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How Starlink Is Revolutionizing Access to Health Care in Kenya

Health Care in KenyaIn Kenya, internet connectivity is a privilege enjoyed by people who live in urban areas. In contrast, millions in rural areas remain in the digital dark. Starlink, a satellite internet provider known for delivering fast and reliable internet in remote and rural areas, launched in Kenya in July 2023. Marketed as a solution for regions with poor or no internet connectivity, Starlink in Kenya experienced a huge demand, leading to a network capacity overload.

Approximately 70% of Kenya’s population resides in rural areas, which are underserved and often face challenges accessing essential services due to poor infrastructure. Starlink is bridging the digital divide in Kenya by revolutionizing access to health care in rural areas. From telemedicine to real-time data management, here’s how this innovative technology is revolutionizing access to health care.

The Link Between Health Care and Poverty

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health is a fundamental human right. Yet, our financial capacity often limits access to health care, including the choice to get medical care or where to get it. In low-income countries, these options compel individuals to pay for medical care out of pocket, forcing families to forego their well-being. Consequently, the burden of medical expenses and loss of income pushes families deeper into poverty.

Investing in effective health systems and universal health care can ensure that all persons, particularly the most vulnerable, can access health care without experiencing financial constraints.

Health Care in Kenya

Kenya has made notable progress in upholding this right by implementing a system designed to address systemic issues. The country has improved access to health care, increased the number of medical personnel and supplies, digitized health services and promoted national insurance uptake. However, challenges like delays, inefficiency and unreliability persist in the new health care model.

Starlink’s Revolutionary Role in Murang’a

Amid these challenges, in the central region of Murang’a county, Starlink is revolutionizing health care delivery. Nestled in scenic hills, it is a significant tourism attraction but a logistical nightmare due to the challenge of building infrastructure to deliver essential services like communication and health. Murang’a County has no level 5 health facility and 297 level 2 facilities, including clinics and dispensaries that serve villages and smaller towns. In contrast, internet access is limited to 12.7% of the population and 57.4% own mobile phones.

Challenges Solved

The health care sector struggled with delays in disease detection, financial mismanagement, long queues and drug shortages due to reliance on manual systems. However, Starlink’s presence in Kenya has significantly enhanced the digitization of medical records. Murang’a County Governor has hailed the integration of Starlink internet in rural health facilities as lifesaving. Starlink has allowed Murang’a County to roll out a telemedicine program decongesting level 4 and 5 hospitals. This has reduced patient travel expenses, ensuring everyone can get medical assistance from the nearest dispensary.

Starlink provided a viable solution with high-speed, low-latency internet in underserved areas, where most health centers and dispensaries are located—unlike other internet service providers in Kenya that depend on fiber optic cables. The digitizing of medical records and automation of appointments has improved service efficiency. Doctors can make accurate time decisions on patient care through telemedicine. At the same time, the county can monitor and generate real-time patient data. This has enhanced accountability and reduced theft of medical supplies.

Final Note

By providing affordable, high-speed and reliable internet, Starlink is making remarkable strides in digitizing and modernizing health care in Kenya. This aligns with the four core components of the right to health: availability, acceptability, accessibility and quality. As health care outcomes in Murang’a County continue to improve, the success of Starlink offers a model that could be replicated beyond Murang’a County. Indeed, it could potentially transform health care access across the country.

– Grace Ruria

Grace is based in Nairobi, Kenya and focuses on Technology and Solutions for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr

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Sudan’s Digital Transformation

Digital TransformationIn 2021, the World Bank stated that digital technologies can enable economic transformation in Africa and help create more jobs for its people. Africa’s share of global poverty increased from 15% in 1990 to 63% in 2018 and may reach 90% by 2030. Thus, the World Bank’s statement was repeated at the Sixth African Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Forum in April of this year. It was said that Africa has to invest in human capital development to learn how to produce, sell and use emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and genomics that are transforming every aspect of life. The need for digital transformation would ameliorate many private and public sectors by increasing the efficiency of service delivery to people with low incomes, monitoring living conditions and predicting imminent crises in crowded or remote areas.

