in Sweden and Germany respectively,
provide basic, self-guided language instruction.

Both apps rely on clear and realistic visuals to help

refugee and migrant learners begin to build a
foundation in these languages. This is done by showing
users common items and places they might encounter
and need to describe in the host country. Språkkraft
adds social and gaming elements to its content
by sharing tweets with new vocabulary words and
incorporating word games.

The Ankommen user interface includes pictographs to

indicate when learners need to listen, read and ‘write’
(type). The literacy development sequences are also
clearly numbered so that learners follow the desired
path through the content.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 63

The app contains language learning cards so The design of digital solutions for displaced
refugees can learn 700 words they might need populations who may be low skilled and have
during their time in Turkey, an apparatus that low literacy (since skills and literacy levels among
enables instant speech translation, and a one-click displaced populations are diverse) is ultimately
button to be connected to the Arabic language about supporting these people as they adapt to
call centre for support. This content is localized new environments which can be intimidating and
and offered in Arabic, with large icons and vivid overwhelming. Creating solutions that are relevant
graphics utilized to make the content more – meaning that there are strong and clear reasons
accessible, since much of it refers to places and why displaced people would use these digital tools
situations in Turkey for people who have limited – remains important.
skill in the national language.
64 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

08.5
e-Green/environmental services

As the effects of anthropogenic climate skills, it is not always easy to employ complex
change and environmental degradation have ICT-based approaches to enhance or sustain the
worsened, pressing challenges have emerged for environment (Ospina and Heeks, 2012). The same
governments and populations around the world. problems make it demanding to develop ‘green
The environmental circumstances in developed jobs’ which contribute to the development of a
and developing countries alike have made low-carbon economy (OECD, 2014).
people increasingly vulnerable to disruptions to
their livelihoods, health and overall well-being In comparison with the four sectors we have
(Kjellstrom and McMichael, 2013; Thomas et al., already reviewed, we identified relatively few digital
2014; Connolly-Boutin and Smit, 2016). As the solutions for low-skilled and low-literate people
urgency around these issues has increased in related to the environment, the green sector or
recent years, ICT applications have been trialled as climate change. This is problematic since there is
a way to mitigate the environmental damage that a clear need for them. It has been recognized that
has been caused. digital solutions to help prompt collective climate
action and to stimulate the creation of low-carbon
The ITU has led the establishment of linkages economies need to be developed locally and made
between ICT, the SDGs and the environment, relevant to the people who will be responsible for
particularly through its Environmental Agenda taking action (Broadband Commission, 2012).
and its actions to address climate change (ITU,
n.d.). Features of the ITU's work include promoting The categories in which there are solutions that
sustainable management of waste, identifying and integrate technology and are designed for low-
implementing improvements in energy efficiency, skilled and low-literate people in this sector include:
and exploring how to develop smart cities with
processes that promote greener ways of living. •• information delivery services;
•• remote monitoring;
The Dynamic Coalition on Internet and Climate •• knowledge production;
Change (DCICC), an ITU initiative, positions ICT
•• training and skills enhancement.
as offering tools that can raise awareness and
facilitate opportunities to discuss the impact of
climate change, and gives special attention to The digital solutions created for the e-Green/
vulnerable populations, especially in developing environment sector often have overlaps with other
countries (DCICC, n.d.). sectors, most often agriculture, as will now be seen.

However, there are some challenges in promoting Information delivery services in the e-Green/
awareness of climate change to people in environment sector that are designed for people
developing countries. As has been shown, it is who have low skills and low levels of literacy aim
difficult to reach low-literate audiences (Ospina to empower farmers and other agricultural workers
and Heeks, 2012). Because many people in by providing them with information that should
developing countries lack both digital and other enable them to contribute actively to preserving the
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 65

environment and to engage in greener practices. In India, Nano Ganesh was developed by a private
sector company which wished to automate
Two solutions in this area are Virtual Water and processes in rural areas that previously required
iCow. Virtual Water is an app developed with a substantial labour inputs (Ossian Group, 2017).
European audience in mind that shares powerful Initially powered by GSM and most recently by
infographics to demonstrate how much fresh machine-to-machine (M2M) technologies, Nano
water is expended through human activities such Ganesh enables farmers, who are often low skilled,
as farming and animal husbandry (Kekeritz and low literate and with limited financial resources, to
Rausch, 2017). The product of a designer who water crops using electronically controlled devices.
wished to convey an important subject in a bold They can now activate and monitor pumps located
yet minimalist visual style, Virtual Water was not at a distance by placing a call or sending an SMS.
specifically created for people who are low skilled This saves farmers time because they no longer
and low literate. However, its presentation with have to travel to the pump location (Prasad,
minimal text and large clear images works well to 2009). Moreover, because the service is simple to
support those whose reading skills are not strong. initiate and includes phone call-based activation,
it circumvents the challenges associated with poor
The iCow platform in Ethiopia, Kenya and literacy levels.
Tanzania is a suite of tools for farmers who rear
cows (iCow, 2017). It provides access to a library
of information via SMS, rich SMS messages
that include actionable content, and a toll-free
number where users can share information that
is used to personalize the messages they receive
from the service (Brown, 2014).

The content produced is intentionally simple,

and oriented to informing the farmers about tips
and techniques they can apply in their animal
husbandry practice to increase their earnings and
to obtain better milk production from their cows.
© Ossian Agro/Prasad Ostwal, Pratik Ostwal

SMS reminders help keep the farmers on track so

they implement best practices over time.

Remote monitoring in the e-Green/environment

sector is viewed as a way for people to free
up their time by using digital technologies to
monitor crops or resource use (water pumps,
for example), so they are able to participate in
other activities. The efficiencies gained in time
saved and accurate data gathered through
remote monitoring processes could be said to
help people work greener and smarter but not Figure 11. Using SMS to turn on the Nano Ganesh
necessarily harder. irrigation pump controller
 66 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

The push to respect and acknowledge the value app for fisheries, and accounting services and fleet
of what agriculture sector workers already know, management. ABALOBI hopes eventually to add
through years of experimentation and best digital financial services to facilitate online banking
practices passed down through generations, has and insurance (ABALOBI, 2017b). Although full use
resulted in the development of digital solutions of these functions requires a degree of digital skill,
which facilitate local knowledge production. fisherfolk help train each other, and a helpline and
Content that is generated locally by people who ‘Abalobi Fisher Assistant’ are available for support
are low skilled and low literate can be distributed (ABALOBI, 2017a).
through storytelling, and with interactive
technologies has the possibility to be shared The ABALOBI app goes beyond content localization
widely among larger groups. and presentation in a simple style, initiating
dialogues in areas of concern to low-skilled and
One example is the ABALOBI app, aimed at people low-literate fisherfolk who depend on their ability
working in fisheries. It offers a variety of tools to to fish to survive. Its automated data collection
promote collaboration in the profession, enabling offers fishers a sophisticated tool they could use
fishers to both draw on and contribute indigenous to lobby their government more effectively than
knowledge using Android-based mobile phones by relying solely on anecdotal evidence. This
(ABALOBI, 2017b). This solution, first piloted in empowers and gives voice to people who are
South Africa, was co-designed with men and often marginalized because of their lack of formal
women who work in fisheries. The knowledge education.
production app features large graphics of local fish
and other seafood so that farmers can share and Training and skills enhancement in the e-Green/
identify the contents of their catch more easily. environment sector is wide ranging, including
helping workers adopt new and greener practices
The suite offers not only knowledge co-production to replace more harmful activities or inputs used
but also a digital marketplace for fish, a monitoring in agriculture, and helping people learn new skills
app to track daily catches, a data management that can aid the environment while boosting their
income or productivity.
Figure 12. A fisherman using the ABALOBI app
In 2017 the Rainforest Alliance launched a Farmer
Training App to support farmers in rural and
remote locations with training that can help them
increase ‘climate-smart agricultural practices’
(Rainforest Alliance, 2017b). The app, which is
available on three continents (Africa, Asia and
South America), can be used offline to access
training materials that feature videos, brief text
and large graphics to support use by low-literate
farmers.
© ABALOBI ICT4FISHERIES

The Sustainable Agriculture Training Platform

covers nearly twenty modules of content that
is conveyed through text and videos, and also
includes assessments to ensure understanding of
best practices (Rainforest Alliance, 2017a). Also, the
content is practical and offered in six languages to
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 67

help ensure that farmers are immediately able to make use

of it.

