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The COVID-19 Effect: Why Latin America Needs a Workplace Wellness Revolution – and How Technology Can Enable It
Remote work is growing in Latin America, as it is around the globe, and the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated this shift. But as Greg Mitchell of Angel Ventures explains, working from home combined with the stressors of the pandemic is causing increased anxiety and burnout for workers. He shares how many companies in the region are adopting digital solutions to support employee mental health — from on-demand counseling and monitoring services to apps and chatbots — and discusses the market potential for this burgeoning solution.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Health Care, Technology
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Women Are Paying More for M-Pesa: A Gender Analysis of Mobile Money Fees in Kenya
The cost of using financial services is a key barrier to their adoption and use in low- and middle-income countries — and when it comes to mobile money transactions via M-Pesa in Kenya, those costs are greater for women, according to a recent study. Bryan Pon at Caribou Data shares details about the study's findings, and explains how understanding these gender differences could illuminate some of the obstacles women face when using digital financial services – and help inform policy or system design approaches that could address these challenges.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Co-Creating a More Equitable World: The Transformative Benefits of Participatory Design
Technology is often designed for people — not with them or by them. Participatory design, says Sher Vogel of MIT D-Lab, is meant to change that. She explores how the method, which actively involves end-users in the design process, can produce products that are better aligned to people’s needs, while also building the skills and confidence of participants. Vogel explains how the process can be applied to business, technology and humanitarian aid, summarizes some challenges it can present, and shares links to upcoming MIT D-Lab courses that can provide a framework.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Technology, WASH
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COVID-Era Innovations With Long-Term Impact: How the Pandemic Is Changing Investment in Frontier Markets
Africa's growing middle class, rapid urbanization and leapfrogging innovations have drawn substantial investor interest. But as Kristin Kelly Jangraw of USAID INVEST points out, high transaction costs, small deal sizes and risk (both real and perceived) have kept many investors on the sidelines. Though COVID-19 lockdowns have increased these challenges, she explores how the pandemic has also brought innovations that could have lasting positive effects on the industry and the region – including new tools for virtual due diligence and deal-making.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Investing, Technology
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Outdated but Not Obsolete: Why USSD Is Still Key to Driving Digital Inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa
As of late 2019, mobile internet adoption stood at just 26% across sub-Saharan Africa, and internet access remains expensive and unreliable even for people who can afford a smartphone. In light of that reality, Wole Olayinka of insiderPR argues that digital inclusion efforts should embrace USSD, a communications protocol that connects feature phone users to basic digital services even without internet access. He explores the advantages and downsides of this outdated – but surprisingly flexible – technology.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Technology
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‘Back in the U.S.S.D.’: Most Smartphone Owners—Especially Women—Don’t Use Apps for Financial Services
The global transition from basic mobile phones to smartphones has impacted nearly every sector, including financial services. Bryan Pon from Caribou Data considers whether this shift will help or hinder access to mobile money and digital finance for women in emerging markets — a group already less likely to be using these services. He shares the findings of a comprehensive study on how payment system design could impact gender bias in digital finance, and discusses the ongoing popularity — and under-recognized advantages — of old-fashioned USSD codes in mobile money.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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An Ironic Impact of COVID-19: Will the Pandemic Put Digital Health (Finally) on the Path to Reducing Health Inequalities at Scale in Emerging Markets?
The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a digital health revolution, and Michal Matul and Niti Pall at AXA Emerging Customers say these shifts could help close the healthcare access gap in emerging markets. Based on AXA's work bundling digital health services into its inclusive insurance products across nine countries, they share key lessons on how telemedicine can sustain this momentum and become a viable option for eliminating health inequalities over the long term.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Health Care, Technology
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In the Race for Dominance in African Fintech, Partnerships With Phone Makers Are Transforming the Landscape
Corporate partnerships and acquisitions have proliferated in Africa's fintech sector in recent years, as companies fight for dominance in the growing digital payment space. Digital economy analyst Jill Lagos Shemin highlights an emerging element of this trend: alliances between mobile phone makers and payment providers and telecom operators. She explores how these partnerships can boost customer access to smartphones and digital credit, while expanding Africa's digital finance ecosystem and building tech players' footprint in this sought-after market.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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