Archive for category: Technology

Information and stories about technology news.

,

Mobile Technology Poised to Generate Land Ownership for 4 Billion People

land_ownership
For the world’s poorest and most vulnerable populations, land ownership is an economic resource and critical determinant of social and cultural identity. But for the 4 billion people who live without registered land, landlessness can mean economic insecurity, no personal address with which to vote or receive aid, and a constant state of disputation and residential impermanence.

One implication of massive concentrations of unregistered land is the loss of wealth that they have the potential to generate. But perhaps more importantly, the absence of established land title systems means that property ownership is not guaranteed. As Devex development reporter Naki Mendoza notes, this has serious consequences for developing countries.

“Farmers cannot legally pass down ancestral lands to their children. Families cannot secure a mortgage or use property as collateral for a loan,” he writes. “And local communities are shut out from negotiations with extractive companies. For governments, it represents a sizable loss of tax revenues or, crucially, a foreign direct investment that will never be made because of uncertainty over property rights.”

Data accumulation mechanisms are poised to remedy these problems by streamlining land registration and giving local communities the ability to monitor and enforce their rights to their land. Data and analytics company Thomson Reuters has created a proprietary land information system that digitizes and archives land deeds in government databases, a practice that safeguards against the loss or damage of paper deeds.

Like mobile banking or online healthcare, digitization can reduce the opportunity cost of land registration from a multiday journey to a local registrar to a minutes-long mobile upload. The digital platform is also linked to satellite mapping systems, which provide updated property lines and can be used to mediate disputes between families, communities or even multinational extraction companies.

As Mendoza points out, these digital platforms have yielded concrete results. In Cape Town, South Africa, 915,148 properties were reported on its tax roll last year, up 66% since 2000. In Jamaica, it now takes only two days to register new property, down from 45 days in 2005. In the Philippines, nearly 60,000 urban land titles are issued each year, compared to just a few thousand as of five years ago.

With increasingly large and accessible quantities of land management data, a number of global institutions have commenced programs to secure land rights for the world’s 4 billion landless people. Earlier this month, at the Third International Conference on Financing and Development in Addis Ababa, the U.N. Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the World Bank signed a Declaration of Intent to establish a Network of Excellence on Land Governance in Africa (NELGA) to establish a widespread system of land registration and land rights. NELGA will complement the existing Land Policy Initiative, whose stated purpose is “to enable the use of land to lend impetus to the process of African development.”

“Secure access to land and other natural resources is of vital importance for the people in rural areas of Africa,” said German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Dr. Gerd Müller. “It will be an important contribution for food security and growth in the agricultural sectors, especially for smallholders.”

The demand for online land management services marks an opportunity for American companies looking to apply data and analytic systems to relieve people living in states of extreme poverty. It would also help millions of people establish a state of permanency for themselves and their families, which precedes activities like consumption and local investment. As land registration becomes more accessible for those living in extreme poverty, demand for modern information systems will become more widespread, and the door will continue to open for American technology companies and mobile developers in developing regions.

– Zach VeShancey

Sources: Devex, Leadership, Rural Poverty Portal
Photo: Devex

,

E-Library Program to Improve Literacy in South Africa

e-library
For centuries libraries have functioned as centers of knowledge and learning. Today, with information and communication technology (ICT) developments and ever-growing Internet access, people are turning to e-libraries as the next literacy-promotion frontier.

In partnership, Vodacom, Huawei Technologies, the Department of Basic Education and the Nelson Mandela Foundation have created an e-libraries program that will span 61 Vodacom ICT resource centers across South Africa.

This program will provide 400 tablets, courtesy of Huawei Technologies, loaded with content spanning a variety of subjects, including business and entrepreneurship, African literature and history, in addition to fictional e-books. The vast array of reading material will be available in all 11 official languages of South Africa, ensuring unbiased access.

Each resource center will be equipped with at least six tablets preloaded with e-book content that are also Web-accessible, enabling users to download materials from the Internet. Vodacom promises to supply Wi-Fi to students and members of the communities serviced by the e-library tablets.

