Archive for category: Developing Countries

Information and stories about developing countries.

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Innovations in Poverty Eradication in Nigeria from Zenvus

Innovations in Poverty Eradication in NigeriaPoverty in Nigeria is extreme compared to developed nations. For example, 82 million people, or 40% of the country’s total population, earn less than $1.90 per day. Although Nigeria exports more oil and natural gas than any nation in Africa, massive population increases have hampered potential growth. This change has forced the economy and government to prioritize keeping its citizens alive by providing food. However, the unfortunate reality is that this often comes at the expense of health care and other essential infrastructure. To help improve food access, the startup Zenvus brings innovations in poverty eradication in Nigeria.

Improving Agricultural Productivity

Food production systems are inefficient in many parts of the country. For instance, with little availability of irrigation or fertilizer, 66% of the labor force works to produce 90% of Nigeria’s calories. This deficiency in resources is a result of outdated farming methods. The Green Revolution, which applied World War II technology to farming through mechanization and increased crop yields by 200%–300% in the last 50 years, skipped over Nigeria. Likewise, other developing nations missed this innovation as well. Zenvus, an agricultural technology company, aims to fill this gap by providing access to resources that help Nigerians experience the same explosive productivity boost that other countries enjoyed, decades ago. Here are just three of the many services Zenvus offers as innovations in poverty eradication in Nigeria:

  1. Soil Quality Measurements. Because certain crops grow best in specific soil types, understanding soil quality can help farmers plant strategically and maximize profits. Additionally, for a country bordering the Sahara that has already lost 35% of cultivatable land in the past 50 years, carefully extracting resources from certain dirt areas can help prevent desertification.
  2. Disease Warnings. Through a mountable camera and a complex computer algorithm, Zenvus determines plant health so farmers can proactively resolve problems. These individuals can then use pesticides more selectively, reducing costs and the amount of runoff into the surrounding environment. Zenvus has even devised methods of analyzing this data without an internet connection. This is an especially necessary feature, given how far these cameras must be spaced out.
  3. Financial Support. Implementing these technological innovations can be expensive. Especially when considering that Zenvus-supported farms are large enough to start mechanization of multiple processes. For example, tilling, planting and harvesting. Economies of scale — or the cost advantage that comes with bigger business, tends to dominate smaller businesses due to their ability to afford the high upfront costs of these machines. These smaller farms create a need for investors and loans to get off the ground. Acknowledging this phenomenon, Zenvus has created multiple products in this sector designed to fill this need. Examples include zCrowdfund, a program where people buy a ‘subscription’ to goods a farm produces; zInsure, or affordable insurance; and zMarkets, which connects consumers to producers both locally and globally.

The Spirit of Innovation and a Positive Future

Companies like Zenvus provide hope for Nigerians through their capacities to create jobs, increase wages and ensure sufficient food access for all Africans. With 239 million in sub-Saharan Africa alone in poverty, the spirit of Zenvus’ innovations in poverty eradication in Nigeria is perhaps more essential (and more promising) than ever.

– Michael Straus
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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GivePower: Turning Saltwater into Clean Drinking Water

saltwater into clean drinking waterAccess to clean drinking water is a major issue that continues to affect individuals around the world. Further, an estimated 35% of the entire world population lacks access to “improved sanitation,” for which, access to water (generally speaking) is imperative. The CDC estimates that more than 700 million people live without direct access to an “improved water source,” which includes drinking water, proper household plumbing and wells. As of 2018, new solar-powered technology can now supply individuals with direct access to drinkable water by transforming saltwater into clean drinking water. Innovative technology, it seems, may play a pivotal role in helping to solve yet another global challenge.

GivePower & Solar-Powered Technology

GivePower is an innovative nonprofit behind solar, saltwater farms. Comprised of 20-foot-tall containers and accompanied by solar-powered panels and water pumps, these farms are designed to supply deficient countries with safe, drinkable water. The containers hold 75,000 liters of saltwater, every day. Through clean solar energy, this saltwater is converted into safe drinking water and delivered to surrounding villages. Such technology is relatively new, as saltwater is difficult to convert into freshwater. This is due to its makeup and strong chemical bonds. Therefore, saltwater’s conversion into clean water takes a large amount of energy and money to fund. GivePower, however, can cut the costs by using solar energy to powers its saltwater farms.

