Giga Connectivity Centre
Geneva
Switzerland
- Gustavo Fonseca Ribeiro
- Alex Högback
- Gustavo Fonseca Ribeiro
Intermediate
Event organizer(s)
Initiative
Description
Delivered through the ITU Academy’s Giga Learning Hub, the course equips procurement officials and decision-makers with the skills to design and manage sustainable and large-scale school connectivity projects. As part of the UNICEF–ITU Giga Initiative, the course aims to develop national capacity for connecting schools to the Internet in a way that meets sustainable and circular procurement goals. Developed for participants who already have a grounding in procurement, the programme focuses on school connectivity. It covers the full procurement cycle, including:
- Pre-contracting: Needs assessment, strategy development, market engagement, and risk analysis
- Contracting: Tender design, technical specifications, evaluation and award
- Post-contracting: Contract management, performance monitoring, and sustainability.
Through case studies, practical exercises, and hands-on use of procurement tools, participants will build confidence in applying sustainable procurement approaches at scale. The course emphasizes peer exchange and regional adaptation, enabling participants to learn from one another and the project Giga procurement team, while tailoring strategies to their own institutional and market contexts.
Procurement officers, ICT policy makers, education ministry officials, and stakeholders responsible for designing and delivering national school connectivity projects. Participants are expected to already have baseline knowledge and experience of public procurement.
The training is offered free of charge for eligible nationalities. Travel and daily subsistence allowances will be covered for selected applicants from countries and territories collaborating with the Giga initiative: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Burundi, Cambodia, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eswatini, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Moldova, Mongolia, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Panama, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Nationals from countries outside the list above are welcome to apply, but they must commit to self-finance all of their costs if selected.
Members of the above-mentioned target population are invited to apply for the training if they meet the following criteria:
- Experience with public procurement or digital infrastructure planning
- Proficiency in English
Selection criteria: Selection will be conducted by the course organizers, who will consider the above entry requirements along with an analysis of the application questionnaire and the recommendation/motivation letter of each applicant.
Number of available places for the cohort: 25-30
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Design procurement strategies for school connectivity that integrate sustainability and long-term value considerations
- Conduct needs assessments, analyze markets and engage suppliers to inform effective procurement strategies
- Develop and apply calls for tender tailored to scaled school connectivity projects
- Apply lifecycle costing methods and incorporate sustainability criteria into evaluation and award decisions
- Identify and manage procurement risks, with attention to rural and underserved contexts
- Implement post-contracting practices, including contract management and performance monitoring, to ensure sustainable outcomes
- Adapt procurement approaches to different regional and institutional contexts, including legal frameworks and market conditions
- Leverage the UNICEF-ITU Giga Initiative procurement resources more effectively by applying course knowledge in practice and learning what type of support Giga can offer for ongoing connectivity projects
The training makes use of an interactive, experiential approach that blends expert input with applied practice and peer-to-peer learning.
Delivery of key concepts and tools
- Instructor-led sessions will introduce core frameworks, procurement strategies, and tools.
- Demonstrations of practical instruments (e.g., lifecycle-costing calculators, risk assessment frameworks, evaluation scorecards) will provide participants with a clear foundation for hands-on use.
Interactivity and applied learning
- Problem-based learning activities will be used in groupwork, with teams solving realistic procurement challenges based on a fictional scenario they are presented with such as designing RFx templates, applying lifecycle costing, or developing monitoring KPIs.
- Real world case studies will be delivered in a STAR format: participants are presented with the Situation and Task, decide their own Action, and then compare it with the actual actions and result.
- Simulation exercises, where applicable, will allow participants to role-play procurement decision-making and test trade-offs.
- Gamification and play using interactive tools like Menti will make sessions engaging and participatory through quizzes, polls, and live challenges.
Knowledge reinforcement and reflection
- (Self-)reflection will be encouraged through guided prompts that help participants connect course learning to their institutional settings.
- Peer learning will take place through group discussions, regional breakouts, and plenary syntheses, enabling participants to exchange experiences across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Engagement with Project Giga support
- A thread throughout the workshop will highlight how participants can make informed and strategic use of Project Giga’s procurement resources and ongoing support.
- Participants will leave with draft outputs (e.g., adapted RFx templates, risk analyses, monitoring plans) that can be refined for real-world application in their countries.
Learning will be assessed through participation, groupwork, knowledge checks, and a final synthesis exercise, with emphasis on applying tools and strategies in practice rather than written exams. Attendance on all three days is mandatory to qualify for the certificate.
- Attendance and Participation (30%): Full attendance is required. Active contributions in discussions, exercises, and peer exchanges will be noted.
- Applied Groupwork (40%): Over the three days, teams will work on a fictional procurement scenario. On Day 1, they complete a needs assessment and risk analysis. On Day 2, they draft RFx sections and apply an evaluation framework. On Day 3, they design contract monitoring and KPIs. Outputs will be graded on completion, collaboration, relevance, and sustainability.
- Final Action Plan / Synthesis (30%): On Day 3, groups present or submit a short procurement strategy or action plan. This will be assessed on clarity, feasibility, sustainability, and relevance to school connectivity. Peer and facilitator feedback will be shared in plenary.
A total score of at least 70% is required to obtain the ITU certificate.
Tutors
Registration information
Unless specified otherwise, all ITU Academy training courses are open to all interested professionals, irrespective of their race, ethnicity, age, gender, religion, economic status and other diverse backgrounds. We strongly encourage registrations from female participants, and participants from developing countries. This includes least developed countries, small island developing states and landlocked developing countries.