Similarly, the Haller Farmers App user interface features large,

colourful and streamlined graphics with minimal text to guide
low-skilled and low-literate users through training materials in
Swahili and English (Haller Foundation, 2017). A user-centred
design was adopted to make the user experience locally
relevant to people who might never have used their mobile
phone to obtain ideas about their agricultural work.

The app also blends photos, text, video and audio to offer a
multimedia training experience to farmers who are low skilled
and low literate (Taylor Dube, 2015).

The digital solutions briefly outlined here show how people

benefit and climate-related challenges are addressed when
people working in the e-Green/environment sector can
obtain the necessary knowledge and skills. It is however
perhaps even more difficult to adapt digital solutions for low-
skilled and low-literate individuals in this sector than in others,
since the benefits are not always immediately realized and
practices need to be maintained over time to be effective.

It is crucial that the digital solutions help ensure that

individuals continue applying what they have learned,
monitoring their usage of scarce resources, sharing their
knowledge and developing their skills. Design affordances
such as periodic reminders will help ensure that people with
few skills and low literacy levels can make much-needed
contributions to the global efforts to combat climate change.

This brief review of digital projects in our five chosen sectors

– health, agriculture, government, displaced populations
and green issues/the environment – has brought out several
common aspects. They illustrate that ideal approaches to
digital solution development for people who are low skilled
and low literate involve the users who will benefit from the
intervention, focus on simplicity, and use diverse means to Figure 13. Haller Farmers App screenshots
convey content.

Another core issue is content relevance. This is a key

mechanism for promoting access to essential services among
people with low skills and low literacy. Using local languages,
images, and even the approach to the physical design of
new technologies can help make digital solutions more
68 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

recognizable to these populations, and thereby

increase the likelihood that they might adopt these
tools. Doing so can enhance their livelihoods, help
them learn new skills, encourage healthy behaviour
for them and their families, and even provide
access to financial services.

The themes in digital design affordances that

emerged in this section are now discussed further
in the Analysis chapter.
69 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
Landscape
World
Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 69

09
Analysis of
the review findings

This report has covered only five sectors, but perspective. We have examined the skills that are
in many other fields too, digital solutions have needed to use the digital solutions as a way to
transformed the ways in which people live, learn understand how digital solutions can support skills
and work. Moreover, as access to interactive development and contribute to the strengthening
technologies has grown, increasing numbers of the literate environment.
of governments, businesses, civil society
organizations and people have sought to make use Drawing on the analytical framework described in
of digital solutions to enhance their lives. Chapter 4, and in response to the third question of
the landscape review, what follows is an analysis of
The focus in this report on people who are low themes observed in the projects reviewed and the
skilled and low literate opens space to understand barriers that remain to be addressed in approaches
the approaches that have been taken to address to design and use of digital solutions for low-skilled
the needs of this population, so that they may and low-literate people. The review of barriers
benefit equally from the life-enhancing services concludes with a view of the supply and demand-
that digital solutions make possible. The intention side factors affecting greater inclusion through use
was to develop a foundation of knowledge on of digital technologies.
what works when designing solutions for people
who are not highly skilled in their use of interactive The projects discussed in this report are here
technologies, and whose literacy prevents them viewed through four lenses: design process, digital
from using interactive technologies to engage with solutions, user competences and implementation
content and use essential e-services. environment. Each of these categories includes
barriers that remain to be addressed for low-skilled
As well as considering the design perspective, and low-literate users.
we have tried to view the issue from the user’s
70 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

09.1
The design process

09.1.1 and Digital Green featured local people in videos

to promote learning in low-skilled and low-
Co-designed solutions literate communities. In each case, a service user
promote local adoption has been involved in a visual component of the
digital solution design that could contribute to
The co-creation of digital solutions featured in feelings that project designers had respect for local
a number of the projects reviewed, including ownership and participation.
the Khushi Baby (health), 18F and MOPA
(e-Government), and Digital Green (agriculture)
projects. These approaches were mentioned
explicitly when describing how the solution was
developed, and were primarily adopted to give a
09.1.2
say to people who had traditionally been excluded Content localization lowers
from decision-making processes on issues that literacy-related barriers to
affect their well-being.
digital solution adoption
Co-creation or user-centred design, while more
Many of the solutions we catalogued showed that
established in developed contexts, has only
developing digital solutions for low-skilled and
recently come to be used more in developing
low-literate people involves more than simply
contexts as a way to help ensure that effective
making content available in audio form or with
solutions are implemented (DDPWG, 2017).
bold graphics. Of all the thirty-two digital solutions
analysed, only Virtual Water did not localize its
Sharples (2017), a mobile learning scholar,
content for its intended audience (most likely
recommends adopting a participatory and
because it was a pan-European initiative with
user-centred design to understand the needs,
global impact, rather than as a deliberate policy).
issues and skills of low-skilled and low-literate
users. It is of paramount importance to make the
Content localization is not only a catalyst for
solutions recognizable to the people who are
helping target users comprehend the information
expected to adopt them, which can be achieved
being shared, but also a way to help them
partly through careful design. Simply transposing
connect this information to the world around
digital technologies from a developed context
them. Interventions that do not make information
to a developing context without modification
relevant to the intended users often end up failing
goes against best practice (Ho et al., 2009b). The
(Mansuri and Rao, 2013). This wastes resources and
Principles of Digital Development (DDPWG, 2017)
deprives people of the benefit that a successful
provide further guidance on how to address both
project would have given them.
of these points in digital solution design.

Khushi Baby created a wearable necklace which

mirrored craft jewellery found in the local context,
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 71

Barrier in the design process

09.1.3 areas (Palmer and Zelezny-Green, 2015). Once the

SIM is installed in the farmers' phones, they gain
Achieving balance in the access to a variety of agricultural information free of
supply and demand drivers charge through multiple channels (voice, text and
helplines). This value-added service was designed
There needs to be both supply of and demand to boost Bharti Airtel’s rural customer acquisition
for digital solutions that address the needs of and brand recognition. The hope is that the farmers
low-skilled and low-literate people. To achieve this will develop into loyal paying customers. This
requires the involvement of the public, private and initiative also involved a partnership with non-profit
civil society sectors, in addition to the targeted organizations. Local governments and farmers’
users. cooperatives invested in it as a way to reach people
who are prone to livelihood shocks when crops fail
Without incentives to encourage the development or other disasters affect agricultural output.
of solutions that are affordable, relevant and usable
for some of society’s neediest, it is less likely that Yet even when supply issues are successfully
sustainable interventions will materialize. This is handled, and an app is made available, there can be
because designing, testing and implementing barriers affecting the demand for digital solutions.
digital solutions, no matter how well they are One major issue is negative attitudes to the use
simplified, remains an expensive process. New of technology, particularly for women and girls,
approaches are necessary if the supply-side issues who are less likely than males to possess their
are to be addressed. own mobile phone, for example. In the thirty-two
projects reviewed, we saw how awareness was
As well as ensuring that the design stage can be raised through promotion of the digital solutions
funded, it is imperative to identify sustainable directly to the intended beneficiaries, as well as
models for implementation. This need is gaining through the visits of infomediaries such as CHWs
further attention, as evidenced by GSMA’s (2016a) and community organizers. They were able to help
development of the m-Agri toolkit to help scale low-skilled and low-literate populations understand
mobile agriculture solutions for farmers who the importance of a solution and its applicability
may have limited experience applying digital to their lives. This was seen for example with the
tools in their work. The toolkit proposes a process MIRA Worker Toolkit, Digital Green and Mobile Vaani
for researching and designing business models projects.
around implementation contexts, where it is not
always readily apparent that the project is a solid The MIRA Channel and Crop Specific Mobile Apps
commercial proposition. services both provide relevant content to their
target users (low-literate mothers and farmers,
Sometimes it is possible to identify subsidiary respectively) to help ensure they can address
benefits to commercial funders that will alter the their health and agriculture-related issues. MIRA
balance of commercial viability. As an example, Channel uses edutainment to convey messaging in
Bharti Airtel in India created the Airtel Green SIM a light-hearted manner, while Crop Specific Mobile
card, a free SIM for mobile phones given to low- Apps use bold pictographs with local crops readily
skilled and low-literate farmers in rural and remote recognized by users.
72 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Other ways are sometimes found to stimulate literacy development could be tied to training and
social and cultural acceptance of digital solutions. skills enhancement opportunities. UNESCO (2015c)
Khushi Baby uses a near-field communication has previously found that making such linkages for
(NFC)-enabled necklace which mirrors jewellery women and girls can be empowering in multiple
worn locally. This helps ensure that babies who areas of their lives.
wear it do not look out of place as they store
vital vaccination record information for later The contextual barriers that create roadblocks
transmission to health departments via CHW preventing low-skilled and low-literate people from
visitors. The Claim Mobile project issues mobile engaging in activities that make use of technology
vouchers to CHWs to incentivize them to make should therefore be identified as early as possible
visits to patients with communicable diseases. in the design process. This will create space to work
towards eliminating these barriers and help more
Finally, demand might also be increased through people access and use tools that can enhance both
the development of additional programmes with their social and their working lives.
strong appeal to the target audience. For example,
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 73