In 2018, GivePower built its first saltwater farm in Kiunga, Kenya. An extreme drought had caused Kiunga to experience a major shortage of potable water for cleaning, drinking and cooking. At this time, the city’s only source of water came from saltwater from the Indian Ocean. Individuals living in Kiunga would often contract harmful diseases due to this lack of clean water. GivePower acknowledged this issue and intervened by using its technology to convert the abundance of saltwater into safe, usable water. Not only does the saltwater filtration technology provide more water than typical wells — but it also has a lower impact on the environment through the use of renewable, solar energy.

A Global Impact

This technology has helped to address the water crisis in other countries as well. In many developing countries, it is common to have an abundance of saltwater and a lack of clean water. Due to its high sodium content, individuals consuming large amounts of this saltwater can become very sick. Waterborne diseases such as Vibrio and E. coli can contaminate saltwater, causing severe symptoms and in extreme cases, death. By turning contaminated saltwater into clean drinking water, many communities cannot only increase the availability of clean water but decrease the prevalence of waterborne diseases as well.

Through the innovative technology of GivePower, over 19,000 gallons of safe drinking water has been provided to 25,000 individuals per day within the Kiunga community. Although the company started in Kenya, GivePower has already extended to communities around the world by supplying over 2,000 solar-powered systems to schools, villages and facilities in need of freshwater.

The Path Ahead

As GivePower and other organizations continue to develop technology to turn saltwater into clean drinking water — thousands of individuals around the world can obtain direct access to safe water.

– Olivia Eaker
Photo: Google Images

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Vaccines in Developing Countries: Challenges and Solutions

Vaccines in Developing CountriesHow much can the world really rely on vaccines as a cure to disease? For many impoverished communities, the jury is still out; many recent studies show that vaccines in developing countries are more ineffective than those in developed, high-income nations.

However, developing countries are at greater risk for all infectious diseases than developed countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) documented that the “total number of healthy life years lost per capita was 15-times higher in developing countries than in developed countries.” In addition to this imbalance, vaccines in developing countries also threaten these nations with ineffective treatment. Due to the many factors that impact disease, it is difficult to pinpoint specific causes behind vaccine acceptance or denial. However, the health effects of poverty contribute to the reasons why vaccines in developing countries are often ineffective.

How Poverty Increases Sickness

Poverty is a health epidemic. In 2008, PBS aired an original docu-series called “Unnatural Causes” that outlined the ways diseases disproportionately affect poor and marginalized groups. The show posed one overarching, famous question: “Is inequality making us sick?” In the assessment of vaccine effectiveness in rich versus poor countries, the creators of “Unnatural Causes” say the answer is yes.

A functioning immune system is largely responsible for an individual’s ability to make antibodies, the infection-fighting proteins developed via vaccines. Impoverished people often do not have high-functioning immune systems. This means that they cannot produce antibodies as well as their developed-nation counterparts.

Multiple factors contribute to the prevalence of ineffective immune systems in developing countries. The overpopulation and crowding common in low socioeconomic areas increase the risk of disease exposure. Pre-existing health conditions, resulting from vitamin deficiency and little clean water or sanitation, increase individual susceptibility to sickness. Further, unreliable health care places systemic, structural constraints on impoverished communities. In this way, poverty and disease continually reinforce each others’ negative effects.

Comparison Studies: Developed Nations vs. Developing Nations

Water-borne diseases, malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS continually afflict developing countries. They may be responsible for damaging people’s natural immunity, thus decreasing the likelihood of vaccine acceptance. Indeed, one study found that these diseases “may damage lymph node structures that are crucial to developing immunity after a vaccine.”

This study from the University of Minnesota compared Americans to Ugandans. Researchers discovered all the Ugandans had “significantly higher levels of inflammation in their bodies and a depleted supply of protective T cells.” In addition, the Ugandan’s lymph nodes (which help filter infections and respond to vaccines) were inflamed and scarred. None of the American participants had these issues. After administering a yellow fever vaccine to the Ugandan test subjects, researchers discovered a positive correlation. The more damaged their lymph nodes, the less likely it was for antibodies to form.