The e-libraries initiative offers an efficient means of keeping learning materials up-to-date, as Vodacom’s Mthobeli Thengimfene explained: “We are able to continuously update the content remotely without having to go to the centers and people will be able to download the books they are interested in.”

Although South Africa ranks higher than Sub-Saharan countries for simple literacy, some 5 million South African adults’ education does not even extend to completion of the seventh grade.

In order to ensure that South Africa’s population achieves true literacy, including the ability to comprehend the meaning of written material, supplemental instruction and resources become important factors. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of these resources.

“Access to reading material is a major challenge in South Africa,” said Vodacom Group CEO, Shameel Joosub. A large number of the country’s students are unable to utilize traditional library resources or reading material, Joosub went on to explain.

However, many South Africans have access to smartphones and the savvy to engage with ICT devices. The e-library program seeks to build on this affinity to engage more people in literacy programs.

“We want to encourage learning. It’s not only about the books but it is also about forming reading clubs around each of the centers,” Thengimfene said.

The e-libraries initiative is just a small part of Vodacom’s Mobile Education Program, a seven-aspect plan that focuses on teacher-development. However, the solid partnership behind the e-libraries initiative gives it an extra edge. It is clear that all the organizations are passionate about literacy and the new equity they hope it will promote.

“Between 2015 and 2030 we do not only speak about quality education,” said Enver Surty, Deputy Minister of Basic Education, “but about quality education that is a human right and that is a public good and a public interest.”

– Emma-Claire LaSaine

Sources: IT News Africa, IT Web Africa
Photo: E-book Creators

, ,

The Silver Standard for Eradicating Malaria

eradicating_malariaEvery minute, a child dies from malaria. 90 percent of the deaths from malaria occur in the poorest African countries. Malaria is a preventable, treatable disease, yet more than half of the world’s population continues to be at risk.

Malaria has long been established as a poverty-related disease. Poverty is both a cause and effect of this potentially lethal disease: poorer people can often not afford preventive measures, and the contraction of disease leads to further economic loss. Consequentially, a substantial investment of time and resources into finding a solution is necessary to interrupt this vicious cycle.

The most successful method to combat the problem has been vector control- that is, to eradicate the mosquito transfer agent. Traditionally, the efforts have been to implement better preventative measures, primarily through insecticides, which are both expensive as well as environmentally harmful.

A more modern approach to the problem is to employ biotechnology to eliminate the mosquito vector more economically and effectively. This encompasses targeting the mosquito at a subcellular level by using a cytotoxic agent- that is a chemical that disrupts the mosquito’s cellular machinery.

Of these methods, the use of silver nanoparticles is becoming increasingly popular as nanotechnology advances. Silver nanoparticles are miniscule, nanoscale pieces of silver, which is highly toxic at cellular levels. This toxicity is being explored in its usages as antimicrobial and pesticidal agent.

Silver nanoparticles are traditionally synthesized using laboratory-grade reagents, which tend to be expensive and not readily available. Many researchers are now looking to phytosynthesis as an answer. The process of phyto-synthesis manipulates the ability of plants to carry out reactions to use in chemical synthesis. For instance, the phytosynthesis reaction of plants can be alternatively used to reduce silver ions to silver atoms.

Recent endeavors to utilize the phytosynthesis capabilities of plants have centered on the use of plant waste products to maximize productivity and minimize cost. In a recent study, researchers used the husk of coconut plant- abundant in the tropical regions plagued by malaria. They used the husk of coconut, which is a waste product from the fruit, to synthesize silver nanoparticles from silver nitrate. The synthesis eliminated the use of a synthetic reagent, and achieved successful results.

The nanoparticles produced were then used by the researchers to treat larval Culex quinquefasciatus, a species of mosquitos found in sub-tropical regions which is similar to the malaria mosquito in its transmission mechanism. The nanoparticles were observed to have significant larvicidal effect on the mosquito.

