I started ICTworks seventeen (17!) years ago to engage digital development leaders, and help us all implement technology solutions more effectively in international development programs. This humble website is now the blog of record for a global digital development community and we’ve lasted longer than USAID itself.
We now have 20,000 email subscribers from around the world, after the defunding of USAID caused many to lose jobs and change emails. I am proud to say that each remaining subscriber opens at least one email a month.
When you add in website views, ICTworks has an impressive reach:
Every ICTworks post in 2025 was seen by an average of 10,000 people.
ICTworks is a community effort, with multiple authors from across the digital development community. You can share your ideas or insights in a free Guest Post or advertise your program to our readership with a paid Sponsored Post.
Top 10 ICTworks Posts in 2025
Annual averages don’t tell the real story of which posts and trends were the most popular with program designers, project managers, software developers, academics, and humanitarian professionals.
Here are the 5 key themes that correspond to the top 10 posts we saw when analyzing our readership metrics. Scroll down to see the most popular posts of 2025 and what will excite digital development practitioners in 2026.
5. Digital Sovereignty
We ended 2025 with the shocking news that Kenya Just Sold Citizen Health Data for $5.66 Per Person after the USA government ended PEPFAR funding, causing many LMIC governments to stare at massive health budget shortfalls in horror.
Sadly, I think we can expect more and worse agreements in 2026 as the USG uses budgetary leverage to gain unprecedented access to African health system data.
4. Generative AI
We were skeptically excited by Generative AI in 2024, which has led to much learning in 2025, like the Great News! MIT Says 95% Of All Corporate Generative AI Pilots Fail. Of course they would!
Like any new technology, we have to experiment early and often to see where GenAI can help us accelerate development.
I am particularly excited by the effort to Rethink Open Source in the Age of Foundational AI Models since there are so many ways these models can be both “open” and “closed” – especially with billions in investment funds flowing towards anything called “AI” in 2026.
3. Biting Satire
I am continuously amused that my April Fools posts are extremely popular every year. 2025 was no exception, though it many have been a little too soon for Breaking News! Elon Musk to Fund All New USAIHA.
Sadly, there is no “new USAID” to celebrate. Only a memory to mourn as this Administration continues to wreck havoc on American society and our international reputation in 2026.
2. Funding
Everyone always wants Practical Insights on Funding for ICT4D Projects and ICTworks delivered again in 2025. Of course, marrying AI with funding excites people with opportunities like $25,000 for African Artificial Intelligence Applications.
There was also great interest in £150,000 for Your Digital Development Social Venture which shows that organizations are expanding their areas of interest this year.
1. USAID Defunding
Obviously, the main story in 2025 was the reality that the USAID Freeze Caused Real Humanitarian Crises And Lives Were Lost. Worse, as the year progressed, my early Obituary for USAID: an Icon of Global Development became prescient.
We really did lose 45% of global aid funding in 2025.
As global aid funding decreased, the resulting Financial Collapse Forced Radical United Nations Restructuring. We now have UN80, which will be felt throughout 2026.
Bonus: Worst Post Aging Ever
Back when we had hope for this Administration, I had a question for us all: Could Digital Public Infrastructure be a Reason for Trump 2.0 to Fund USAID? Well that was answered pretty quick on January 21: Nope.
Hopefully, the ICTworks posts in 2026 have a better influence on global events that matter to us.
