About UNTBLDC
Activities by UNTBLDC
Frontier Tech Leaders - AI & Leadership Skills for Youth in Least Developed Countries
Global AfghanistanAngolaDjiboutiEthiopiaLiberiaMyanmarTürkiye
The UNDP ICPSD SDG AI Lab and the UN Technology Bank for LDCs launched the Frontier Tech Leaders (FTL) Programme to bridge the digital divide and empower the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), with the support of Government of Türkiye in 2023. The Programme upskills youth from LDCs on frontier technologies (i.e. AI, ML, Data Science, Fintech, Geographical Information Systems, game development etc.) skills as well as entrepreneurship and leadership skills to enhance their career development and make them role models in their countries.
As of May 2026, the Programme graduated 463 Frontier Tech Leaders from 17 LDCs from the intensive and future-ready Bootcamps. Additional 2000+ young people from LDCs were trained on Python, Generative AI, Cybersecurity, Bias in AI, Large Language Models (LLM) and more through community training led by 80+ volunteers including the FTL Bootcamp alumni. 200 AI-based digital solutions addressing critical SDG issues were developed by Bootcamp alumni. Last but not least, the Programme offers capacity development on up-to-date AI skills of government officials in LDCs. The Programme has trained more than 100 government officials in Ethiopia on latest Gen AI and more advanced AI skills.
The Programme have spanned to 6 LDCs - Djibouti, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Angola, Liberia and Myanmar - in addition to two global implementations.