Escalino  /  Programmes  /  Techvelopment

Techvelopment.

A new paradigm in development cooperation. The Techvelopment programme equips practitioners to harness the potential of technology in a development context — with the rigour, humility and local grounding the sector deserves.

Read the white paper
Why now

Development needs a technology literacy upgrade.

The development cooperation sector is being reshaped by technology in every direction — from digital public infrastructure and AI-assisted service delivery to the geopolitics of data and platforms. But most practitioners were never trained for this moment.

The Techvelopment programme is our answer. It's designed for people working inside bilateral and multilateral agencies, foundations, INGOs, and implementing partners who need to develop a working fluency with technology without becoming technologists themselves.

Escalino co-founder Jacob Lennheden's Techvelopment white paper set out the argument for this work. The programme puts the argument into practice.

What you'll work on

From principles to practice.

/ 01

A usable map of the technology landscape

What's actually happening in digital public infrastructure, data governance, AI and platform economies — and what it means for programmes on the ground.

/ 02

The ethics and politics of tech in development

Colonial patterns in tech, digital rights, surveillance risks, platform dependencies, and the hard trade-offs no framework resolves automatically.

/ 03

Designing tech-literate programmes

How to scope, commission, evaluate and govern programmes with serious technology components — without hiding behind vendors or pretending the complexity isn't there.

/ 04

Local leadership and partnership

Centring partners in the Global South as principals, not beneficiaries. Practical models for co-design, sustainable capacity, and avoiding extractive tech-for-good patterns.

Who it's for

Built for practitioners, not tourists.

/ 01

Bilateral & multilateral staff

Programme officers, sector specialists, and leadership at agencies shaping national and international cooperation strategy.

/ 02

Foundation & funder teams

Grant-makers and portfolio leads who need to evaluate and support technology-intensive programmes responsibly.

/ 03

Implementing organisation leaders

INGO country directors, senior staff at implementing partners, and leadership at technical assistance providers.

/ 04

Public partners from the Global South

We actively cohort Global South practitioners into every Techvelopment programme. This is a deliberate design choice, not a marketing line.

Enquire

Work at the intersection?

If you lead a team, a programme or a portfolio that touches technology and development — we'd like to talk. Individual and institutional enquiries both welcome.

Get in touch