As part of the 2026 UN General Assembly, ProFuturo has shared its tenth-anniversary report at various side events. Entitled Transcending the Present to Transform the Future, the document compiles figures, lessons learnt and testimonials from its ten-year journey in bringing digital education to vulnerable communities.
Ten years ago, the Fundación Telefónica and the “la Caixa” Foundation launched ProFuturo with one firm belief: that a child’s place of birth should not determine their opportunities for learning and development. By the end of 2026, both organisations will have allocated 386 million euros to the programme, benefiting more than 5.7 million children in over 45 countries across Latin America, Africa and Asia. Throughout its history, ProFuturo has worked in around 6,000 schools in vulnerable areas, many of which have limited or no internet connectivity.
To mark the programme’s 10th anniversary, ProFuturo presented its 10th-anniversary report, Transcending the Present to Transform the Future, in New York during the United Nations General Assembly, with a presentation by Leticia de Rato, Head of Institutional Relations and Partnerships at Fundación Telefónica. The publication combines data and evaluations with testimonies from students, teachers and educational communities to demonstrate the impact of integrating technology into education through a pedagogical approach, teacher training and sustained support.
A decade of technology-enhanced education
ProFuturo’s initiative combines technology and educational content with teacher training, support for schools and evaluation. It is a model designed to adapt to a wide range of circumstances and to reach rural schools, humanitarian settings and communities where connectivity remains a barrier.
This commitment to quality, technology-driven education is in line with Telefónica’s aim to be the best gateway for citizens, businesses and institutions to digital technologies and, through ProFuturo, translates into new learning opportunities for those from the most vulnerable backgrounds.
Measurement is one of the programme’s key pillars. Over the past decade, ProFuturo has commissioned more than 35 studies and evaluations to analyse its impact.
Among the findings, in Brazil, pupils at schools participating in ProFuturo made just over three times as much progress in maths and language between 2017 and 2023 as those at comparable schools not taking part in the programme. In Chile, progress was almost 4.5 times greater in maths and nearly three times greater in language.
The impact is also felt by teaching staff: 97 per cent of teachers acknowledged having changed their teaching practices by integrating technology, whilst those who completed more than four courses between two self-assessments improved their digital skills almost five times more than those who did not undertake any training.
Stories of transformation bring the impact to life
Beyond the figures, the report features stories such as that of Deyvi Antonio Saldaña Castrejón, who struggled to keep up with his lessons during his childhood in Peru. Using ProFuturo’s resources enabled him to learn at his own pace, gain confidence and improve his academic performance. He is now studying Business and Systems Engineering at the Universidad Científica del Sur. “As a child, our prospects were almost non-existent; now I see a much brighter future ahead,” he explains.
Or that of Ibrahim Waibi, in Uganda, who went from feeling left behind at school to achieving the highest grade in the national primary school leaving exam. He is currently studying at secondary school on an ICT and Science course and helps other young people in his community to develop digital skills. “ProFuturo has given me more than just an education. It has given me direction, confidence and the belief in what I can achieve,” he says.
These experiences are also reflected in the indicators: 90 per cent of students said they felt more motivated to attend school, 93 per cent believe that interactive content improves their understanding, and 95 per cent say that ProFuturo helps them engage more with their learning.
Their stories show how the impact of the programme run by Fundación Telefónica and the “la Caixa” Foundation is measured in terms of improvements in learning, teacher training and access to technology, but in reality it goes far beyond this. It is reflected in students who broaden their horizons, discover new possibilities and gain the confidence to imagine a future different from the one they thought possible.
