Re-animating Nation-wide Digital Migration

Helping Myanmar’s Families Step Out of the Digital Shadows

Despite a mandate, most users across Myanmar weren’t switching to Unicode, a critical step in moving mobile users on to the modern internet protecting their safety and opening economic and learning opportunities. Trust in government information was low and national efforts had stalled.  

They tried a one-size-fits-all instructions and outreach, entirely top-down would move the masses. Over a year post-mandate with little adoption, fading attention, and no plan. If nothing was done the country faced widening digital divide, risk of misinformation, stalled civic participation, and gray market digital economies.

Actions

  • Led research effort that included 100+ interviews to identify adoption barriers both in the field and remotely

  • Mapped full mobile technology user journey across formal and informal communities

  • Developed cultural insights and social context

  • Co-created “Go Unicode” brand and strategy

  • Built and launched mobile-first, 4-step Easy Switch Guide

  • Activated Facebook help group for sustained community support

Results

  • 103 million impressions across social platforms

  • 200,000+ people engaged with Facebook ads

  • 55,000+ visited the Easy Switch Guide

  • 20% completed the 4-step Unicode switch

  • 8,000+ joined the Facebook community

  • Boosted national momentum behind Unicode migration, especially among tech-novice populations

A stalled mandate, a rising digital divide

Myanmar’s government had a clear goal: switch the country to Unicode and modernize digital communication. But a year into the mandate, adoption had stalled—just one-third of users had switched. For the rest, confusion, fear, and lack of access stopped progress. The result: fractured communication, poor digital safety, and vulnerability to misinformation.

Then the pandemic hit—and efforts froze completely.

Field research & observation

School master interview

Greengrocer’s sales record

Conversations with young adults

Home visit

Digging deeper: What really stops digital adoption?

We partnered with Facebook to re-energize the movement. Through 140+ interviews with users, phone shop owners, and technology experts, we uncovered practical barriers—unclear benefits, distrust of the switch, and a perceived need for expert help. But field conversations revealed something more powerful: Myanmar’s culture of multigenerational closeness.

Older users—often the most vulnerable—didn’t know how to ask for help. Younger family members had the skills but didn’t know there was a need. This was our unlock.

Through extended interviews and design research, we surfaced a powerful cultural value system: Dharma and Dana—enlightenment through giving. This gave us the opening to reframe the switch not as a technical task, but as an act of generosity. Helping elders switch became a way for young people to give back—and be seen as leaders in their families.

Strategy

From top-down mandates to community-powered movement

We created Go Unicode—a joyful, user-first campaign rooted in community bonds.

The brand: Bold, friendly, and culturally resonant. The name “Go Unicode” conveyed action and energy. A dual-language logo bridged accessibility and tech aspiration. Bright visuals and joyful characters made it feel more like a movement than a mandate.

The product: The Easy Switch Guide, a clear, 4-step mobile tool designed to accommodate gray market devices, custom keyboards, and users with little tech fluency. Built to be used together across generations.

The campaign: A Facebook-powered digital learning network where users could share progress, support each other, and build momentum.

The insight: Community-led learning works when we connect it to existing values and bonds. Dharma and Dana gave our campaign emotional and cultural depth.

A new model for digital inclusion

Go Unicode didn’t just help people switch keyboards—it helped them reframe their relationship to technology. It showed that human-centered design, paired with deep cultural insight, can transform compliance into community empowerment. As governments continues building a digital society, programs like this lay the foundation for inclusive, bottom-up growth—led not by mandates, but by everyday people helping each other thrive.