The world's first international action plan specifically designed to improve the digital skills of teachers in developing countries has been unveiled, aiming to systematically assist Global South nations tackle common challenges in the digital transformation of education.

The action plan for enhancing digital literacy of teachers in the Global South was released during a parallel session of the 2026 World Digital Education Conference in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Tuesday.

The plan, initiated by the Africa division of the Institute of Global Teacher Development, reflects China's practical efforts to deepen South-South cooperation and participate in global education governance.

The plan identifies four interlinked structural challenges: insufficient network and device access, a shortage of high-quality and locally adapted multilingual resources, weak foundational teacher skills coupled with a lack of systematic professional development, and fragmented coordination mechanisms. It argues that piecemeal interventions are no longer sufficient.

Key measures include establishing a collaborative mechanism for digital literacy among teachers in the Global South by engaging international organizations, education authorities, universities and enterprises.

The initiative will align with authoritative platforms such as UNESCO's Global Teacher Campus to provide tiered training programs.

The plan also leverages existing overseas platforms such as Confucius Institutes and Luban Workshops to deliver localized support for teachers.

According to the plan, Zhejiang Normal University will lead implementation efforts. Over the next three years, priority flagship projects will be launched, including the establishment of collaboration mechanisms, the joint development of advanced courses and the piloting of lighthouse schools, or model schools.

The lighthouse schools will be established in two or three host Global South countries, with initial design work and resource allocation set to begin in an effort to achieve early tangible outcomes.

Liu Hongwu, director of the College of African Area and Country Studies at Zhejiang Normal University, said the action plan directly addresses key challenges in improving digital literacy among teachers in the Global South during a critical period for the global digital transformation of education.

"The plan addresses four structural challenges widely faced by Global South countries: weak infrastructure, scarce localized resources, lack of training systems and fragmented cooperation mechanisms," Liu said.

He said the plan adopts a systematic four-dimensional framework that creates a closed loop spanning coordination mechanisms, training, demonstration schools and on-the-ground support networks.

"By focusing on teachers' digital literacy, the initiative represents a strategic shift from hardware construction to human capacity building in developing countries," Liu said.

He also acknowledged implementation challenges, including complex coordination among multiple stakeholders and insufficient adaptation of resources for low-bandwidth environments in many Global South countries.

Nevertheless, Liu described the action plan as a pragmatic step that contributes Chinese wisdom and feasible solutions in bridging the global digital divide and promoting equitable education.

Meanwhile, the Hangzhou Initiative on AI and Education, which was also released on Tuesday at the conference, stresses equitable access to the benefits of artificial intelligence and calls for greater use of smart education platforms to share quality resources and intelligent tools to help bridge the global digital divide.

The initiative proposes establishing a global network for teacher training and capacity building, with special attention given to children with special needs.

It also supports UNESCO's leadership role in using digital technologies for post-crisis remedial education, especially for girls and women.

zoushuo@chinadaily.com.cn