Another series of studies in Dhaka, Bangladesh discovered that a poor response to vaccines in developing countries could be correlated to the small intestinal bacteria endemic to low-income countries. Petri’s team surmised that “inflammation [in the intestine] could prevent vaccines from lingering in the gut and could keep the immune system from reacting to them.” The team also identified a similar issue with rotavirus vaccine response. In contrast, 98% of children in the developed world do not have complications after vaccination.

The Future of Vaccines

According to the World Bank, “nearly half of the world lives on less than $5.50 a day.” In addition, only 59 of the 195 countries in the world possess a Human Development Index (HDI) at or above 0.8, making them developed countries. This means that ineffective vaccination responses affect the majority of the world’s nations. Thus, the world needs a systemic change in public health to fix this issue. Studies in Bangladesh and Africa “are testing whether sanitation interventions such as installing hand-washing stations in rural homes” can relieve the gut inflammation thought to be causing poor responses to vaccination.

However, even though vaccines in developing countries are sometimes ineffective, routine vaccination for infants and children may help. Young children are less likely to have the long-term health effects responsible for ineffective responses to vaccines, with the exception of illnesses inherited from a mother’s womb. WHO estimates that approximately 70% of the 9 million deaths from children under five “could be prevented or treated with access to simple, affordable interventions,” including vaccines.

Vaccinating Children in Developing Countries

Still, the complicated relationship to vaccines in the developing world is palpable. One study in India found that there is only a 55% rotavirus vaccine efficacy rate in young children. However, India’s plan to make the rotavirus vaccination routine may “save 27,000 of the 78,000 young lives that infections claim every year.”

Thus, expanding coverage of vaccines in developing countries has proven successful in many cases. Various programs work to extend this success. Since 1990, WHO’s Expanded Programme on Immunization has helped decrease mortality rates among infants and children via vaccination. The Global Vaccine Alliance has also “vaccinated more than half a billion additional children since its founding in 2000,” often in developing countries. While routine vaccination is not a panacea, it helps prevent disease before long-term health issues develop.

Improving World Health

Obviously, this is a hefty challenge. Changing human response to vaccines will take years of improving sanitation and living conditions. In addition, developed countries often receive vaccines first and in larger quantities due to having more money. In the meantime, scientists and doctors are experimenting with speedier methods to the vaccine problem. Take mesalazine, a drug that treats the bowel inflammation preventing antibody response to vaccines. This drug could possibly treat unreliable oral vaccines for stomach illnesses. Recognizing the issue of vaccines in developing countries is the first steps in improving global health.

– Grace Ganz
Photo: Flickr

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Entrepreneurial Spirit in Developing Countries: Providing Goods and Jobs

Entrepreneurial Spirit in Developing CountriesIn the ongoing effort to alleviate global poverty, many entrepreneurs focus on solutions that address social, cultural and economic challenges within a community or region. International organizations and institutions provide funding to developing countries to improve infrastructure, policy and services. All of this, in hopes of solving large-scale problems like poverty. However, perhaps the most powerful way to reduce global poverty is by focusing on the entrepreneurial spirit in developing countries. One such organization, Kountable, delivers goods and employment to emerging markets to reduce poverty.

All About Kountable

Kountable is a global trade organization that aims to interrupt generational poverty in developing countries by overcoming financial obstacles. It is these barriers that are hindering the fruition of small companies. Kountable provides funding and professional development opportunities to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that would otherwise lack access to the global market economy due to institutional barriers.

By combining “local knowledge with global expertise,” Kountable connects and fosters trade relationships between “large global suppliers… local SMEs, logistics providers, banks, and buyers from government, NGOs, and the largest multilateral institutions and foundations”.

The goal is to “bring the right goods to the right places on time” says Kountable President and Co-founder, Catherine Nomura. Another valuable aspect of Kountable is the multifaceted nature of its approach. For example, the organization collaborates with micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in many industries — including healthcare, education and information and communications technology.