The study indicates the great potential of phytosynthetic methods to produce cheap and effective insecticides. By using plants indigenous to the tropical areas where malaria is most prevalent, the insecticidal measures of prevention can be made more accessible to the people. The use of waste products of coconut in the process is considerably cost-effective and eco-friendly.

Although the implementation of these innovative techniques may be some way in the future, ingenuity in research offers promising new horizons for a better, healthier world. To borrow Einstein’s words, it is time our technology caught up with our humanity.

– Atifah Safi

Sources: WHO 1, WHO 2, Science Direct
Photo: Flickr

,

E-Voucher Program in Zambia to Bolster Agriculture

E-VoucherFaced with corruption, Zambia turns to mobile phones. Within the next two to three months, the country will launch a system of e-vouchers operating through mobile phone networks that will cut out the middleman and allow farmers to choose which agro-dealers they would like to purchase from directly.

The e-voucher program, just recently approved by the Zambian government, will cover seeds, fertilizers and herbicides, offering subsidized agricultural products to small-scale farmers. Access to farming products and services, it is hoped, will also become more speedy and efficient through use of the new system.

The Zambian government and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) jointly facilitate the e-voucher project. The system will also benefit from US $6.5 million and US $9.7 million in funding from the Norwegian government and European Union respectively.

Functioning on a mobile phone network, the e-voucher initiative is an update on previous paper voucher systems. The digital nature of the e-voucher platform makes the process more secure and expedites trade through automatic payments to suppliers upon successful e-voucher redemption, keeping with the rising trend of mobile phone banking throughout Africa.

Many have high hopes for the e-voucher program, believing that it will empower farmers, whose crops make up 12 percent of Zambia’s exports.

“It gives farmers a choice in where they want to spend their money,” stated Zambia’s FAO representative, Noureddin Mona. “A farmer can use their voucher at any participating agro-dealer.”

Roger Phiri, president of the National Association for Peasant and Small-Scale Farmers, also holds this belief, stating that the use of e-vouchers will serve to prevent monopolies by agro-distributors.

It is important to note, however, that the e-voucher system will only empower farmers so far as their suppliers are in the system as well. In order for farmers to buy from a diverse range of suppliers, said range of agro-dealers must be e-voucher network members.

“The e-voucher system will only be appropriate if the voucher pack provides for diversity of inputs and services for a farmer to choose from,” said Agnes Yawe of Participatory Ecological Land Use Management. Yawe added that, while strong urban networks of major agro-dealers exist, rural networks remain subpar.

After initial tests in twelve districts yielded promising results, Zambia recently decided to expand its e-voucher system through a 28-district follow up test. The program also builds on successes of similar e-voucher initiatives in Rwanda, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

The partners hope to attract participants by offering farmers who register pre-paid e-vouchers worth US$53. Ideally, the e-voucher system will not only expedite agricultural deals, but also empower small-scale farmers.

– Emma-Claire LaSaine

Sources: Sci Dev Net, IT Web Africa, World Trade Organization
Photo: PxHere

, ,

WakaWaka is “Sharing the Sun”

WakaWaka
The Personal Solar Power Station is energizing Haiti with a mission to bring the 1.3 billion people in the world without electricity the basic right to energy.

Energy poverty’s progress has been regressing in over a quarter of the world’s population. According to the WakaWaka site, hundreds of millions face regular blackouts, and, even if they have access to kerosene lamps, they are extremely inefficient, dangerous and expensive, and also pose risks to health and the environment.

WakaWaka, which translates to “Shine Bright” in Swahili, works to create and market advanced solar-powered lamps and chargers at affordable costs. WakaWaka works to replace kerosene lamps with safer, cheaper and more sustainable energy sources, and their off-grid solar powered products do just that.

Intivation, a mobile solar products manufacturer, partners with WakaWaka Light to patent and distribute the most efficient models for solar technology.