The Case for Sudan

In the case of Sudan, technological growth is more important than ever because it is placed at the top of the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) Emergency Watchlist for 2024. This was following Sudan’s escalating conflict, mass displacement, economic crisis and near collapse of health care services. Currently, a civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which erupted in 2023 but has been ever present since the coup d’état of Omar al-Bashir in 2019, has been driving humanitarian needs as 15.8 million people need humanitarian aid. While war continues to inflict further turmoil on the state, the hope of Sudan’s digital transformation can allow grassroots progression in the face of leadership-level destruction.

Empowering Female Farmers

Poverty is tackled head-on in Sudan’s digital transformation through nuclear technology to help female farmers. Agriculture is the primary source of income and livelihood for up to 80% of the population in Sudan. In a project funded in part through the Peaceful Uses Initiative (PUI), local scientists from the Agricultural Research Cooperation (ARC) were trained and provided technical support by experts. Scientists at Kassala Research Farm used the soil moisture neutron probe technique to measure moisture levels in soil, helping quantify crops’ water needs. They also employed the nitrogen-15 isotopic technique to optimize nitrogen fertilizer applications. These studies informed the water and fertilizer delivery through the drip irrigation system. This technology has enabled the water-scarce nation to continue farming. It can save up to 70% of water, allowing for more extensive agriculture.

Hundreds of women, many refugees or internally displaced, relied on their husbands’ incomes and had limited access to food, leading to malnutrition. However, small-scale farms and home gardens optimized with nuclear technology have enabled them to grow various vegetables, benefiting their families and entire villages. Rashid Sir El Khatim, Coordinator, Talawiet Organization for Development, Sudan, has asserted the project’s success because “If the women are empowered, they can share in the decision-making in the family and the community. It helps to reduce poverty and it makes future planning more effective. When women are empowered, the community is more empowered.”

Mobile Money, Digital Finance and Internet Connectivity

The civil war in Sudan has led to a mass exodus, with people being displaced from their homes, shops and businesses, resulting in widespread looting and loss of possessions. Financial technology (fintech) uses computer programs and other technology to support or enable banking and financial services. In Sudan, this allows people with a mobile phone and internet connection to more safely buy basic groceries, settle bills and receive money from abroad, easing some of the hardships.

When interviewed by The New Humanitarian, Sudanese citizen Hussein stated, “I only realized the value of [fintech] when my money and belongings were stolen right in front of my eyes.” For displaced people, this is a safety measure as much as it guarantees putting food on the table for loved ones. Bank of Khartoum’s Bankak is a smart app that facilitates easier and more secure transactions, savings and access to credit. Applications like this have been pivotal in providing financial services to the unbanked population.

Final Remark

Sudan’s digital transformation offers hope amid conflict, economic instability and humanitarian crises. The country can achieve significant socioeconomic improvements by leveraging fintech and nuclear technology in agriculture. Apps like Bank of Khartoum’s Bankak and digital wallets such as MyCash and RittalPay provide secure financial services to the unbanked, enabling economic activities and resilience. Nuclear technology empowers women farmers, optimizing resources and fostering food security. These targeted interventions highlight the transformative potential of digital technologies for financial resilience and social empowerment. For Sudan, digital transformation is essential for survival and a better future.

– Kathryn Dodd

Kathryn is based in the United Kingdom and focuses on Technology and Solutions for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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Online Human Trafficking During COVID-19

human trafficking during COVID-19The United Nations has warned of a recent increase in human trafficking taking place through social media. According to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) perpetrators are approaching victims on social media and messaging platforms. Experts correlate this surge of online human trafficking with the lockdowns governments have implemented to combat COVID-19 that has left millions of people jobless and struggling to survive.

The Human Trafficking Crisis

Human trafficking has long posed a threat to the safety and well-being of the world’s most vulnerable populations. The U.N. has stated that between 2017 and 2018, approximately 75,000 trafficking victims were identified in 110 countries. During this period, 70% of victims were female, 77% of whom were then trafficked for sexual exploitation and 14% for forced labor.

There are several factors that make a person more vulnerable to human trafficking. The most pressing factor, however, is financial struggles or poverty.

Online Human Trafficking and COVID-19

Human trafficking is on the rise as millions are made desperate by the economic consequences of COVID-19. People employed in informal sectors have been particularly impacted by layoffs, while earlier this year migrant workers were left stranded far from home when borders closed and travel bans were implemented. According to the World Bank, the COVID-19 pandemic will result in global extreme poverty increasing for the first time in two decades, pushing as many as 150 million people into poverty by 2021.