Financial Opportunities for MSMEs

Julian Kyula, entrepreneur and founder of MODE (Mobile Decisions) from Nairobi, Kenya, explains the challenges faced by SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa and how Kountable’s strategy can reduce poverty. Kyula founded MODE in 2010 as a technology platform cooperating with telephone companies to distribute small mobile loans. While Kyula was fortunate to overcome financial obstacles, he reveals that, since banks do not often invest in startup businesses, about 70% of MSMEs “in emerging markets lack access to credit” and are therefore unable to grow. These obstacles tend to stifle the entrepreneurial spirit in developing countries.

Furthermore, the overall lack of financial opportunities hits MSMEs especially hard in developing countries. This is because SMEs create on average, 70% of jobs in emerging markets. Also, they represent 90% of businesses worldwide. The global workforce is growing at a rate that would require an additional 600 million jobs by 2030. Importantly, SMEs are expected to be a prime supplier of these jobs.

Researchers define micro-enterprises as organizations consisting of less than 20 workers and associate these businesses with lower poverty rates, especially in rural areas. Smaller and medium-sized enterprises can provide job opportunities and mobility within the workforce. SMEs benefit local communities, unlike massive corporations that often move to rural towns but lack the structural systems to lift regions from poverty into economic prosperity. Representing another reason that the entrepreneurial spirit in developing countries is so important for poverty reduction.

COVID-19 Challenges

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, another challenge small businesses face is acquiring the U.S. dollars needed to secure essential health goods (PPE equipment, ventilators, masks, testing materials, hospital beds, etc.). Kountable identifies this currency struggle as the “trade before the trade,” and its commitment to funding MSMEs helps small businesses avoid this particular challenge.

The Doing Business in Africa Award

Kountable recently won runner-up for NABC’s 2018 Doing Business in Africa Award, making history by being the first, global trade network ever nominated for this award. Kountable’s success in delivering goods and employment to emerging markets has confirmed its credibility as an innovative solution. Alleviating global poverty and generating wealth by supporting small businesses.

– Nye Day
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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5 New Bills To Improve US Foreign Aid

Improve U.S. Foreign AidThe U.S. is currently ranked seventh in the list of “best countries,” according to US News. Further, the nation is known worldwide for its dominant economy and strong military power. Given its global influence, the U.S. has the power to impact the lives of citizens in developing countries. Over the years, the U.S. has provided substantial aid to help reduce famine and poverty rates in some of the world’s poorest countries. To continue assisting vulnerable areas in the future, Congress holds the power to pass certain bills that improve U.S. foreign aid policies. Every year, lawmakers introduce several bills to improve U.S. involvement in developing countries. Here are 5 pending bills designed to improve U.S. foreign aid:

5 New Bills to Improve US Foreign Aid

  1. H.Res. 517. New York Representative, Eliot Engel, introduced this bill in July 2019. It aims to support the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), malaria and its Sixth Replenishment. It urges donor countries to help decrease the damage caused by these diseases, as well as to contribute donations. The bill also encourages recipient countries to keep their promises of utilizing the support to demonstrate progress in ending the AIDS, TB and malaria epidemics.
  2. H.Con.Res. 78. California Representative, Barbra Lee, introduced this bill in December 2019. This measure strives to promote the ideas and goals of World AIDS Day. It also supports continued funding for PEPFAR and the Global Fund to fight illnesses such as AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Additionally, it provides HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment in low and middle-income countries. Finally, this proposal supports efforts that contribute to decreased HIV rates worldwide and acknowledges the root causes of this disease in developing countries.
  3. S.Res. 169. Junior Senator for Oregon, Jeff Merkley, introduced this bill in April 2019. This measure presents a resolution to the statement under section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. Concerning violations of human rights by the Government of Saudi Arabia: it states that the U.S. government should call on Saudi Arabia to release all innocent human rights activists currently imprisoned. This includes journalists and religious minorities as well. Furthermore, the bill requests that the Saudi Arabian government reverse its human rights violations.
  4. FY21. Newly introduced in response to the global crises of 2020, this bill includes $65.87 billion in foreign aid funding — an increase of nearly $8.5 billion from the fiscal year 2020 budget. The bill designates $10 billion for funding global COVID-19 responses and for the World Health Organization. Also, this bill allocates $25 million to global maternal and child health, as well as $750 million for global family planning. Moreover, several million dollars contribute to various Global Health and Disease Programs.
  5. H.Res. 527. California Representative, Alan Lowenthal, introduced this bill on July 25, 2019. The goal of this bill is to promote human rights worldwide. It recognizes the violation and erosion of human rights in several countries and urges all U.N. members to promote human rights. Also, H. Res. 527 encourages the U.S. to develop programs that promote the recognition of justice for all. For example, the creation of the national holiday “Human Rights Day.”

