-
Addressing the Communications Breakdown in Global Development: How AI-Enabled Assessment Tools Can Reach Excluded Communities
Development work can only be effective if it’s based on the actual needs and lived experiences of the communities it aims to serve. But as Talía Jiménez Romero at Fortell Impact explains, in many of the remote, under-resourced areas where this work is most needed, the voices of local people are often the hardest to hear, due to barriers related to language, education, and lack of access to the internet and other technologies. She explores how AI can be leveraged to facilitate data collection and needs assessments in these multilingual and low-connectivity contexts, while complementing the work of local teams on the ground.
- Categories
- Technology
-
World Bank Group’s IFC Invests in Malaysia’s Zetrix AI to Improve Access to Digital Public Infrastructure Services
IFC’s 155.6 million Malaysian Ringgit ($40 million) investment will support the development and rollout of new, blockchain-based DPI applications and artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled products that aim to improve digital inclusion, access to services, and economic efficiency in Malaysia and the broader ASEAN region.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
The Impact Sector is Confusing Satisfaction with Impact: Rethinking the Growing Reliance on Perception Surveys
Measurement standards in the impact sector have shifted toward perception surveys — i.e., forms that ask individuals to rate their personal experience with a program or organization — to quantify success. But as Juan Taborda Burgos, Jorge Bouchot and Miranda Hansen at Root Capital argue, perception-based metrics can mask a program’s ineffectiveness, potentially leading organizations to scale interventions that do not work. They share insights from a recent Root Capital report that reveal the downsides of relying solely on perception data, and offer four actionable principles that can help leaders navigate the pressure to demonstrate impact — while avoiding costly mistakes.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Investing, Social Enterprise
-
India Must Leverage Its Mature Renewable Energy Base to Sustainably Power Its Global AI Data Centre Hub Ambitions: Deloitte Report
India’s expanding renewable energy base and clean power can play a central role in supporting the next phase of data center growth, supported by smarter power sourcing, stronger grid readiness and coordinated policy action to ensure reliable and sustainable energy at scale, says a new report by Deloitte Asia Pacific.
- Categories
- Environment, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
-
UNFPA and Africa CDC Forge Strategic Partnership to Advance Health and Innovation Across Africa
The agreement cements a shared commitment to accelerate progress toward universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), promote demographic resilience, and build resilient, equitable health systems through innovation and strategic partnerships.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
Latin America Takes on Cultural Bias with New AI Language Model
Latam-GPT itself will be available free of charge to companies and public institutions to develop applications more specific to Latin America.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Latin America
-
Press Release: Rockefeller Foundation Report Finds Nuclear Energy Could Deliver up to 30% Electricity Generation for Emerging Economies
New data from Brazil, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Philippines, Rwanda, and South Africa show that nuclear — including next-generation SMRs — could deliver up to 30% of electricity generation and lower system costs by up to 31% by 2050 compared to renewables-only pathways.
- Categories
- Environment
- Region
- Global
-
Analysis: Data Centers Raise Concerns for Energy-Burdened Households in the Philippines
A surge in data center construction is straining the Philippines’ fragile power grid, raising fears of higher electricity costs and deepening reliance on coal.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
Subscribe to Our Weekly Newsletter, "NextBillion Notes"
Published each Wednesday, our e-newsletter features NextBillion's latest original articles, along with a selection of news, jobs, bizdev opportunities and events from our recent coverage — and regular conference ticket giveaways.
We respect your privacy. Your information is safe and will never be shared.
Don't miss out. Subscribe today.