09.2
The digital solutions

09.2.1 so they exclude those who have access only to

generally cheaper basic phones.
Concerning types of digital
solution, information delivery Low-skilled and low-literate users often also have

services were dominant low incomes, which make them less likely to afford
expensive phones – although this is changing.
The most popular function in the services Perhaps developers are using apps to prepare for
analysed is information delivery, with fifteen a time when ownership costs have fallen further.
of the interventions being of this type. This is Perhaps they feel the richer functionality of an app
closely followed by facilitating training and skills is essential for the content they deliver. Because
enhancement: nine interventions had this as their apps often integrate text- and voice/audio-based
primary objective. Text4Baby and Haller Farmers features, the delivery channel could be used to
App are examples of information delivery services, keep the user experience confined to one device,
while m4Change and the Ankommen app provide helping to minimize the likelihood that users will
for training and skills enhancement. need multiple technologies to access the digital
services relevant for their lives, and simplifying the
People who are low skilled and low literate can overall user experience.
find it challenging to access, interpret and process
information, and thus acquire knowledge (Martinez
and Fernandez, 2010). Because of this, solutions
that require higher order skills for users to benefit 09.2.3
from them are likely to exclude the very users the A media mix promotes use
solutions are intended to help.
by people with different
competences and proficiency
levels
09.2.2
Apps were the most common Generally, the projects reviewed made an effort to
provide a diverse mix of content to the low-skilled
digital delivery channel and low-literate users they targeted. The designers
of the digital solutions also stressed that all their
Across all five sectors, mobile phone apps were the
content, whether via text or voice, was simplified as
most common content delivery channel. Twenty-
much as possible to illustrate any important points
one projects included apps as a delivery channel,
to low-skilled and low-literate users as concisely
while twelve used voice/audio and ten were based
and as clearly as possible.
on text/SMS messages. This was unexpected, since
apps typically require the use of smartphones or Where basic phones were used as the access
feature phones with sophisticated functionality, devices, digital solutions usually offered simple
74 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

text messages and menu navigation in addition time. This underscores the connections between
to audio or IVR-based content that did not require the different literacy domains.
the ability to read or write. Particularly in the
mobile apps, text was often presented alongside
bold graphics and images, which frequently
depicted real scenes users might encounter or 09.2.5
items of interest in their context. The content was
Digital financial services: a
further enhanced by audio guidance in at least six
instances, which supported menu navigation and cross-cutting feature
information retrieval. Video is also useful for low-
Another theme observed was the integration of
skilled and low-literate people who need to learn
digital financial services into solutions designed
by observing others in action.
for low-skilled and low-literate people. The
potential for transformative impact to be realized
in the lives of people who are low skilled and low
literate when they are empowered to use digital
09.2.4 financial services is increasingly being recognized
Simple user interfaces (McGoogan, 2017).
create less intimidating user
Hello Hope in Turkey and the ABALOBI app in
experiences South Africa have impending plans to integrate a
mobile money service into their offerings to Syrian
Project participation was increased in the thirty-
refugees and fisherfolk in South Africa respectively.
two case studies reviewed by developing user
Claim Mobile in Uganda made use of mobile
interfaces that do not present high barriers for
vouchers which could be redeemed for hard
people with low skills and low literacy. This was
currency at local government offices.
achieved using context-appropriate graphics, often
with text in two languages, to help ensure that
e-Choupal in India enables farmers to conduct
low-skilled and low-literate users can complete
business, including banking exchanges, through
the transactions and access services. Crop Specific
its web platform. In the case of Claim Mobile and
Mobile Apps was one example of this design
e-Choupal, training was offered to potential users,
affordance in action.
and localized content complemented this support
to help boost adoption. The digital financial service
Audio-assisted navigation of digital solutions
offerings act as a mechanism to help low-skilled
also helped establish a user experience where
and low-literate people conduct business, send
familiarity with the voices and languages heard
and receive money, and access other financial
helped users make connections to the content.
products with the intention of supporting work
This also provided a degree of localization to the
specific to their professions (such as enabling them
content. One example of how audio was used to
to obtain loans to purchase fertilizer, or insurance
simplify the user interface navigation process is
against crop failure).
the Talking Book audio computer.

Digital solutions designed for low-skilled and low-

The spread of digital technologies with simple
literate people which incorporate financial services
interfaces helps people who might have low basic
provide an opportunity to address another area
literacy nevertheless jumpstart their digital literacy
of exclusion that this group must contend with:
skills by using these adapted technologies over
being unbanked (GSMA, 2017a). One Acre Fund
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 75

Digital Repayments in Kenya and Cédula Cafetera basic phones, feature phones and smartphones.
Inteligente in Colombia are both initiatives which However, as technological advances have led to
provide digital solutions to low-skilled agricultural new alternatives, and made existing ones more
workers so they can make and receive payments affordable, and as economies of scale bring down
more securely and efficiently. purchase costs, designers have begun to consider
how newer technologies such as wearables and
This is made possible through simplified menu M2M integration might benefit this population.
navigation in which users receive training support,
or a smart card seamlessly processes financial Khushi Baby’s innovative wearable ‘smart’ necklace
service transactions. Both approaches avoid the transmits information with NFC technology to
need for the farmers and coffee growers to rely a smartphone app which then synchronizes it
heavily on text and complex menu navigations to a cloud computing system. This enables the
in order to use digital financial services. This was information to be accessed and analysed by the
previously noted in research as a barrier in digital Indian government. The necklace is inexpensive,
solution design for people who are low skilled and and drastically reduced errors in information
low literate (Medhi et al., 2009). transmission by CHWs, since the process is now
automated.

Nano Ganesh in the e-Green/environmental sector

09.2.6 uses M2M technologies to help farmers save water,
time and money in operating irrigation pumps
Digital delivery channel that they might previously have had to travel far to
innovations produce usage manage. This M2M service is activated by simply
efficiencies placing a call to a number which initiates the
irrigation. As with Khushi Baby, the use of a newer
To date, many digital solutions developed for technology (M2M) has been simplified, improving
low-literate and low-skilled people have integrated what might have been a cognitively demanding
common delivery channels such as voice, text and costly process for people with few skills and
and the web, accessed over devices such as low literacy.