Making an Impact

With more power and financing than many other countries, the U.S. is in a unique position to influence the economies and governments of developing nations. Through passing these bills to improve U.S. foreign aid and support, the nation can leave a lasting, positive impact on people living in poverty around the world.

– Megan Ha
Photo: Flickr

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Fix the E-Waste Problem: New Life for Used Electronics

Fix the E-Waste Problem: What We Should Be Doing with Our Used ElectronicsE-waste is a general term for discarded electronic components that contains everything from cell phones to disk drives. It is causing a crisis in the developing world. Only 12.5% are recycled worldwide. E-waste is different from other forms of trash because electronic waste contains toxic metals like lead and cadmium leach into groundwater sources if not properly managed. This is common in developing countries, where nations simply do not have the resources to properly limit water and air pollution. It is time to fix the e-waste problem.

The Problem

The processing of e-waste is difficult because of the many elements in computer chips and other techs. Paper, a major component of traditional solid waste, is recycled 64.7% of the time because the methods to get the paperback are just that much easier. The United Nations claims that 10-40% of the total e-waste from America goes abroad to countries in Asia. In addition, as little as 0.13% of all waste properly disposed of there. India is starting to make its own e-waste with the growth of the middle class. This leads to many unseemly sights in places like Taiwan, China and Pakistan.

One PBS reporter’s finding of a large lot stacked 5m high – just with printers. Workers, who are women and children, use unsafe and known to be carcinogenic chemicals like sulfuric acid to dissolve the plastic in the printers. People do get gold and silver out of this process. However, this comes at great cost to themselves and their communities, as breaking down this waste contributes to pollution. WHO estimates that one in four people die worldwide due to complications with contamination. Additionally, the way we manage e-waste certainly is not helping.

What Can We Do With Our Used Electronics?

The problem seems overwhelming and hard to solve. However, many companies and NGOs alike are tackling the issue. After e-waste is managed correctly, it has the potential to make or save money. There are three main ways to improve the health of people in Asia with respect to discarded electronics, and in the following order:

  • Reduce. Samsung, a well-known company based in South Korea, wants to make their products last longer. Although there are short-term benefits for having customers update their technology every few years, the corporation externalizes costs of what to do with those electronics after people use them to poorer nations. This leads to public relations issues and potentially a loss of profit. It plans to increase life by creating places where people can repair their phones and larger appliances. Also, people can change the design to make sure components do not break in the first place.
  • Reuse. Many people in countries where e-waste is going do not have internet access. Why not refurbish old devices from developed countries to expand access? This extends the life of technology which should ultimately reduce the amount that ends up discarded. Furthermore, one charity that sends technology worldwide is InterConnection. Unfortunately, some security risks rise with this. Since computer data is very hard to wipe, the data in electronics can end up in the wrong hands.
  • Upcycle. Not only recycling, but upcycling is a promising way to fix the e-waste problem. Upcycling turns products into something with more value, not less as is the case with paper or plastic when they’re made into something new. For example, the gold in the NoWa necklace is entirely from discarded cell phones. Promoting safe labor practices to make these pieces can also prevent situations like what happened with the printers in Vietnam.

Solving large problems like fixing the e-waste problem may seem daunting. If we think creatively, we can make the world a better place by encouraging our countries to make smart and informed decisions about how to responsibly manage hazardous materials from used electronics.

– Michael Straus

Photo: Flickr

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Are Fair Trade Product Markets Really Fair?

Fair trade productsIn a global marketplace full of exploitative producers and hungry consumers, fair trade product markets can seem like a welcomed compromise that allows exporters in developing countries to prosper from their resources. These initiatives usually involve goods exported from developing countries to higher-income trading partners, including coffee, tea, cocoa and handicrafts. In more socially conscious trading models, producers are compensated equitably for their products and held to higher environmental and social standards. However, the true efficacy of fair trade models is complex.