The impact, however, will be felt the hardest by females. As a result of the pandemic, 47 million more women and girls will be pushed into extreme poverty. Estimates even predict that globally, for every 100 men living in poverty in 2030, there could be as many as 121 women.

Besides  COVID-19’s economic consequences, traffickers have also benefited from the fact that people are spending more time online during lockdowns. While traffickers have usually operated with a great deal of impunity, the internet allows for easier access to vulnerable populations as well as the benefits of anonymity and false identities.

Addressing Human Trafficking During COVID-19

Human trafficking is a global problem but despite the scale of the threat and the advantages that perpetrators have during COVID-19, governments can take action to protect vulnerable groups, especially women and girls.

In an appeal to social media and messaging companies, CEDAW recommended that safety controls be set up to reduce the risk of exposing women and girls to trafficking and sexual exploitation. CEDAW has called upon online platforms to use data, artificial intelligence and analytics to identify possible patterns that could lead to trafficking. It also urges platforms to “put in place the appropriate governance structure and procedures which will allow them to be reactive in their response and provide the relevant level of information to the concerned authorities.”

CEDAW also urged governments to resolve the underlying issues that allow human trafficking to flourish. These issues include sex-based discrimination, economic insecurity, conflict and unsafe conditions for migrants and displaced people.

In addition, the United Nations has urged national governments to ensure that services for trafficking victims and survivors stay open during lockdowns and that the rights of migrant and informal workers are protected by labor laws. Finally, investments in programs for women’s economic empowerment are encouraged as a means of mitigating the disproportionate economic impacts on females. With the appropriate measures in place, human trafficking during COVID-19 can be prevented.

– Angie Grigsby
Photo: Flickr

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Rainwater Harvesting Revolutionized by an App

Rainwater harvestingTechnology has played a significant role in the reduction of global poverty. Two particular areas technology has improved impoverished communities are water access and water quality. For instance, a newly developed piece of technology showcases the potential for enhancing water security throughout Africa. The key is effective rainwater harvesting.

Water Supply Threats

In Africa, increasing water access and sanitation has become a top priority. Consequently, many organizations — the United Nations, the African Union, and the African Development Bank — have come together to solve the water crisis by sponsoring The Africa Water Vision for 2025. It warns that African water resources are threatened by pollution, environmental degradation, and a lack of responsible protection and development.

A New Smartphone App

Despite these threats, a new smartphone app has empowered Africans to efficiently procure their own water. Rainwater Harvesting Africa (RHA) is a smartphone app that the U.N. Environment Programme and the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization jointly developed. It enables Africans to use rainwater harvesting systems to obtain their own water.

Usually, rainwater is harvested through the construction of a central water tank that connects to various downspouts. But, with this app, households are able to capture rain runoff for essential personal use.

RWH Africa utilizes real-time meteorological data to track rain patterns throughout Africa. App users can input their location, the area measurement of their rooftop, the number of people living in their household, and how much water they use per day. The app uses this information to calculate how much water can be harvested at a given time for the needs of the user. Additionally, the app provides images and directions detailing how to construct rainwater harvesting systems with locally available materials.

Promising Factors

In addition, RWH Africa has built-in resources that can improve access to water throughout Africa. They can capitalize on increased technological infrastructure to expand its user base. GSMA estimates that 475 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa alone will become mobile internet users within the next five years, and 27% of their mobile internet connections will be on 4G. With increased smartphone usage throughout the continent, more Africans will be able to access this powerful tool of water procurement.

Although Africa needs to increase its internet capacities to maximize the app’s effectiveness, it has a more than sufficient water supply. In 2006, the U.N. Environment Programme and World Agroforestry Centre issued a report indicating that Africa alone receives enough rainfall each year to meet the needs of nine billion people. According to the report, Africa is not water-scarce, but the continent is just poorly equipped to harvest its water resources adequately and safely. RWH Africa gives Africans the knowledge they need to personally capture these vast water resources.

Furthermore, rainwater harvesting is low-cost and easy to maintain, making it widely accessible. According to The Water Project, a household rainwater harvesting system can hold up to 100,000 liters of water. This is enough to allow communities to decouple from centralized water systems that are subject to incompetent or corrupt management. Rainwater harvesting hence enables individuals to take matters into their own hands and decrease their reliance on undependable municipal water sources.

