Dr Neo Mothobi is Chief Education Specialist at the Ministry of Education in South Africa. He has a PhD in Computer-Integrated Education from Pretoria University, as well as a Diploma in Education and a further Diploma in Education specialising in Computer Science. 

Since 2007, Dr Neo has been responsible for formulating national policies and supporting provinces with regional implementation. His remit includes devices, connectivity, framework development, training of school assistants and cloud platforms. 

He is responsible for digital transformation across 23,195 schools in South Africa, with around 13.5 million learners and 450,000 teachers. Most recently, he has overseen a national programme to equip public special educational needs schools with connectivity and assistive devices. 

Dr Neo’s work requires collaboration with multiple state departments as well as private sector organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). 

Some of the key challenges Dr Neo plans to focus on during the fellowship include management of devices, connectivity, content development and digital skills and pedagogy for educators.