FunDoo: Scaling UNICEF Chatbot

Role: Global Product and Content Lead Organisation: UNICEF Office of Innovation, Sweden

Duration: September 2023 - December 2026

design for scale • digital youth engagement • product policy and partnerships

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2.1 million youth and children | 37 countries | 9 countries with national adoption | Gamified Accessible Skilling, Learning for Youth using open-source low-bandwidth techG

Key Responsibilities

• Scaled FunDoo to 15 new countries, coordinating deployment with UNICEF Country Offices, government ministries, and youth networks to drive adoption across LMICs

• Led end-to-end chatbot product development across needs assessment, content creation, localization, and optimization of gamified interactive flows for 37 country contexts

• Directed content development for 21st-century skills and SBC across immunisation, HPV, mpox, mental health, and climate action through multi-stakeholder consultations with youth, ministries, country offices, UNICEF programme groups, teachers, and schools

• Managed programmatic coordination across a team of 5, 60+ implementing partners, and a budget of $3M, driving alignment across UNICEF HQ thematic teams, regional offices and country-level stakeholders including ministries, youth networks, private partners and donors.

• Led innovative initiatives to maximise scale and access to users incorporating AI, blockchain and pioneering deployment of regional cohorts across LAC and ESARO region.

• Analysed learning metrics and data to enhance user experience, enhance completion rates to 89%, a net promoter score of 85%, and push boundaries to new learning areas of AI and financial literacy, vocational training, immunization and NCDs.

• Gamified and incorpotated visual storytelling into 100+ tasks using comics, mini-games, puzzles, badges, progress bars and leaderboards within constraints of low-bandwidth delivery

• Localised the product in 15 countries through extensive user testing following a HCD process involving ministries, youth and country office colleagues.

Key Achievements

• Delivered 100% year-on-year growth within one year of taking on the product lead role, scaling reach from 1M to 2.1M users

• Led pilot initiatives of FunDoo AI discovery agent in Jamaica and blockchain integration in South Africa creating learning to earning pathways for 18,500 youth

• Led national chatbot adoption by Ministries of Health in Indonesia, Greece, and Jamaica, embedding FunDoo into government digital infrastructure

• Embedded validated psychometric assessments into platform design, nearly doubling completion rates to 89% across 37 countries

• Achieved buy-in from 17 countries and national adoption in 9 LMICs within two years