The winners of the 15th annual WSIS Prizes, honouring innovative technological approaches that support global development, oincluded the Zimbabwer chapter of the Ionternet Society and South Africa’s Reach Digital Health.
The awards, announced at the World Summit on the Information Society Forum 2026 in Geneva, Switzerland, gave top honours to projects from 15 countries and 3 international organisations. The projects showcase leading examples of how the WSIS commitment to people-centred digital development can be translated into concrete action, impact and results on the ground. The WSIS is a United Nations-led initiative aimed at bridging the digital divide and creating a global, people-centered, and inclusive information society.
“The WSIS Prizes showcase the best combinations of human ingenuity and life-changing tech innovation on a global stage,” said ITU secretary-general Doreen Bogdan-Martin.
The WSIS Prizes 2026 received nearly 1,600 submissions from over 120 countries. Since its inception in 2012, the contest has received more than 10,000 submissions profiling technological solutions to global development challenges.
Strengthened by a renewed UN General Assembly commitment to digital development, the WSIS Forum 2026 met from 6 to 10 July to address urgent challenges in connectivity, online safety and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).
WSIS Prizes 2026 Winners
Category 1: The role of governments and all stakeholders in the promotion of ICTs for development
- Organisation: Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission
- Project: ASEAN 5G Skills Framework and Capacity Development Platform
- Country/Organisation Type: Malaysia
- Description: The ASEAN 5G Skills Framework establishes a harmonised regional reference for developing future-ready digital talent and strengthening workforce preparedness for advanced connectivity technologies across ASEAN Member States.
Category 2: Information and communication infrastructure
- Organisation: Algérie Télécom
- Project: AI for Digital Inclusion
- Country/Organisation Type: Algeria
- Description: AIDI leverages artificial intelligence and citizen-generated data to identify digital inclusion gaps and support evidence-based policies that promote equitable digital participation.
Category 3: Access to information and knowledge
- Organisation: Internet Society Zimbabwe Chapter
- Project: Digital Skills Training for Persons with Disabilities
- Country/Organisation Type: Zimbabwe
- Description: The project strengthens the digital inclusion of persons with disabilities by equipping them with essential ICT skills and enabling their meaningful participation in the digital economy.
Category 4: Capacity building
- Organisation: APNIC Foundation
- Project: Building Capabilities in the Asia Pacific (BCAP)
- Country/Organisation Type: International Organisation
- Description: BCAP enhances technical capacity and digital skills across the Asia-Pacific region to foster a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable Internet ecosystem.
Category 5: Building confidence and security in use of ICTs
- Organisation: National Cyber Security Agency
- Project: National Cybersecurity Training Program
- Country/Organisation Type: Qatar
- Description: The National Cybersecurity Training Program develops a highly skilled and inclusive national cybersecurity workforce to strengthen digital resilience and support long-term national development.
Category 6: Enabling environment
- Organisation: Department of Telecommunications, Government of India
- Project: Samriddh Gram: Integrated Phygital Service Delivery Model Enabled by BharatNet
- Country/Organisation Type: India
- Description: The initiative demonstrates how digital infrastructure can be leveraged to deliver integrated and inclusive public services that advance sustainable rural development.
Category 7: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-government)
- Organisation: Center for Data and Information Technology, Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education
- Project: Rumah Pendidikan
- Country/Organisation Type: Indonesia
- Description: Rumah Pendidikan delivers inclusive and AI-powered digital public services that enhance access to quality education and strengthen education governance nationwide.
Category 8: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-business)
- Organisation: Dubai Customs
- Project: Cross Border E-Commerce Platform
- Country/Organisation Type: United Arab Emirates
- Description: The Cross Border E-Commerce Platform accelerates digital trade by streamlining customs processes, enhancing transparency, and strengthening the efficiency of cross-border e-commerce ecosystems.
Category 9: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-learning)
- Organisation: Qassim University
- Project: QSpark – The Spark of Intelligent E-Learning
- Country/Organisation Type: Saudi Arabia
- Description: QSpark transforms higher education through AI-driven personalised learning and academic analytics that improve student success and institutional effectiveness.
Category 10: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-health)
- Organisation: Reach Digital Health
- Project: MomConnect: A National Mobile Technology Platform to Improve Maternal and Child Health Outcomes in South Africa
- Country/Organisation Type: South Africa
- Description: MomConnect harnesses mobile technology to improve maternal and child health outcomes by providing accessible, personalised, and scalable digital health services.
Category 11: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-employment)
- Organisation: iamtheCODE Foundation
- Project: Enabling 1 Million Women and Girls Coders by 2030
- Country/Organisation Type: International Organisation
- Description: iamtheCODE empowers women and girls from underserved communities with digital and entrepreneurial skills, expanding pathways to employment and leadership in the digital economy.
Category 12: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-environment)
- Organisation: Musandam Governorate
- Project: Enhancing Environmental Sustainability and Energy Efficiency through Smart Lighting Poles
- Country/Organisation Type: Oman
- Description: The Smart Lighting Poles project integrates AI, IoT, and renewable energy technologies to create safer, more sustainable, and digitally connected urban environments.
Category 13: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-agriculture)
- Organisation: China Unicom
- Project: IoT Empowering Smart Agriculture Irrigation
- Country/Organisation Type: China
- Description: This project applies IoT-enabled precision irrigation technologies to enhance agricultural productivity, improve resource efficiency, and promote sustainable farming practices.
Category 14: ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life (E-science)
- Organisation: Kobo
- Project: KoboToolbox
- Country/Organisation Type: United States of America
- Description: KoboToolbox democratizes access to high-quality digital data collection and analysis tools, enabling organisations to generate reliable evidence for informed decision-making and sustainable development.
Category 15: Cultural diversity and identity, linguistic diversity and local content
- Organisation: Department of Information and Communications Technology Region X
- Project: Digital Souls, Native Tongues: The LAKIP Story
- Country/Organisation Type: Philippines
- Description: LAKIP promotes digital inclusion and lifelong learning by delivering culturally relevant and linguistically accessible digital skills training to underserved communities.
Category 16: Media
- Organisation: Vérif’All
- Project: Vérif’All: The First All-in-One Fact-Checking Application for West Africa
- Country/Organisation Type: Benin
- Description: Vérif’All strengthens media and information literacy by providing citizens with accessible tools to identify, verify, and counter online misinformation and disinformation.
Category 17: Ethical dimensions of the Information Society
- Organisation: Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of Population of the Republic of Azerbaijan
- Project: Foster Family
- Country/Organisation Type: Azerbaijan
- Description: The Foster Family initiative enhances child protection through a transparent and integrated digital system that supports accountable, efficient, and child-centered foster care services.
Category 18: International and regional cooperation
- Organisation: Inter-American Network on Digital Government (Red GEALC)
- Project: Electronic Government Network of Latin America and the Caribbean
- Country/Organisation Type: International Organisation
- Description: The GEALC Network advances citizen-centred digital government across Latin America and the Caribbean by fostering regional cooperation, knowledge exchange, and institutional capacity-building.