The self-proclaimed impact-driven social venture fights to abolish energy poverty throughout the world with its original lamps. Currently, WakaWaka Power produces the “most compact power station in the world.”

What began as a kickstarter via crowd funding developed from a “buy one, give one campaign” to a full-blown sustainable enterprise and benefit corporation.

Maurits Groen and Camille van Gestel launched WakaWaka in 2010. They looked to revolutionize the energy market in South Africa by designing “an ultra-efficient LED lamp.” The award-winning model took first place in an international competition for emission-reduction ideas. WakaWaka’s bright future developed in its vision for bringing South Africans living off the electricity grid the chance to try solar-powered lamps.

Five years running, WakaWaka found partners around the world, from NGOs to national and local companies. WakaWaka lamps are charged by nothing but the sun. As of 2013, more than 12,000 LED lamps were provided to Haitian communities without electricity. WakaWaka also provides its lamps to Syrian refugees and those hit by typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

Mali, Liberia and Indonesia have also been impacted by WakaWaka’s off-grid lighting solutions. So far, WakaWaka has been established in more than 200 aid, crisis, and relief projects among developing nations.

The business model follows that all proceeds made from Western purchase go toward making them freely available to off-grid areas around the world at much lower prices.

As if WakaWaka was not doing enough, every WakaWaka product sold in the United States donates a WakaWaka Light to The International Rescue Committee, one of the world’s leading humanitarian aid organizations that has helped deliver tens of thousands of WakaWakas in regions that need them most.

– Lin Sabones

Sources: Waka-Waka, Kickstarter
Photo: Kickstarter

, , ,

Charity Puts Old Computers to Use in the Developing World

Old_Computers
Like The Borgen Project, Computer Aid International is a nonprofit that’s working to reduce and eliminate global poverty, but it goes about that task in a very different way. It’s what’s known as an ICT (Information Communications Technology) development charity, and it’s registered in the U.K.

Computer Aid International takes old computers, wipes their data, and cleans them up until they work like new. They then give those computers new jobs in the nonprofit sector of the developing world.

According to Optimist World, “Computer Aid International sends its PCs to schools, colleges, hospitals and charities in over 100 developing countries … [and] works with partner organizations in the countries it sends its PCs to, who provide the IT training and technical support.”

Meteorological offices depend on the computers sent by this organization, needing them in order to both inform agricultural workers when to sow and reap their crops and also let them know what kinds of seeds will produce maximum yield. Localized forecasts in Uganda, Mozambique and Zimbabwe have greatly assisted communities in protecting against extreme poverty and hunger.

Furthermore, the computers that Computer Aid International provides help children in developing countries with their educations.

“For these students, the opportunities provided through education and IT literacy offer a way out,” said an article in Optimist World. “In Nairobi, the job market is extremely competitive, and it is only with computer skills that young people can compete for professional or administrative jobs.”

By giving these younger generations the opportunity to compete in the job market, Computer Aid International also offers a better and more productive lifestyle for them and for their families. Also, this association gives schools the means to provide students with disabilities with specialized vocational training. Through their partnership with Sightsavers International, they are specially equipped to help the visually impaired through a uniquely adapted screen and synthesized speech output.

Computers and cameras as well as other technologies are also provided to doctors, and they bring new and improved healthcare to even the most remote areas. Since Computer Aid International has intervened, thousands of previously inconspicuous conditions have been accurately diagnosed and treated promptly.

To donate your unwanted computers to help a noble cause, go to https://www.computeraid.org/donate.html to learn more.

– Anna Brailow

Sources: Computer Aid, Optimist World
Photo: Book Aid

, ,

67 Minutes App Commemorates Nelson Mandela

Nelson_Mandela
Uber has been making waves in the transportation wave recently, bringing quick access to rides in cities across the globe. There is a new app that is being deemed the Uber for charity called 67 Minutes.

67 Minutes was released on what is Mandela Day in South Africa – July 18, the great leader’s birthday. The app “is dedicated to helping people do at least 67 minutes of charitable work per year.”