Technology Can Beat Poverty

As internet connection and smartphone usage expand, new solutions to poverty issues, such as water insecurity, will reach more people. RWH Africa serves as an educational and practical tool for rainwater harvesting and thus can be used as an example for similar future efforts. It signifies a positive outcome of increased cooperation between international organizations and local communities in combating global poverty.

– John Andrikos
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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Project Loon: 4G Balloons Provide Internet Access

Project LoonInnovative 21st-century technologies have motivated NGOs and tech companies around the world to develop apps and other online ways for people in developing areas to stay connected. Information provided on the internet or transmitted through SMS assists people worldwide with acquiring resources and employing techniques to advance education, healthcare and agriculture. Unfortunately, some areas remain untouched by the benefits of staying connected because their remoteness prevents internet availability — at least until now. Google’s sister company, Loon, is rising to the challenge of providing internet to remote populations in Africa and recovering populations affected by natural disasters using solar-powered 4G balloons with Project Loon.

Project Loon

Project Loon, which became one of Google’s “moonshot projects” in 2011, began launching balloons by 2013 and partnered with Telkom Kenya in 2018. Following this deal, the solar-powered balloons were tested on 35,000 customers covering over 50,000 square kilometers. The goal was to provide adequate connectivity to underserved and disadvantaged communities, beginning with Kenya. Loon executives stress that providing creative, low-cost solutions is the greatest way to help people, particularly those in rural areas where connectivity could be life-changing. Their passion stems from an intense desire to “challenge the status quo” by “[relying] on knowledge and empathy to make wise decisions.” Initial findings suggest that Loon balloons cover up to 100 times more area than typical cell towers and deliver wifi strong enough for video callings, surfing the web, watching YouTube videos, downloading apps and messaging other users.

How it Works

Loon 4G balloons are essentially flying cell phone towers but they are much lighter and more durable. They have the ability to withstand temperatures below -90°C and to remain steady amid violent winds. After being launched in the United States and traveling through wind currents across the world, the balloons begin their 100-day stays in Kenyan airspace, providing internet download speeds up to 18.9 megabits per second in partnership with AT&T.

Although the balloons heavily depend on wind currents as guides, they also have specially designed, state of the art Flight Systems that consist of three main parts: the balloon envelope, bus and payload. The envelope, made of polyethylene plastic, forms what people typically recognize as a balloon. The bus holds solar panels where the battery is charged, the altitude control system that navigates winds using GPS and the safety gear (parachute) for landing. The payload is the internet provider that houses the LTE antenna and the gimbals which liaise between the balloon and the ground. The balloons also depend on lift gas to loft them 20 kilometers into the air and to assist during the descent alongside local air traffic controllers. Loon specifically designates predetermined landing zones where the balloons are either recycled or prepared for reuse by on-site recovery teams.

After the balloons are collected, they are closely analyzed for holes and tears, allowing examiners to alter their designs and make the balloons stronger if necessary.

Disaster Preparedness

Resilient balloons can go a long way in addressing disaster preparedness and this also presents a significant opportunity for Project Loon to make a difference. Natural disasters often wipe out infrastructure, leaving populations disconnected when communication is more vital than ever. Because Loon balloons fly at such high altitudes and do not require activation within close proximity, there is greater potential for connectivity.

For example, Loon’s balloons were deployed during an earthquake in Peru where they covered nearly 40,000 square miles and were used following a devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico. The company’s role in connecting families in the wake of disaster “is a lifeline” for those affected and can have a life-changing global impact.

Loon Chief Executive Alastair Westgarth has expressed concern about the effects of COVID-19 on disconnected populations. Because the virus has obstructed normalcy, connectivity could be the only way to continue education in developing nations. There are numerous agriculture, healthcare and education resources that, with internet connection, can preserve progression, one of Loon’s immediate goals.

Future Flights

To date, Loon has launched 1,750 4G balloons that have spent more than 1 million hours in the stratosphere and connected over 35,000 users, with the most successful balloon remaining aloft for 300 days and counting. The ultimate goal is to maintain a permanent 35-member fleet over eastern Africa in the hope of connecting and empowering developing nations.