Barrier with digital solution offerings

09.2.7 scarcity is more common, when the user is not yet

sophisticated in handling interactive technology
Limited delivery channels or has low literacy (digital, reading or otherwise) it
is necessary to apply multiple approaches to reach
This report has highlighted the variety of ways
these people through digital technologies.
of carrying out digital solution design for people
who are low skilled and have low literacy levels. Although there were some exceptions, we found
Irrespective of whether such solutions are being that the blending of technologies – and media –
provided for people living in developed contexts was not widespread. Reasons included the higher
with more resources, or in places where resource costs of maintaining multiple channels, limitations
76 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

linked to the context, and the desire to keep digital

solutions simple to use for low-skilled and low-
literate users.

Just six of the projects reviewed for this report

had more than two different delivery channels.
This could be problematic because the limited
delivery options might have reduced the reach of
the project, excluding some potential users. One
alternative which deserves more consideration is
making it possible to view video content offline.
This can be achieved, for example, by installing
video content on an SD card which can then
be slotted into a mobile phone, or by saving
a video file to a computer. This could create a
less expensive and more widely available media
delivery channel.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 77

09.3
User competences

09.3.1 Ten projects engaged users’ communication and

collaboration competence areas to help them
Most digital solutions reviewed interact, share and engage in citizenship through
require intermediate digital digital technologies. In some of these cases – for
competences, not only example the foundation-level proficiencies –
users communicate digitally by simply making
foundational ones phone calls. In other instances users push digital
notifications to their constituents.
The projects reviewed for this report all require
people who are low skilled and low literate to
Four projects enable the development of digital
engage in a series of tasks and interactions to make
content. Interestingly, when applying the
use of a digital solution. These tasks and interactions
framework, it is possible for users to have fairly low
elicit different behaviours from people, and often
levels of proficiency (foundation 2) in browsing,
demand that a combination of digital competences,
searching and filtering data, information and digital
skills and literacies are applied in parallel.
content, and yet also be creators of digital content
at the intermediate 3 level. Such is the case with
Considering digital competences in particular,
both the Talking Book and Mobile Vaani initiatives.
and applying the DigComp 2.1 Framework, the
competence areas ranked as follows: information
Talking Book makes use of an audio computer
and data literacy (35 instances), communication and
that users can navigate by audio prompt, with
collaboration (10 instances), digital content creation
the need to read and interpret text eliminated.
(4 instances), safety (2 instances) and problem-
Users can create their own content based on
solving (2 instances). It should borne in mind that
knowledge they possess, and share this with others
one project can span multiple areas. Table 2 shows
(communication and collaboration). Mobile Vaani
the summary of the mapping, detailed in Appendix
services use voice to help users access, listen to
B.
and interpret audio-based information. An IVR
feature also enables these users to participate
In information and data literacy – the most basic
in communicative activities by facilitating their
of the digital competence areas – the projects
ability to engage with others in dialogue and
primarily involved the competences of browsing,
undertake cooperative activities related to raising
searching and filtering data, information and digital
awareness about issues in their local communities
content, and managing data, information and
(communication and collaboration). The examples
digital content. For the former, in most cases users
given in the DigComp 2.1 Framework are usually
need to find and then passively consume content.
web or app-based requiring literacy skills; with
Sometimes they simply receive content without
Talking Book and Mobile Vaani the same activities
needing to search for it, as with voice call reminder
are achieved with only digital competences.
services. With the latter, users are required to
undertake more complex tasks such as adding and
In terms of the competence area of safety, only
updating patient data in an app.
two projects appeared to require the protection
78 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Table 2. Mapping of the 32 projects to the DigComp 2.1 Framework

Frequencies and proficiency

Competence area Competences required (level + step) by the
projects described in report

1 project requires Foundation 1

1.1 Browsing, searching and filtering data,
14 projects require Foundation 2
information and digital content
10 projects require Intermediate 3

Information and
1.2 Evaluating data, information and digital
data literacy content

1.3 Managing data, information and digital

10 projects require Intermediate 3
content

4 projects require Foundation 2

2.1 Interacting through digital technologies
1 project requires Intermediate 3

2.2 Sharing through digital technologies 3 projects require Intermediate 3

2.3 Engaging in citizenship through digital

Communication technologies
and collaboration
2.4 Collaborating through digital technologies

2.5 Netiquette

2.6 Managing digital identity

1 project requires Foundation 2

3.1 Developing digital content 2 projects require Intermediate 3
1 project requires Advanced 5

Digital content 3.2 Integrating and re-elaborating digital

creation content

3.3 Copyright and licences

3.4 Programming

4.1 Protecting devices

4.2 Protecting personal data and privacy 2 projects require Foundation 2

Safety
4.3 Protecting health and well-being

4.4 Protecting the environment

5.1 Solving technical problems

5.2 Identifying needs and technological

2 projects require Foundation 2
responses
Problem solving
5.3 Creatively using digital technologies

5.4 Identifying digital competence gaps

 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 79

of personal data and privacy. Both Cédula Cafetera users in moving into new competence areas, which
Inteligente and One Acre Fund Digital Repayments are increasingly needed in digitally mediated
make use of mobile payments. societies. It should be remembered, though, that not
all of the competencies identified as appropriate for a
Problem-solving in the context of the DigComp citizen of the European Union are necessarily equally
2.1 Framework – at the lower proficiency levels – relevant for a farmer in Ghana.
is largely concerned with being able to identify
appropriate tools for usage. Two related solutions It should also be noted that the DigComp 2.1
– MIRA Channel and MIRA Worker Toolkit – allow Framework does not include competences for
users to choose and play digital games and enjoy assessment of learned knowledge. A number
interactive storytelling experiences. of projects reviewed include simple to more
advanced surveys or tests for assessing knowledge
The proficiency level that users need across the and comprehension. Such assessments are not
projects was mostly intermediate 3 (twenty- digital competences as such, but are useful for
eight instances), meaning that users can work understanding general skills development.
independently and solve straightforward problems.
Second was foundational level (twenty-four When a digital solution is designed to help ensure
instances), but mostly at the second step of this that low-skilled and low-literate users need to make
level – meaning that while someone could use minimal efforts to access and operationalize the
a digital solution independently of any support content, the likelihood that the intervention will
most of the time, occasional assistance was achieve its stated aim is increased.
sometimes required from someone who was more
highly skilled. It is encouraging to note that most A user who is taken on a technology use journey
solutions are not at foundation 1. that is not intimidating or overly complex should
have a user experience that encourages them to
When applying the DigComp 2.1 Framework, use the digital solution again. For solutions that
it is also worth noting what competence are more sophisticated in design, like Crop Specific
areas and competences the reviewed digital Mobile Apps or the Mobile Legal Info Service (both
solutions do not address. Almost none of the information and data literacy), the demand on a low-
projects paid any attention to safety, including skilled and low-literate person can be substantial. This
developing competences for protecting devices; is because both digital solutions require text input to
or to protecting health and well-being, and initiate the service. While this user-generated content
protecting the environment. The same can be is in their local language, reading and writing fluency
said for problem-solving, including developing remains a potential barrier.
competences for solving technical problems;
creatively using digital technologies; and Overall, it is important to design solutions that
identifying digital competence gaps. respect the competence, proficiency, literacy and
skills capacities of potential users, remembering
While some digital solutions allow for the creation that in many instances initial training and ongoing
of content, competences around integrating and support may need to be provided. Appropriately
re-elaborating digital content, copyright and designed solutions provide an entry point into digital
licences, and programming were not developed in activities. Ideally, with time and usage, as the users
any meaningful way. develop their skills they will feel more comfortable to
move along the spectrum to using more technically
These all represent potential opportunities to and cognitively demanding solutions.
support and develop low-skilled and low-literate
80 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Barrier with user competences

