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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.
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- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
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Social Protection Goes Digital: Lessons From an Innovative, WhatsApp-Driven Outreach Campaign in Paraguay
The COVID-19 lockdown has reshaped social policy in Paraguay, as programs that depended on face-to-face contact to reach participants suddenly found themselves unable to conduct their usual outreach. Cristina Heisecke, Carolina de Miranda and Mauricio Royg of Fundación Capital share lessons from an innovative solution to this challenge: a digital campaign that used WhatsApp to offer a remote alternative to the in-person training and coaching of the country's flagship cash transfer program.
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- Coronavirus, Finance, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Developing a ‘Purpose Mindset’: How Microsoft’s Employee Giving Efforts Are Impacting the Company – and the World
Microsoft is mainly known for its tech innovations, but it has brought a similarly inventive approach to employee giving. Akhtar Badshah at Catalytic Innovators Group, who led Microsoft’s philanthropic efforts for 10 years, explores this model in his new book, "Purpose Mindset: How Microsoft Inspires Employees & Alumni to Change the World." He discusses the company's efforts to effect large-scale social change through small-scale staff donations and volunteerism, and shares lessons for other organizations that want to foster a culture of purpose and empathy.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Technology
- Tags
- COVID-19, nonprofits, philanthropy
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Big Data and AI in Africa: Why the Future of the Continent Is Artificially Intelligent and Digitally Enabled
Life would be easier for the average African if technology were utilized to its fullest potential. According to Jasmine Nnenne Mbadugha at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the continent's digital potential can be seen particularly at the intersection of big data and artificial intelligence. She explores how Africa can leverage these two emerging technologies to support economic development and play a role in the global digital revolution – and how it can overcome some key challenges it will face in the process.
- Categories
- Education, Technology
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Innovations for Transparency: Disruptive Technology Enters the Carbon Offsetting Space
Carbon offsetting allows a net-positive carbon emitter to pay a net-negative emitter to offset their emissions, by trading carbon credits representing one ton of greenhouse gas. In theory, this system can help the world account for the unavoidable gasses emitted in the transition to a low-carbon economy. But as Kavit Borkhataria at AlliedCrowds explains, in practice, it's hard to confirm if carbon reduction projects are actually delivering the emission reductions they claim. He discusses some tech-fueled innovations that can boost transparency and push the market forward.
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- Environment, Technology
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Innovation for Adaptation: How a New Fund Is Helping Service Providers Navigate the Challenges of COVID-19
The impact of COVID-19 has been amplified at the local level in Kenya and Rwanda, where non-profit service providers working with vulnerable populations are finding it more difficult to support their beneficiaries. Michael Kiema and Linda Ndungu Wambua at Instiglio explore learnings from the COVID-19 Adaptation Fund, which is providing funding to nine qualifying service providers to help them implement innovations that will support their efforts to serve beneficiaries during the pandemic.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Technology
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Taking Cold Chains Off-Grid: How Solar Powered Cold Rooms Could Dramatically Reduce Food Waste in Sub-Saharan Africa
In sub-Saharan Africa, up to 50% of produce perishes before reaching end customers, largely due to a lack of viable cold chain solutions. Maria Knodt at Energy 4 Impact and Ruth Kimani at CLASP explore how solar-powered cold rooms can address this issue, and highlight some significant technical and business model challenges that could undermine their impact.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Coronavirus, Energy, Finance, Investing, Technology, Transportation