– Natalie Clark
Photo: Flickr

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Efforts to Increase Technological Access in Bhutan

Technological Access in Bhutan

A mountainous landlocked kingdom of 766,000 people, Bhutan has been traditionally been isolated and disconnected from the outside world for a number of centuries, with previous rulers keeping the nation as a “hermit kingdom” prior to the legalization of television and Internet in 1999. Bhutan‘s economy relies heavily on its agriculture and forestry alongside the budding hydroelectricity industry, which has proven difficult due to the mountainous terrain of the country. The country’s main trade partners are India and Bangladesh, with no known relationship with the U.S. or other major U.N. members. The legalization of the Internet in 1999, as well as investments in technological advancement in the mountainous country, is a turning point for the kingdom as the developing technological access in Bhutan is expected to bring the country to the modern era.

Internet Development

Since the Internet’s introduction in 1999, Bhutan quickly was able to quickly build its telecommunication infrastructure and have much of the country connected. Cell phone services began in 2003, with 80 percent of the population owning a cell phone as of 2018, which includes 70 percent of the population that consists of farmers, making Bhutan one of the most connected countries in the world. This jump from the days of being isolated from the world allows the people of Bhutan to communicate both within and outside of the country’s borders.

Telecommunications

The continued developing technological access in Bhutan has also seen growth through Bhutan’s own investment into its communication networks. Bhutan‘s internal ICT development includes:

  • implementing protection lines for consumer purchases
  • building stations for mobile carriers and broadcasters and expanding upon broadband connections for wireless connections and private access for citizens
  • investing in cybersecurity and strengthening the overall connection quality

The investments in the internal network lines have allowed Bhutan to quickly connect the nation at a rapid pace. However, challenges remain in terms of developing the rural areas of the country within its mountainous terrain. That said, the government is actively looking at ways to change the status quo.

The National Rehabilitation Program (NRB) and the Common Minimum Program are two examples of initiatives focused on building new facilities and roads as well as easier access to electricity and supplies. Mountain Hazelnuts, a company headquartered in Eastern Bhutan has also made major tech investments for its farms, increasing employment and supplying smartphones for hired farmers that help with directions on the road and improve communication.

– Henry Elliott
Photo: Flickr

 

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ZubaBox: An Innovation Bringing the Internet to Remote Areas

ZubaBox: An Innovation Bringing Internet to Remote AreasFor the technologically privileged, access to the Internet is considered a tool of our everyday lives. But out of the world’s entire population, only a third of people in developing countries have access to an Internet connection, according to a 2015 report by the International Telecommunications Union. Countries with no access to the Internet are disadvantaged economically, as they are do not have the knowledge and resources to widen their professional opportunities.

But the appearance of a container in remote areas, including refugee camps, has changed the lives of several marginalized communities. Countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Togo, Zambia and Zimbabwe were finally able to bring digital literacy into their neighborhoods through a shipping container, also called ZubaBox, converted into a “solar-powered Internet café or classroom”.

“Zuba” means “sun” in Nyanja, a common language spoken in Malawi and Zambia, which refers to the solar power by which the Internet hub functions. In addition to being environmentally friendly, solar power is crucial for remote populations who often lack the electricity to benefit from standard technologies. The ZubaBox constitutes an innovation that benefits the most remote communities with no access to a stable power supply.

The organization fueling this technology is Computer Aid International, who decided to design the ZubaBox to enhance the online presence of remote rural areas. In each container, they provide refurbished PCs, visualisation cards, monitors, keyboards, mice, an Internet connection, mobile chargers, a ventilation system and benches.
The box can contain enough components for up to 11 individuals, which brings isolated communities together and develops a sense of inclusion. It also enables every individual to grow personally and professionally, which ultimately benefits the neighborhood as a whole. In fact, David Barker, former chief executive of Computer Aid, spoke about the technology as beneficial for doctors who need to contact specialists in the nearest city hospital, school children who want access to educational material or even local people who are looking for ways to expand their professional outlets.

By May 2016, Computer Aid had already placed its 12th Zubabox in a suburb of Bogota, Colombia. Another project on Computer Aid’s agenda is to build a box in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, where 150,000 people found refuge after fleeing 20 different African nations. For the largest refugee camps in the world, having a ZubaBox could enable them to open up to the world and provide them with the opportunity to rebuild their lives and find work once outside the camp.