The United Nations (UN) made July 18 Mandela Day officially in November of 2009 after Mandela declared, “It is time for new hands to lift the burdens. It is in your hands now,” in a speech on his birthday in 2008. The UN stated that the day was to be commemorated to acknowledge his dedication to service and his values, as well as his contribution to the struggle toward democracy and a culture of peace around the world.

According to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the day is a celebration aimed “to serve as a global call to action for people to ‘recognize their individual power to make an imprint and help change the world around them for the better.’” The day’s overall purpose is to cement and remember Mandela’s legacy in continued action towards his ideals, instead of statues and museums.

The idea of 67 Minutes is based on the 67 years Mandela spent striving to improve the human rights of all South Africans. Each minute spent volunteering is meant to remember each year Mandela spent striving towards his goal of equal human rights for all. The app’s goal is to connect those that want to do good with charities and other organizations that can help them do just that.

Ninety-one charities and other organizations have registered with the app, including Amnesty International SA, CHOC, Nkosi’s Haven and Blind SA, to name a few.

Charles Burman of MD Digital Publications, the company that developed and published 67 Minutes, explained it this way: “67Minutes has been developed in such a way, that should you have a type of event in mind, a specific budget, or if you’re simply searching for ideas of how you can help based on your location, you can quickly and easily discover them.”

The app is free to download and it is also free for NGOs and charities to advertise themselves on. There is no regulation on what kind of project that charities can post, although it is the preference of Burman that projects be based around people giving their time, services or goods as opposed to monetary contributions.

To participate, simply download the app and start looking for something to do, just as you would download Uber and look for a ride. Individuals can surf the projects on the app by category or location before choosing one by hitting ‘participate.’ All that is needed is the number and information of the people participating.

Time will tell if 67 Minutes is an effective way for charities to help spread Nelson Mandela’s ideals across the globe. As of now, most of the efforts are concentrated in South Africa. With the spread of the app around the world, it could be a true force for good.

– Gregory Baker

Sources: South Africa, Media Update
Photo: Flickr

, ,

YouTubers Supporting Charity

YouTubers
YouTube has allowed millions of people to create content that will possibly reach an audience. For some YouTubers, creating content leads to an enormous amount of success, creating a massive following and giving them celebrity status. As a result, the past 10 years have seen a great increase in the number of online celebrities.

What these celebrities reveal is the power in social media. If top YouTuber PewDiePie, who posts comedy skits along with “Let’s Play” videos of games such as Grand Theft Auto V and The Witcher III, can have over 38 million subscribers to his channel, is YouTube not also a platform on which one can spread ideas to others?

PewDiePie thinks so. In 2013, the vlogger posted a video titled “10 MILLION BROS UNITE!-Charity: Water” on YouTube. In it, he challenged his subscribers (who at the time numbered 10 million) to support the efforts of nonprofit organization Charity: Water to promote access to clean water in the developing world. Along with launching an online campaign, PewDiePie agreed to donate one dollar to Charity: Water per every 500 views earned by the video. PewDiePie’s studio “Maker Studios” also agreed to donate one dollar per every 500 views on the video.

The campaign raised $446,462 for Charity: Water, becoming a huge success for the YouTuber. Perhaps even more great is the fact that PewDiePie is not the first YouTuber to promote making a difference.

For Lewis Brindley and Simon Lane, who form comedic gaming channel Yogscast, charity is part of what being entertainers is about. In December of each year, the team holds fundraising initiatives, streaming play-throughs of games and challenges to promote charity. Their most recent effort, titled “Jingle Jam,” raised over 1 million dollars for a variety of charities, including Oxfam International, Doctors Without Borders and End Polio Now.

Along with PewDiePie and Yogscast, YouTuber Connor Franta has taken advantage of the platform to promote social justice. Franta raised over $230,000 for The Thirst Project through crowdfunding platform Prizeo. To do this, Franta encouraged fans to enter a contest in which they donated to the charity, and the winner was given the opportunity to get coffee with Franta in Los Angeles.