Price and Accessibility

Consumer attitudes and behaviors play a significant role in the pervasiveness of fair trade products. Buyers often report positive attitudes toward more ethically traded items but are not always willing to pay the inevitably higher prices. As a result, fair trade products are still a more niche commodity, making up less than 1% of the market. Ironically, the extra expense of these items often makes them less accessible to lower-income consumers in developed countries, creating connotations of elitism. Despite these setbacks, the demand for more ethical products is steadily on the rise.

Fair Trade Product Marketing

Despite many well-intentioned consumer attitudes, fair trade product markets frequently feature marketing strategies that conjure up imperialistic images. Rather than honoring the work of exporters as equitable trading partners, many marketing campaigns portray farmers as grateful and dependent on western purchases.

Transparency in Fair Trade Certification

In products marked as fair trade, the certification might only apply to the product’s raw materials, rather than the full process of production. This means that a shirt made with fair trade cotton could have been manufactured in a sweatshop. Naturally, this lack of transparency can mislead consumers and dilute the meaning of the certification.

Economic Impact of Fair Trade

The efficacy of fair trade as a poverty management tool is up for debate as well. Although fair trade marketing is centered on empowering those in producing regions and reducing poverty, the effects are not as straightforward as many well-intentioned consumers might hope. A 2014 study theorizes that these practices are somewhat effective, “although on a comparatively modest scale relative to the size of national economies.”

Often, the poorest workers are spared the prosperity from fair trade product market practices. A study that observed coffee mills in Costa Rica between 1999 and 2014, explored the impacts of fair trade systems on household incomes within the region. Researchers found that farm owners and skilled growers reap most of the benefits. Unskilled laborers receive no benefits other than the economic spillover of an increasingly prosperous coffee-growing region.

Many requirements of the fair trade certification are inaccessible for growers with fewer resources. Smaller producers might struggle to pay the fees associated with becoming certified fair trade producers. Similarly, producers struggle to attract large corporate trading partners who have no interest in paying the extra cost of sourcing materials equitably. NGOs like Maya Traditions, which helps Guatemalan artisans sell their products on the international marketplace, aim to make entrepreneurship accessible to small producers in developing countries.

The Verdict

The efficacy of fair trade systems is the subject of a great deal of criticism. While fair trade products like coffee, tea, and cotton are worth investing in, the benefits are imperfect and not accessible to all producers or consumers. Some activists advocate for a ‘direct trade’ system, in which consumers can buy goods directly from growers while paying growers sums closer to retail prices. However, the direct trade model comes with its own set of challenges and infrastructural changes. Nonetheless, establishing a system that allows producers to reach more advanced development from trading their crops is challenging but is certainly worth investing in.

– Stefanie Grodman
Photo: Flickr

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Innovative Healthcare Apps in Sub-Saharan Africa

Healthcare Apps in Sub-Saharan Africa
Although sub-Saharan Africa accounts for nearly 11% of the world’s population, it carries approximately 24% of the global disease burden. The region spends less than 1% on global health expenditure and lacks a strong infrastructure to address its citizens’ healthcare necessities.

Advancements in technology may be the solution to this crisis. The mobile industry in sub-Saharan Africa is growing rapidly. In 2012, only 32% of the population had access to a mobile subscription. By 2018, the mobile industry saw a 12% increase in mobile penetration rates. As a result, innovative healthcare apps are being released on the market, allowing individuals to access medical services remotely. This article will focus on three innovative healthcare apps in sub-Saharan Africa that can be accessed through a mobile device.

Hello Doctor: Providing Remote Medical Assistance

Hello Doctor is a mobile healthcare app that was developed in South Africa. It is currently one of the most popular mobile healthcare apps on the market and is available in 10 different countries. The app allows patients to have healthcare that is accessible, affordable and personalized.

The app requires a subscription of $3 per month. It allows a subscriber to “carry a doctor in their pocket.” After filing a request, subscribers are connected with a doctor via text message or phone call. All requests are responded to within an hour. All doctors accessed through the application are registered medical professionals.

The app also has a symptom checker in which patients can note their concerns and are provided with a list of potential diagnoses. It is also updated daily with new content to provide fundamental healthcare advice to patients. This app is most beneficial to citizens who may not be able to easily travel to their nearest healthcare clinic.