– Sarah Soutoul

Photo: Flickr

Addressing the Broadband Connectivity Gap in LDCs

The Broadband Connectivity Gap: How the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development Is Closing the Connectivity Gap in Developing Nations.Broadband and the World Wide Web as we know it are over 20 years old. The ability to go online, search among multiple URLs (or Uniform Resource Locators) and hyperlinks and find information with a few clicks is a relatively new phenomenon that has changed the world. But still, according to the International Telecommunications Unit (ITU), some 52 percent of the world’s population does not have access to the internet. The broadband connectivity gap arises due to the lack of a broadband connection in developing nations.

In lacking broadband, developing nations are also lacking Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) which enable communities to engage with others around the world. ICTs provide ease of cross-national communication and transfer of information and have been successfully implemented by multiple industries including education and healthcare. A study by Ericsson found that social and economic indicators of a country’s sustainability are closely correlated with ICT maturity, suggesting that investing in ICTs can drive social and economic development worldwide.

In 2010, UNESCO and ITU established the Broadband Commission for Digital Development to “boost the importance of broadband on the international policy agenda”. In 2015, the commission evolved into the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development in response to the U.N.’s inception of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). In recognizing the importance of global broadband connection, the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development targets four of the seventeen SDGs (education, gender equality, infrastructure, and partnerships) with the objective to reach these goals by 2030.

The Broadband Commission met on September 17, 2017, in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly. In the State of Broadband 2017 Report, the ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao recognized “that accessibility to broadband is increasing with more affordable prices worldwide (but that) by the end of 2017… 3.9 billion people will still not be online and only 17 percent of people in developing countries will be connected.”

While it is projected that 3.58 billion of the global population will be online by the end of 2017 (up from 3.4 billion at the end of 2016) the disparity between developed and developing countries is apparent. Global household connections, for example, display a disparity with “rates varying between 18 percent for Africa and 84.2 percent for Europe in 2017.” But closing the broadband connectivity gap can bring immense benefits to the world: the ITU’s 2017 annual report details that every additional $1 of ICT infrastructure investment could bring a return of $5 in global GDP by 2025.

The developing world accounts for 95 percent of the people facing this coverage gap. In order to address this, the Commission facilitates a discussion between UNESCO countries and leaders across multiple industries on how to achieve global broadband access by 2030. In response to technological advances, the Broadband Commission enforces policy implementation that allows technologies to bring broadband to the benefit of countries experiencing a connectivity gap. Major cities in developing nations are seeing the first effects of broadband because their infrastructure can support it. Of the people who are not currently connected, 1.25 billion live in an area without 3G or 4G mobile coverage. In rural areas with minimal access and insufficient infrastructure, the installation of broadband connectivity is necessary for developing technology to support further connectivity and finding solutions for future installations.

Mobile broadband networks, combined with the capabilities of smartphones, have enabled billions of people around the world to connect to voice and internet services. Now, nearly 50 percent of the world’s population has access to the technology needed to use these mobile networks. Leveraging this existing mobile infrastructure, according to the annual report, is the most cost-efficient way to bring more people online. Since 2010, mobile operators have invested $1.2 trillion in capital expenditure as they look to deploy mobile broadband networks and increase capacity. Much of these expenditures focus on developing the necessary infrastructure in remote areas to address the broadband connectivity gap. Digicel, for example, launched 4G services in Papua New Guinea in 2011 and now provides telecommunication services to nearly 500,000 previously unserved people.

The establishment of coverage in areas seeing a broadband connectivity gap is one thing, but bringing effective ICTs to the global community also requires the necessary speed and connection capabilities to encourage a sustainable user habit and contribute to affordability. Stronger connections to broadband networks support faster speeds and ease of access to the internet, which is where the fixed broadband networks come in. ITU’s annual report highlights two specific satellite technologies that are “challenging conventional assumptions about speed, capacity, and latency.” High-Throughput Satellites (HTS) and Non-Geostationary Orbit Satellites (NGSO) support increased broadband capacity, faster speeds and lower costs for rural, non-connected areas.

HTSs are small satellite devices like balloons or drones that “fly just around 20 to 50 kilometers off the ground and deliver ‘surgically precise’ connectivity to specific locations.” Many established satellite companies like Intelsat, Inmarsat and Eutelsat have already developed connections using HTS technology. NGSOs operate anywhere from 500 to 2,000 kilometers above the earth in clusters that deliver a steady stream of broadband.