09.3.2 It is worth investigating how, if at all, low-skilled

and low-literate individuals manage use of the
Need for ongoing support digital solutions introduced when they are alone,
since support from intermediaries and community
Another barrier to highlight is that although
members that was provided during the project
many of the projects reviewed integrated human
initiation phases will not always be available to
support mechanisms such as occasional CHW
them.
visits or phone-based support through helplines,
only a handful of services of this nature were made It will be important to bear in mind ways to extend
available on-demand and twenty-four hours a day. support on a continuous basis when designing
The needs that low-skilled and low-literate users digital solutions for these populations. This can
have when appropriating digital solutions do not help promote adoption and contribute to the
end once on-the-ground support has departed, long-term social sustainability of the solutions
nor do they arise only during business hours. developed.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 81

09.4
The implementation environment

09.4.1 It highlighted how mobile devices can serve as

conduits for women’s empowerment, including
Including women and rural through information delivery services. Recognition
users that empowering females with information
can have a positive impact on their families
Assuming a people-centred lens, a further theme and communities (CARE, 2010; WHO, 2013; Van
the analysis revealed was that many of the digital Ameringen, 2014) has stimulated greater focus
solutions developed for people who are low skilled on women and girls when designing solutions for
and low literate are for women and those living in people who are low skilled and low literate.
remote and rural areas.
It has also been crucial to provide female
Although digital solutions for farmers were not stakeholders with support, often derived from
explicitly said to be for women, women comprise other people such as CHWs or via helplines, which
a substantial part of the agricultural labour force can help them make the most use of the digital
worldwide, particularly in developing contexts technologies and the information and training
(FAO, 2016). Traditional female involvement in on offer. Given that CHWs are often themselves
childbirth and child-rearing is central to several low skilled and low literate (an issue discussed
health sector digital solutions for low-skilled and in Chapter 8), a first step in providing support to
low-literate women. women and girls is to use intermediaries who have
received training and enhanced their own skills to
A previous report (UNESCO, 2015c) reviewed be able to work in this capacity. The design should
nine projects that supported women’s literacy also feature female characters, voices and graphics
development through the use of mobile phones, to help convey the message that women are
and provided another example of the blurred important stakeholders for the digital solution.
boundaries between basic and digital literacies.

Barriers with the implementation environment

09.4.2 because even the best-designed service is of no

use if the target users for the service do not know
Lack of awareness it exists. In some projects such as Mobile Vaani,
concerted efforts were undertaken for community
Awareness-raising activities should also be
mobilization and sensitization. Others, such as
included as part of the design for a digital solution
CCPF, posted posters in key locations to market the
for low-skilled and low-literate people. This is
free service.
82 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

09.4.3 Of the thirty-two projects reviewed, video content

was only seen in the agriculture sector and with
Cost of access can be the following projects: Digital Green, Farmer
prohibitive Training App, Crop Specific Mobile Apps, and Haller
Farmers App digital solutions. While video can
Although voice-based services have some be a helpful tool for low-skilled and low-literate
potential to counterbalance the issues populations, its availability will remain limited until
encountered with text-based services, the cost of data costs fall further.
voice services is still comparatively high, and drives
price-sensitive users to explore more affordable
means of accessing information and services,
if it does not exclude them from the services
altogether. Services like 3-2-1 and CCPF make calls
to their helplines toll-free, but this was not seen in
every project or sustained over time.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 83

10
Opportunities
Building on the findings in Chapter 9 related to digital solution design themes for
people who are low skilled and low literate, the competences needed for usage, and the
related lingering barriers, we now look at opportunities. The aim here is to suggest ways
forward as interventions are newly created or adjusted to better meet the needs of these
populations.

10.1
Experiment with the possibilities
offered through new technologies

Another perspective to consider in moving forward can improve on more established approaches in
is whether and how to experiment with newer terms of promoting development for low-skilled
digital technologies as they become available and low-literate people. Khushi Baby enables data
and are made affordable. The projects reviewed to be transmitted through a smart necklace which
suggest there are opportunities for both data and holds a baby’s vaccination and other vital medical
voice-based digital solutions to be developed records. Smart cards support more secure and
which make use of new technologies. simple financial transactions by coffee farmers
who previously had no or very infrequent access
Data-based apps, NFC, M2M, smart cards and to banks, by simply presenting their cards at points
wearables were not common in this review. of service that participate in the Cédula Cafetera
However, when these technologies are used, they Inteligente programme.
84 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

The innovation in both of these projects is that a medium. Use of voice to answer questions, find
digital technology is seamlessly integrated into information, and even to initiate digital chain
the context in a manner which does not require reactions has begun to transform the lives of
a change in user behaviour, which might cause people with higher incomes and education levels –
inconvenience or otherwise be unusual in the and there is potential to do the same for those who
context. This increases the potential for large-scale have lower skill and literacy levels.
adoption of the digital solution.
Especially where further efficiencies might be
Although voice has been viewed as a more made in helping users access information, it would
traditional interactive technology, the emergence be useful to establish how, if at all, new voice-
of new technologies like chatbots and artificial based technologies could contribute to digital
intelligence has contributed to innovative inclusion work in different sectors with people who
possibilities for service delivery through this are low skilled and low literate.

10.2
Coordinate digital solution development
and implementation efforts

In a number of cases, more coordination of efforts The Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA)
around resource pooling and awareness-raising is an example of this, having deployed maternal
activities for the interventions developed could health information delivery services with similar
increase reach and impact. aims and approaches in the USA (Text4Baby) and
Bangladesh (Aponjon) for low-skilled and low-
The projects reviewed showed that in some literate pregnant women and mothers. The twin
countries, small as well as large, there were multiple initiatives from this alliance increased their impact
initiatives with similar approaches, sometimes in by taking the design features that work, namely
the same sector. It is important to attempt to avoid simple messaging provided through multiple types
duplication of effort, and it would help maximize of multimedia, and offering them through different
the resources available if partnerships and alliances mobile channels strategically targeted to the
were developed to replicate successes. specific population.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 85

10.3
Establish government support
to raise awareness

A digital solution designed for people who are low Mobile in Nepal are all projects which used the
skilled and low literate, no matter how effective reach of the government to make contact with
it is in achieving its objectives, is only useful if it people, especially those living in rural and remote
is known among the target population. It can be areas.
easier to raise awareness about initiatives that
integrate digital technologies and contribute to Government involvement is also helpful in
life enhancement when the project’s efforts are localization work and understanding how local
combined with government activity. practices might affect the outcomes of a digital
solution designed for a low-skilled and low-literate
A number of projects examined saw a government population. It can mean that more targeted people
assuming a prominent role, which contributed to not only come to know of the intervention but
the resources available to promote the work. The also develop trust and a desire to participate in and
UNICEF Birth Registration Programme in Cambodia, potentially benefit from the digital solution.
the MOPA initiative in Mozambique, and Medic

10.4
Give attention to digital solutions
as key elements in the literate environment

The landscape review revealed a recurring theme: users; they aim rather to ensure they receive vital
that there are synergies between traditional information, are trained in particular skills, or are
and digital literacies, and that using the digital given opportunities for civic engagement, for
solutions demands of the user a range of digital example. However, to achieve these goals digital
competences. Almost none of the projects have competences, skills and literacies are needed.
a specific aim to develop the literacy skills of their
86 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

From the supply-side perspective of a literate Second, the link between usage and literacy
environment, using digital solutions such as the development should be studied more closely.
ones reviewed in this report provides opportunities Grasping how literacy and digital competences
for developing and practising literacy skills (and are acquired and practised will help deepen the
can in some cases complement and enhance understanding of how digital solutions can better
actual literacy classes). On the demand side, the be harnessed for improving literacy and skills. For
access offered to essential services or, for example, example, it could be argued that when digital
information on improved farming techniques, solutions intended for low-skilled and low-literate
creates the incentive to acquire the necessary skills. individuals have simplified designs, it helps keep
The literacies and skills developed should also be barriers to participation low. But it might also
of wider benefit to the users. In this sense a thread inhibit the development of new skills or literacies
is woven between people’s needs, digital solutions that could come through engaging with content in
that support the meeting of those needs, literacy different ways. Therefore, as future digital solutions
and skills development, and improved livelihoods. are developed for low-skilled and low-literate users,
it will be worthwhile to explore how different
This creates two opportunities. First, attention components of the same overall solution could
should be given to digital solutions as key be made accessible to people of varying skill and
elements – on both the supply and demand side literacy levels.
– of the literate environment. Regarding digital
solutions in this light can mean they are seen as
more than merely apps or platforms, but rather as
supporting literacy development.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 87