The power of social media is the speed with which it allows us to spread ideas. For YouTube celebrities, using the platform that allowed them to achieve celebrity status to promote giving is perhaps the ultimate way to give back.

– Andrew Michaels

Sources: PC Games N, Reason Digital, Huffington Post , Youtube 1, Youtube, Charity: Water
Photo: Youtube

, ,

Off-Grid Vaccine Refrigerators Improve Immunization

Immunization
Most vaccines are heat-sensitive and must remain in a cool, controlled environment. However, this is easier said than done when the vaccines must be transported over a great distance, arriving at a remote location with frequent power outages or no electrical grid at all.

Introducing the direct-drive solar refrigerators: a solar-powered fridge that keeps vaccines cool for long periods of time without relying on gas or kerosene. Off-grid refrigerators were introduced in the 1980s in areas without electricity, but recent technological improvements have made them more efficient and accessible than ever before.

The new technology, sponsored by PATH and the World Health Organization, has “direct drive” technology that uses the sun’s energy to freeze water, creating an ice “bank” that the fridge can tap into during the nights and cloudy days.

A direct-drive solar refrigerator could prove to be invaluable to developing countries. Immunizations would be more stable and more accessible, meaning people would get treated faster.

But the fridges are not the simplest of innovations—any given country will need a long-term plan upon making the initial investment for semi-regular maintenance and repair. On top of that, an experienced professional would have to install the fridge to ensure it is done correctly, and then train local technicians to maintain and repair them.

Despite the drawbacks, the direct-drive solar refrigerator is already working. In the Philippines, a solar refrigerator called the Sure Chill is storing vaccines for longer than previously possible, helping rebuild the cold chain infrastructure after the typhoon in 2014. The Sure Chill fridges uses solar and water power and can run without electricity for up to 10 days. These fridges have a big price tag, about $2,600 each, but are already proving to be extremely worthwhile.

– Hannah Resnick

Sources: Alternative Energy, Science Dev, WHO
Photo: Flickr

,

Could Mobile Phones End Global Poverty?

end_global_poverty
One of the greatest challenges facing developing nations in Africa is connectivity, connectivity to reliable sources of electricity, infrastructure and the world around them. But on the other hand, there are more people in Africa with cell phones than there are with toilets in their homes. And this fact, say some creative individuals, is the key to tackling poverty in Africa.

In 2009, the Grameen Foundation, an organization working to connect the world’s poor with vital knowledge resources, launched a program called the Community Knowledge Worker initiative. The initiative was designed to create a bridge between rural farmers and agricultural experts via a mobile phone connection. Oftentimes, these experts were other members of the local community who shared their knowledge with their peers.

Access to a mobile phone grants a rural farmer access to information resources beyond what they could find without. Not only can local farmers share tips and tricks, but even the most rural farmer can quickly Google pest treatments or look up the current market value of their crops.

Other people are utilizing programs like Mobile Midwife, a mobile-based program that helps connect midwives and patients. The program allows midwives to track appointments, access patient records and even schedule voicemail messages to be send out to patients each week.

Zoona, a social enterprise mobile banking company in Zambia, specializes in managing transactions for Africans without a bank account. In a country where roughly 85 percent of the population has never entered a bank, companies like Zoona stimulate greater money flow in a community by encouraging individuals to carry out transactions and by encouraging savings investments.

However, the boons of the smartphone revolution aren’t just material or economic. With more and more Africans utilizing smartphones, social networking sites are gaining ground quickly, connecting people from all across the continent. The growth in social media activity has been so rapid that social media giant Facebook has recently announced plans to open a headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Mobile phones open up a world of possibilities, even in the most rural and impoverished areas. Access to vast amounts of information, secure banking and social connectedness are changing the face of Africa and are giving poor nations a strong platform for growth.

– Gina Lehner

Sources: The Huffington Post, Grameen Foundation, AFK Insider
Photo: Flickr