Pelebox: Delivering Essential Medication

Communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDs remain a growing problem in sub-Saharan Africa. These chronic diseases must be treated with medication that is picked up from the clinic. However, the limited number of clinics, a shortage of healthcare professionals and a high patient volume create excessive wait times for patients.

Pelebox, a South African app, manages smart lockers that dispense refills of prescriptions to patients. Instead of waiting hours to be seen in the clinic, patients can retrieve their prescriptions within a matter of seconds. Pelebox’s goal is to reduce the burden on hospital staff so that they can focus their attention on patients in critical care.

Here is how the app works. The patient is enrolled in the clinic’s collection program, the prescription is issued and the medication is placed into the locker. Clients will receive a one-time-pin via text message from the system. Patients enter their phone number and PIN at the self-service interface and retrieve their prescriptions from the cubicle. The cubicle is accessible at any time. Through its innovative approach in delivering essential medication, Pelebox has reached approximately 3,000 patients. The company is also planning to set up an additional 30 units in the next five years to continue to expand its reach.

MedAfrica: An All-in-One Healthcare App

MedAfrica, a product of Shimba Mobile, is one of the most popular healthcare apps in sub-Saharan Africa. It was first launched in Kenya in November 2011. By March 2012, it had approximately 70,000 users and was released into several other countries.

The app was created to make healthcare more accessible, affordable and safer. The app is free to use and works on any operating system. It is an all-in-one healthcare app that has various features. It provides users with a directory of qualified doctors and hospitals that are nearby. It also has a symptom checker available to its users so they can decide whether they’d like to pursue further medical advice or treatment. After the diagnosis, they can easily connect with the proper specialist. Users also receive first-aid advice and health updates from local hospitals.

Advancements in Healthcare Through Apps

An underfunded infrastructure, shortage of medical professionals and high patient volumes make for a fragile healthcare system. The surge of healthcare apps in sub-Saharan Africa is a great start to combating these issues. The innovative technologies that are being released for consumer use may be the key to granting much-needed healthcare access to individuals who need it the most.

– Jasmine Daniel
Photo: Flickr

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Mental Illness Issues in Ethiopia

Mental Illness in EthiopiaEthiopia is the second most populated country in Africa, with a population of over 100 million. With such a large population comes a prevalence of poverty as well as disease. In an estimate from 2014, around 30% of Ethiopia’s population was below the poverty line. According to statistics from this year, Ethiopia also makes it onto the list of the world’s poorest countries, ranking 7th poorest in the world in both GDP growth and GDP per capita. Along with this poverty comes a myriad of diseases. The top four causes of death in Ethiopia are, in order, neonatal diseases, diarrheal diseases, lower respiratory infections and tuberculosis. While these diseases are quite well-known, Ethiopia is also plagued by another type of disease: mental illness. Mental illness in Ethiopia may not be as recognized as the other diseases that plague Ethiopian citizens but mental illness can impact overall general health and the ability to provide for one’s family.

A Troubled Past

Despite the fact that an estimated 15% of Ethiopians suffer from mental illness and substance abuse disorders, for decades almost nothing was done to address or treat these issues. In the 1980s, there was only one psychiatric hospital in the entire country and such an insignificant number of psychiatrists, that it was almost impossible to find treatment. Moreover, the psychiatrists who did practice at the time were often not interested in developing new research and treatment techniques. Because of this, most cases of mental illness went untreated, leaving mental health sufferers to face both isolation and discrimination.

A Passionate Doctor

When Dr. Atalay Alem started his medical work, there was only one psychiatric hospital in the country. After his decades of work, spanning from the 1980s until modern day, his efforts to improve the psychiatric treatment of Ethiopians have had a massive payoff. He started as a medical doctor before receiving his degree in psychiatry. After that, he became a psychiatric professor at Addis Ababa University, where his research and his passion for better mental health services were instrumental in the expansion of Ethiopia’s mental health care. Alem was also a key founder of the graduate psychiatry program at Addis Ababa University, giving more Ethiopians a chance to make a difference in the field. Today, there are almost 90 psychiatrists practicing in Ethiopia. Apart from these psychiatrists, there are hundreds of psychiatric nurses as well. These nurses are part of what has made such widespread psychiatric care possible and their presence has aided in the addition of mental health services at most Ethiopian hospitals. For his efforts, Alem was awarded the Harvard Award in Psychiatric Epidemiology and Biostatistics in 2019.