10.5
Stimulate both the supply and
demand sides of service delivery
for low-skilled and low-literate populations

Two principles of digital development (DDPWG, in this area is to use participatory processes to
2017), understand the ecosystem (Principle 2) and co-design solutions, since (Principle 1) involving
build for sustainability (Principle 4), underscore why users in the design places them at the heart of the
it is important to know the context for a digital development process and ensures their needs are
solution. The need to understand the supply and made known before a digital solution is finalized.
demand-side drivers for adoption of a technology
(new or otherwise), and how to stimulate these Overall, there is a need to remain cognisant
drivers in ways that make projects sustainable over of diverse and manifold considerations when
time, is key to ensuring vital services reach people designing digital solutions for low-skilled and
who are low skilled and low literate. low-literate individuals. This increases the likelihood
that they will lead to digital inclusion while also
Questions need to be asked at the beginning of providing users with support in different areas
the design process to understand what might of their lives. Whether for health or agricultural
help stakeholders supply digital services to the workers or beneficiaries, as a citizen of a country,
target users, and how the target users could in for displaced populations, or for care of the
turn be encouraged to make use of the service. environment, work in the design and development
Considering these aspects only as an afterthought of digital solutions for low-skilled and low-literate
decreases the likelihood that locally relevant people must ensure that today’s lessons inform
digital solutions will be developed and used. An tomorrow’s possibilities.
ideal approach to realizing positive outcomes
88 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

11
Working typology
for digital solutions

While researching digital solutions for low-skilled on how solutions can better be developed for this
and low-literate users, we developed the following target audience. The typology is the first draft of
typology in order to better categorize and consider a living document that will develop further over
the factors, features and requirements for usage. time.
From the perspective of the solution itself, there are
various functions, delivery channels, access devices, It is worth noting that some of the categories
user interface options, content types, support below, such as the literacy level needed to
options and affordances for low-skilled and low- complete a task, represent a spectrum of
literate users. From the user side, there are different proficiency, as opposed to a binary set of
behaviours and skills levels needed to complete options. Without being in a position to conduct
digital tasks. The descriptors below served as an assessment of the exact skills required for a
prompts to guide the narrative and analysis of the digital solution and map those to an accepted
projects. and predefined literacy spectrum, it is impossible,
when conducting a desk-based landscape review,
Together these perspectives indicate how usable, to locate all solutions on a common spectrum for
or not, digital solutions are for low-skilled and low- direct comparison.
literate users, and inform the ongoing reflection
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 89

11.1
The digital solution

Function (can be multiple)

Generic category Applications in specific areas and sectors

Information delivery services

•• Maternal health SMS
(simple delivery of information)

Training and skills enhancement •• App to support farming specific crops

•• Human or IVR responses to additional queries not already

Help/support/advice services
answered through other digital media

•• Patient medication adherence tools

Remote management, support,
•• Patient medication reminders
diagnosis, and monitoring
•• Patient vaccination reminders

Small business management •• Marketing and accounting services, virtual marketplace

•• Mobile money payments for aid distribution to refugees

•• Smart cards for receipt of monies for crops that have been
Financial services
purchased
•• Digital repayments of loans with mobile money

•• Government outreach to citizens to establish or maintain

Citizen engagement
connection to government services

Digital identity •• Birth registrations, web-based passport applications

•• Citizens involved in government-level budgeting, city

Participatory governance planning, waste management services, etc. all enacted
through digital media

•• Legal translations
Translation support •• Live interpreting for doctor appointments
•• Document translations
90 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

buttons, dropdown lists, list boxes,

buttons, toggles, text fields, date field)
Delivery channels (can be •• Navigational components (e.g.
multiple) breadcrumb, slider, search field,
pagination, slider, tags, icons)
•• Audio / IVR / Voice •• Informational components (e.g. tooltips,
•• SMS/rich SMS icons, progress bar, notifications, message
•• USSD boxes, modal windows)
•• Mobile web •• Accessibility components (e.g. voice
•• App controlled, swipe access).
•• Web- and PC-based
•• Wearable
•• Video
•• M2M Media mix (can be multiple)
•• NFC •• Text
•• Point of sale (POS) devices. •• Graphics/images
•• Audio
•• Video.
Access devices (can be
multiple)
•• Dumb phone Content (a spectrum of
•• Feature phone complexity)
•• Smartphone •• Language appropriateness (e.g. English
•• Tablet content for a Zulu audience)
•• Laptop •• Content complexity (length, language)
•• PC •• Assumption of digital norms, e.g.
•• Radio assumptions built into solutions such as
•• Smart card that users know that Home refers to the
home page.
•• TV
•• VR headset
•• Other.
Support
•• Machine-automated support
User interface options (can - auto-text correct
be multiple) - auto-suggest
- artificial intelligence or chatbots
•• Input controls (e.g. checkboxes, radio •• Information-presentation support
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 91

- help pages •• Audio

- FAQs - local language used in voice-based
•• Human support guidance
- tutor/mentor support - slow speech
- peer support - clear speech
- helpline/desk. - loud speech
- able to pause audio
- able to repeat audio
- background noise in audio eliminated
- voice-based repetition of text written on
Affordances for low-skilled screen
and low-literate users (can - spoken reminders shared
be multiple) - user option to record their own audio
and store in device.
•• Visual
- vivid/bold graphics •• Text
- large icons - kept short, simple and with simple
- pictographs sentence structures/syntax used
- photos - mother tongue language input enabled
- localized images, e.g. people and place - mirrors text previously used on paper
shown are local based forms
- low clutter (not too many visual elements - text-based reminders shared.
shown on one page)
- colour coding when categories are used
as a memory aid
- modifications made for those with visual
impairments in addition to low skills and
low literacy
- signposts provided to guide users to next
steps.
92 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

11.2
User role
•• Evaluative
User behaviour/interactions/ - User reflect on their interactions and

tasks required (can be possibly what they have learned.

- User undertakes diagnostic assessment
multiple) to gauge their current level of skills in a
specific context.
•• Assimilative - User completes formative assessment
- User needs to read and interpret text.
and receives feedback.
- User needs to listen and interpret audio.
- User completes summative assessment
- User needs to watch and interpret a
towards some form of credit.
video.

•• Information handling
- User needs to search for information.
- User needs to interpret information
found.
Skills levels needed to
- User responds by selecting icons,
complete tasks (a spectrum
including in apps. of proficiency)
- User responds by selecting predefined
text options. •• What level of skills are needed to use the
- User responds by entering numbers. service/product?
- User responds by entering text. •• Cognitive
•• Literacy
•• Communicative •• Numeracy
- User engages with others in dialogue.
- User undertakes cooperative activities
•• Digital literacy
with others but not necessarily for the •• Socio-emotional (motivation, personal
same goal. preference, attitudes/perceived value)
- User engages in collaborative activities •• Kinaesthetic.
with others.

•• Productive
- User creates/makes something.

•• Adaptive
- User plays games.
- User runs modelling simulations.
 A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 93

Appendix A:
Focus areas and SDGs

Focus area Related SDGs

e-Health services Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

e-Agricultural Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote
services sustainable agriculture.

Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide
e-Government
access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all
services
levels

Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and
productive employment and decent work for all.
e-Services for Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries.
displaced
populations Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide
access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all
levels.

Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.
Goal 6. Ensure access to water and sanitation for all.
Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.
Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
e-Green/
environmental Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
services
Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
Goal 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for
sustainable development.
Goal 15. Sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land
degradation, halt biodiversity loss.
 94
UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World
Appendix B:
Projects described
in this report

Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency

Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Health Text4Baby USA Information Text/SMS; Pregnant Text messages have simple Well-informed mothers Information Browsing, Foundation 2
delivery app women content stated in a way that who are prepared for and data searching and
service and intended users can understand. their baby’s arrival and literacy filtering data,
mothers Users can also receive reminders know the importance of information and
to help them remember maintaining a healthy digital content
appointments. App also features lifestyle for themselves
simplified information, vivid and their children as they
graphics, reminder notifications grow.
for appointments.
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Health Aponjon Bangladesh Information Text/SMS; Pregnant Help low-skilled and low- Well-informed mothers Information Browsing, Foundation 2
delivery app women literate pregnant women who are prepared for and data searching and
service and and new mothers learn how their baby’s arrival and literacy filtering data,
mothers to raise healthy children know the importance of information and
and the importance of their maintaining a healthy digital content
immunizations. Users can also lifestyle for themselves
receive reminders to help them and their children as they
remember appointments. grow.
App also features simplified
information, vivid graphics,
reminder notifications for
appointments.

Health Chipatala Malawi Information Voice; text/ Pregnant Simple shortcode to access Healthy families and Information Browsing, Foundation 2
cha pa Foni delivery SMS women the toll-free helpline. Users can communities that have and data searching and

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

(CCPF) service and receive reminders and text or the information they need literacy filtering data,
mothers voice messages about their to engage in healthy information and
pregnancy and information based behaviours with respect to digital content
on their child's age. Voice-based their nutrition, sexual and
support reduces barriers to reproductive health and
reading text. rights, and life in general.

Health MIRA India Information App Rural Content is made to be To empower rural women Information Browsing, Foundation 2
Channel delivery women educational and entertaining. with health knowledge and data searching and
service Localized pictographs and text and to connect them with literacy filtering data,
are used to aid menu navigation. health services they need. information and
Audio messages provided for digital content
women who cannot read.

Problem- Identifying Foundation 2

solving needs and
technological
responses

95
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Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Health m4Change Nigeria Training App CHWs Vivid graphics and streamlined Improved the Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
and skills data entry mechanisms. accountability of CHWs and data information and
enhancement and reduced number literacy digital content
of errors made when
conveying health-care
information.

Health Medic Nepal and Training Text/SMS Female A simple SMS syntax to support To strengthen community Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
Mobile twenty-two and skills CHWs data entry. Texts to acknowledge health systems and and data information and
other enhancement data entries submitted correctly. improve record-keeping literacy digital content
countries Training to help CHWs use a for patients.
phone and boost their reading
and writing.
Remote Interacting Intermediate 3
management, through digital
support, technologies
diagnosis,
and
monitoring

Information Sharing Intermediate 3

delivery through digital
service technologies
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Health MIRA India Training and App; CHWs, most Pictographs and audio accessible To identify and register Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
Worker skills mobile of whom on their phones are used by the pregnant women and and data information and
Toolkit enhancement web are CHWs to convey information to mothers to ensure literacy digital content
adolescent low-literate women. healthy pregnancies
Remote females through weekly visits by Problem- Identifying Foundation 2
management, CHWs. Also, to promote solving needs and
support, adherence to vaccination technological
diagnosis, schedules with the responses
and support of CHWs.
monitoring

Health Claim Uganda Financial App CHWs App entry system mirrors forms Mobile vouchers are Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
Mobile services that CHWs are familiar with intended to help and data information and
completing via paper. This helps incentivize CHWs to work literacy digital content
reduce the possibility of errors with patients who have

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

due to familiarity with content. sexually transmitted
infections (STIs),
something they would not
normally want to do.

Health hearScreen™ South Africa Remote App Minimally Integrates large icons in the Cheaper, earlier, and Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
management, trained menus. Clearly signposted steps increased diagnoses and data information and
support, CHWs and to administer hearing tests of hearing loss so that literacy digital content
diagnosis, people with with some steps automated. support can be obtained
and hearing and Geotagging helps integrate sooner.
monitoring vision location-based features to help
impairments find nearest hearing clinic or
audiologist.

97
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Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Health Khushi India Remote Wearable; Mothers, Wearable is a necklace co- More children being fully Information Mothers: Foundation 2
Baby management, NFC; audio babies and designed to be locally relevant vaccinated in India and to and data Browsing,
support, CHWs and durable. Necklace serves as increase the current 60% literacy searching, and
diagnosis, visual appointment reminder. vaccination rates. filtering data,
and NFC helps exchange information information and
monitoring between wearable and central digital content
database so errors are reduced.
Mothers receive audio reminders CHWs: Managing Intermediate 3
Information
of vaccination appointments. data, information
delivery
and digital
service
content

Agriculture; Talking Ghana, Information Portable Remote Easy-to-navigate user interface. Improve and save lives of Information Browsing, Foundation 2
Health Book Kenya, delivery audio and rural Content locally generated and poor families in remote and data searching and
Rwanda, service library communities in mother-tongue languages. and rural areas through literacy filtering data,
Uganda Variety of content types to appeal empowerment with information and
to different people regardless knowledge they can hear. digital content
of literacy level. Interactivity
integrated to promote usage. Communication Sharing Intermediate 3
Made accessible to people with and through digital
visual disabilities. Users able collaboration technologies
to record and share their own
knowledge. Digital content Developing Intermediate 3
creation digital content
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Agriculture; 3-2-1 A number Information Audio None Use of the internet not required. Provide trusted Information Browsing, Foundation 2
Health Service of delivery specified Short and easy-to-remember information that helps and data searching and
sub-Saharan service toll-free number. Content people of all ages literacy filtering data,
African developed from local needs and independently access information and
countries made actionable. Audio guidance information they need at digital content
including available to navigate phone any time.
Ghana, menu.
Madagascar,
Malawi,
Mozambique,
Nigeria and
Zambia

Agriculture Crop India Information App Farmers Crops depicted through artistic Empower farmers with Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
Specific delivery impressions. Audio-based information irrespective and data searching and

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

Mobile service guidance aids menu navigation. of their literacy level, help literacy filtering data,
Apps Automatic reminders for users to them make the right information and
conduct important tasks. decisions at the right digital content
time, and to promote
sustainable agriculture.

Managing data, Intermediate 3

information and
digital content

99
 100
Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Agriculture e-Choupal India Small Provide Farmers Human trainers help farmers Increase awareness of Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
business access to understand how to use the farmers' businesses and and data searching and
management computers platform to their benefit. enable them to increase literacy filtering data,
and the distribution of their information and
internet products. digital content

Communication Sharing Intermediate 3

and through digital
collaboration technologies

Digital content Developing Intermediate 3

creation digital content

Agriculture Digital Afghanistan, Training Video; Farmers Content is co-created in a Enhance livelihoods and Mediators: Developing Advanced 5
Green Ethiopia, and skills web participatory process. Local agricultural practices Digital content digital content
Ghana, enhancement people familiar to users featured through local knowledge creation
India, in videos. sharing in an accessible
Niger, manner.
Tanzania

Viewers/ Browsing, Foundation 2

farmers: searching and
Information filtering data,
and data information and
literacy digital content
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Agriculture One Acre Kenya Financial USSD; Farmers Simplified a time- and resource- Support farmers' Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
Fund Digital services SMS intensive repayment process. livelihoods by making and data information and
Repayments Kept costs low. Freed more digital payment processes literacy digital content
time for training and skills more efficient, including
Safety Protecting Foundation 2
enhancement, including with through the promotion
personal data
agriculture extension workers. of cost savings and fraud
and privacy
Training provided includes reduction.
pictographs of mobile phones
to explain how to navigate user
interface and mobile phone
menus.