Reaching the goal of complete global connectivity by 2030 needs a combination of complementary technologies and policies enforcing their implementation. Notable companies like Facebook and Google have partnered with satellite companies to provide connectivity to some of the hardest to reach areas on the globe. Each new development, partnership and plan of action advance access to broadband for developing countries. These capabilities go further than just providing access to the internet: broadband connections also lend towards developments in maritime research, aviation technologies and energy developments, to name a few. Global connections lead to breakthrough developments in other sectors and will bring developing nations into a new era of invention and close the broadband connectivity gap.

– Eliza Gresh

Photo: Flickr

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How Poverty Is Reduced Through Basic Technology

How Is Poverty ReducedMost modern technology is marketed towards the world’s wealthy, but that should not inhibit its potential to help the world’s poor. As prices fall and production increases, affordable and basic technology may be the solution for eradicating global poverty.

How is poverty reduced through basic technology? First and foremost, by understanding the realistic and productive uses for technology in a community and ensuring that it is relevant.

Too often there are stories of computers collecting dust in African classrooms, or new smartphone apps that can help impoverished people find work — in places where smartphones are unattainable. Despite the vast amount of information on the internet, it is hardly relevant to a rural family in a developing country and will rarely help them escape poverty. In reality, the technology that will help end poverty is more basic.

The United Nations is at the forefront of this vision, with the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) working towards the global spreading of information and communications technology (ICT). Founded in 1996, the IICD has come a long way in understanding the pragmatic strategy needed for implementing modern technology in developing countries. The IICD has learned that “it is not the technology itself that makes the difference but rather the people who own it and apply it.” Therefore, helping people get the most out of ICT is now as equally important to the organization’s mission as introducing it.

The IICD works to apply ICT to health, economic and education sectors in different communities around the world. It’s main focus is in the context of helping the U.N. meet its Millennium Development Goals — an effort that the IICD has been at the center of. In short, the IICD works to instigate large-scale social change through low-tech, relevant technology.

Other organizations, such as Kopernik, work on a smaller scale to improve the lives of many through simple technology. Kopernik connects poor, rural families with basic, life-altering technologies that not only save lives, but also save money and time. These simple technologies include water filters, fuel-efficient stoves and solar lights.

Technologies such as solar lights are affordable and sustainable, and their usage is linked to positive behavioral changes and higher household productivity. Investing and distributing this basic technology should be a major priority, for it is fundamental to increasing human development and reducing poverty.

It is not to say that computers and the internet are not infinitely useful and powerful, but we should keep in mind that the internet won’t help a child if they only have access to contaminated water. So, perhaps the question of how to eliminate poverty has a simple answer: distribute relevant, basic technology.

– Catherine Fredette

Photo: Google

How the Internet is Improving Healthcare in Nigeria

Healthcare in NigeriaIn Nigeria, the ratio of healthcare workers to citizens rests at 1.95 per 1,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. The unequal distribution and inadequate production of such workers create systematic challenges for healthcare in Nigeria.

One possible solution shortly, as put forward by Vodacom, is the Internet of Things (IoT). Vodacom is a communication company based in Africa and majority owned by Vodafone, one of the largest communication companies in the world. Kaduna, one of Nigeria’s 36 states, has recently partnered with Vodacom to launch a state-wide technology based healthcare system called SMS for Life 2.0.

This technology-based system is grounded in the Internet of Things, or the idea that “anything that can be connected, will be connected.” Technology is moving towards a future in which any given device can have a switch to the internet or other devices, including items like lamps, washing machines and other devices that historically have nothing to do with communication. The idea is that there will be increased opportunity for efficiency, productivity and safety.

What this looks like about healthcare in Nigeria, specifically the state of Kaduna, is more than 250 facilities currently using this digital form of healthcare with plans to implement it throughout the rest of the country, especially due to increasing chronic illnesses. Vodacom’s future goals include making essential medicines more available to citizens and more efficient healthcare delivery.

Lanre Kolade, managing director of Vodacom Business Nigeria, says, “IoT can be used to increase access to healthcare by extending the scope of care services to rural and hard-to-reach areas and ensuring that essential medicines are available where and when they are needed. This technology is powering connected medical services that enable healthcare professionals to diagnose and consult with patients and first responders remotely, no matter where they are.”

While systems implementing this idea of the Internet of Things allow for endless connections, it also includes challenges that society will have to wade through, such as security and privacy. The boundaries between helping people and monitoring their every move have yet to get explored.

– Ellen Ray
Photo: Flickr