How LXD Is Transforming Learning in Ethiopia
The German government’s aid branch GIZ had produced thick, well-researched documents packed with valuable insights on effective, sustainable and climate resilient farming—knowledge that could benefit over 80 million farmers in Ethiopia. But there was one major challenge: no scalable way to get that information into the hands of the people who needed it most.
That’s where our journey began, when we were brought in by ReDI School. Together, we imagined what would happen if we trained a new generation of technologists and learning designers—not just to understand this knowledge, but to design digital learning experiences that could reach people far beyond a classroom.
Three years later, the Learning Experience Design (LXD) Academy is led by EthioJobs in Addis Ababa, and has become something extraordinary. With a bold theory of change and a strong pedagogical foundation in Kaospilot learning design methodology, the Academy trained three full cohorts of young creatives. The result for the first 2 cohorts was that 86% of them either launched their own ventures or found employment—numbers that far outpaced other programs in the region. Today, the Academy is no longer funded by the German government, but by the MasterCard Foundation.
In March, alongside our talented co-designer Renata Landa, we facilitated a training-of-trainers with the team from Ethiojobs. Their ambition? To train two million people in LXD over the next five years. It sounds wild—but with their team, commitment and professionalism, it actually feels possible.
This story isn’t just about impact in Ethiopia. It shows that Kaospilot’s learning experience design approach can scale—across cultures, across industries, across continents. We’ve developed a 130-page curriculum, now tested and our approach from this project is ready to adapt for new contexts. We’ve built capacity not just through sharing new tools and mindsets, but through crafting powerful learning experiences! And we’ve learned that the right partners make all the difference.
Want to learn more about the LXD Academy?
Reach out to Experience Design Program Director: Andy Sontag – aso@kaospilot.dk