A Positive Future

Though Ethiopia has a total of under 100 psychiatrists, the current number is a great improvement from just a few decades ago. Moreover, with the help of Alem and other passionate psychiatrists, research efforts continue to grow. Alem is currently working on a study that looks at the way severe mental illness impacts rural Ethiopian communities in order to evaluate how to improve treatment and maximize impact. The Ethiopian government is also invested in improving the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness. The government, starting seven years ago, created a mental health strategy to aid the country’s mentally ill and allocated government funds to the overall improvement of mental healthcare. These funds have gone toward improving health services, such as more adequate healthcare training and increased access to psychiatric medications. Part of the reason Ethiopia’s mental health treatment has improved so much is due to the partnership between the Ethiopian government and the World Health Organization. WHO was absolutely key in providing guidelines for how to implement these new mental health care strategies.

Though progress always takes time, with the help of doctors like Alem and partnerships with organizations like WHO, Ethiopian mental health care has better days ahead.

– Lucia Kenig-Ziesler
Photo: Flickr

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Addressing Homelessness in Morocco

Homelessness in MoroccoMorocco, a country bordering both Algeria and Western Sahara, has faced increased conflicts with the rising issue of homelessness. In the country, there are thousands without proper shelter as the problem worsens. However, newly implemented organizations are seeing rapid improvements in homelessness in Morocco.

More than 700,000 Moroccan citizens are currently battling homelessness. In addition, it must be noted that the youth has been severely impacted as well. There are more than 30,000 children roaming the streets in search of basic resources, as many escape abusive home situations. Under a prevalent gap between the wealthy and poor, it is reported that more than 15% of the population lives on $3 a day. With the poverty rate increasing, many turn towards the streets. Approximately four million Moroccan citizens live below the poverty line.

Causes of Homelessness in Morocco

The main contributor to the rise of homelessness in Morocco is the Structural Adjustment Policy that was launched in 1963. Since then, the homeless rate has rapidly increased, leading to its large population in present day. The policy aimed to improve the finance and social sectors. However, due to underfunding and a misallocated budget, thousands of families lost funding. For this reason, many lost their homes to the government.

Another cause of homelessness in Morocco is the shift in values in Moroccan society. As mentioned earlier, the wealth gap between the ones in poverty and the wealthy have led to resentment against the homeless. With the focus on the upper class, the poor population of Morocco is not given any aid. In certain cases, the plight of the poor is simply ignored.

Consequences of Homelessness in Morocco

With the youth making up a large portion of the homeless population, various consequences have arisen. A major problem is the overall safety of the children on the streets. With tens of thousands of children without a home, many are subject to sexual assault and abuse. The streets of Morocco have been subject to numerous crimes against the youth.

Another consequence of the homelessness problem is the lack of education. In the rural parts of Morocco, only 36% of girls pursue an education. With the issue of homelessness, the youth prioritize survival over schooling. It is also reported that only one in seven children attend school in Morocco. Homelessness plays a primary role in these low statistics as children do not have the resources to pursue an education.

The Road to Change

Despite the rising numbers, there have been numerous efforts to combat homelessness in Morocco. For example, the Moroccan government has stepped up to help those in need. Jamila El Moussali, the Moroccan Minister of Solidarity, Social Development and Family, has recently called for the largest shelter operation in Moroccan history. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the ministry has helped accommodate more than 6,300 homeless people and assisted 2,000 others in reuniting with their families. The government is looking to increase its involvement with the homeless in the coming years and boost social work to aid those in need. After completing one of the largest shelter operations, Morocco has seen a massive decline in the homeless population.

Even with the government’s newfound aid to help combat homelessness in Morocco, additional intervention is the key to make dramatic and long-lasting progress. For Morocco’s government to see a bright future and a reduced homeless count, it must act in a consistent manner to aid those in need. If the government can further boost the number of shelter operations, hundreds of thousands of homeless Moroccans would benefit.

– Aditya Padmaraj
Photo: Flickr