Agriculture Cédula Colombia Financial Mobile POS; Coffee Designed to reduce reliance Increase the profit that Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
Cafetera services smart card; growers on paper-based payment coffee growers made and data information and
Inteligente voice mechanisms prone to fraud. from sales of their beans literacy digital content

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

Subsidies paid on smart card while making the sales
to increase adoption. Card was transaction and payout
Safety Protecting Foundation 2
eventually designed to be used as processes safer, traceable,
personal data
a form of ID to help reduce fraud. and more transparent.
and privacy
Activated and used with a PIN
that coffee growers chose so they
could easily remember it. Support
for mobile POS operators and
coffee growers who had Smart
cards made available through a
helpline.

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Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

e-Admin- Mobile India Information IVR; Remote Content is shared by voice in To increase the amount Information Browsing, Foundation 2
istration / Vaani delivery audio; and rural local language to eliminate and quality of content and data searching and
e-Government service app; communities literacy barriers. Multiple and other media made literacy filtering data,
text/SMS channels of access to cater to available to people in rural information and
users of different skill levels. and remote areas from the digital content
Platform created for people with government of India.
disabilities to ease their use. Communication Engaging in Intermediate 3
Human volunteers also promote and citizenship
the platform and interact with collaboration through digital
users based on what they share. technologies

Digital content Developing Intermediate 3

creation digital content

e-Admin- 18F USA Citizen Web; Fourth User-centred design utilized. To increase the number of Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
istration / engagement app graders Content adapted for skills and visits to national parks. and data searching and
e-Government literacy level of users, and is made literacy filtering data,
age-appropriate. Bold and information and
user-friendly graphics. digital content

e-Admin- UNICEF Cambodia Digital IVR; CHWs IVR guides CHWs through Ensure that all births in the Information Managing data, Intermediate 3
istration / Birth identity text/SMS paperwork. Remote analysis of country are registered as and data information and
e-Government Registration paperwork ensures reduced soon as possible, literacy digital content
Programme errors in supply re-orders. irrespective of the location.

Remote
management,
support,
diagnosis,
and
monitoring
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
e-Admin- MOPA Mozambique Participatory Mobile Socially Multiple channels of access to Help every citizen have Communication Engaging in Intermediate 3
istration / governance web; excluded cater to users of different skill access to waste services. and citizenship
e-Government computer; people and levels. Reports can be made by collaboration through digital
USSD; micro- and voice. Simple user interfaces technologies
voice; small-sized with USSD. Accessible on feature
app business phones or smartphones.
owners User-centred design approach.

Displaced Gherbtna Turkey Information App Syrian Content provided in Arabic. Help new arrivals from Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations delivery refugees in Colourful icons used to help users Syria to Turkey become and data searching and
service Turkey navigate content. familiar with the services literacy filtering data,
needed to settle. information and
digital content

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

Displaced InfoAid Hungary Information App Refugees Content made available in Help new arrivals to Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations delivery and multiple languages. User interface Hungary become aware and data searching and
service migrants kept simple. Branded with the of basic services and to literacy filtering data,
International Red Crescent and understand that tap water information and
in green – a familiar symbol and is safe to drink. digital content
colour to target users.

Displaced Arriving in Germany Information Mobile web Refugees Content available in multiple Help new arrivals to Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations Berlin delivery and languages. Icons used to indicate Germany become aware and data searching and
service migrants places of interest are colour- of basic services and their literacy filtering data,
coded. Key provided to explain locations. information and
what icons mean. digital content

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Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

Displaced Tarjemly Turkey Translation Text/SMS; Syrian Voice-based access to the service Help new arrivals from Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations Live support voice; refugees in is possible. Steps needed to use Syria to Turkey navigate and data searching and
app Turkey the app to request support are access to different literacy filtering data,
minimized. services in the country. information and
digital content

Communication Interacting Foundation 2

and through digital
collaboration technologies

Displaced Mobile Turkey Translation Text/SMS; Syrian Users can send texts in their Help new arrivals from Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations Legal Info support voice refugees in native language, which are Syria to Turkey access legal and data searching and
Service Turkey then translated. Users can be services. literacy filtering data,
contacted by phone to receive information and
legal support. digital

Communication Interacting Foundation 2

and through digital
collaboration technologies

Displaced Språkkraft Sweden Training App Refugees Clear and realistic graphics. Help new arrivals to Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations Reading and skills and Pictographs to illustrate domain Sweden learn the Swedish and data searching and
Coach enhancement migrants of practice for a lesson. Simple language. literacy filtering data,
navigation. Game elements information and
added to promote engagement. digital content

Displaced Ankommen Germany Training App Refugees Clear and realistic graphics. Help new arrivals to Information Browsing, Intermediate 3
populations and skills and Content can be easily accessed Germany learn the and data searching and
enhancement migrants by swiping. Pictographs to German language. literacy filtering data,
illustrate domain of practice for a information and
lesson. Simple navigation. digital content
 Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level
Displaced Hello Hope Turkey Training App Syrian Localized content in Arabic. Help new arrivals from Information Browsing, Foundation 2
populations and skills refugees in On-demand Arabic language Syria to Turkey to develop and data searching and
enhancement Turkey support will be available. Large their Turkish language literacy filtering data,
icons and vivid graphics used. skills. information and
Speech translation integrated. digital content

Communication Interacting Foundation 2

and through digital
collaboration technologies

e-Green / Virtual Europe Information App None Minimal text. Bold yet minimalist Heighten awareness about Information Browsing, Foundation 2
environ- Water delivery specified graphics and colours. Large water usage and waste. and data searching and
mental; service images. literacy filtering data,
agriculture information and

A Landscape Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People

digital content

e-Green / iCow Ethiopia, Information Text/SMS, Farmers Multiple access channels. Support farmers with Information Browsing, Foundation 2
environ- Kenya, delivery rich SMS; Content in local language and information access that and data searching and
mental; Tanzania service app; actionable. Content kept simple will ultimately promote literacy filtering data,
agriculture voice and informative. Voice-based food security and green information and
support available. SMS reminders practices in agricultural digital content
to promote adherence to best production.
practices.
Communication Interacting Foundation 2
and through digital
collaboration technologies

e-Green / Nano India Remote Voice; Farmers Voice-activated. Save farmers time and Information Browsing, Foundation 1
environ- Ganesh management, M2M money in travelling to turn and data searching and
mental; support, water pumps off and on. literacy filtering data,
agriculture diagnosis, information and
and digital content
monitoring

105
 106
Delivery Target Affordances for low-skilled Competence Proficiency
Sector Project Country Function Intended impact Competence
channel(s) users and low-literate users area level

UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World

e-Green / Farmer Africa, Training App; Farmers Actionable multimedia content To help farmers adopt Information Browsing, Foundation 2
environ- Training Asia, South and skills video and is made available in local sustainable farming and data searching and
mental; App America enhancement languages and offline. practices and to literacy filtering data,
agriculture contribute to the fight information and
against climate change. digital content

e-Green / Haller Africa Training App; Farmers Bold, colourful and minimalist To help farmers adopt Information Browsing, Foundation 2
environ- Farmers and skills mobile graphics. Low usage of text. innovative farming and data searching and
mental; App enhancement web; Content in local languages and practices to enhance their literacy filtering data,
agriculture video; is multimedia. Based on user- livelihoods while they information and
audio centred design. work to nourish their land. digital content
107 UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in aA Digital
Landscape
World
Review: Digital Inclusion for Low-skilled and Low-literate People 107

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Digital technologies are fundamentally changing the way people live and work, learn
and socialise today. However, still 750 million adults in the world, including 102 million
youth, lack the basic literacy skills needed to fully participate in increasingly digitized
societies and economies.

As part of the UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a

Digital World, the landscape review draws on 32 projects to examine and highlight
how inclusive digital solutions can help people with low skills and low literacy levels
use technology in a way that supports skills development and, ultimately, improves
livelihoods.

Stay in touch

en.unesco.org/themes/literacy-all/pearson-initiative

www.projectliteracy.com

[email protected]
ED/PLS/YLS/2017/22