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U.S. Backs $150 Million Zipline Expansion to Transform Africa’s Healthcare Delivery
"The U.S. Department of State has approved a $150 million award to Zipline, the world’s largest autonomous logistics company, to support the expansion of its life-saving artificial intelligence-powered drone delivery infrastructure across Africa."
- Categories
- Health Care, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Public Good vs. Profitable Exits: Why Public Innovation Agencies Must Stop Copying Venture Capital
A new class of venture capitalist is emerging, but they aren’t Wall Street financiers or Silicon Valley tech bros. As Emre Eren Korkmaz at the University of Oxford argues, they are public innovation agencies that are shifting their funding approach: Instead of supporting high-risk research and innovations aimed at delivering societal benefit, they have begun to adopt the logic of venture capital, favoring commercially viable projects that are more likely to secure follow-on private funding. He explores the downsides to this shift, arguing that the world needs these institutions to do what private capital cannot or will not: supporting innovation for the public good, not just for profitable exits.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise, Technology
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From Energy Access to Economic Empowerment: Workable Models for Financing a Just Transition in Emerging Markets
Today 2.1 billion people live without clean cooking fuels and technologies, and over 660 million people lack electricity access. Yet as Anthony Osijo at Bboxx points out, as global conversations largely focus on decarbonizing energy resources to combat climate change, these millions of households still cannot access essential products and services the rest of the world takes for granted. He argues that emerging markets can't simply be left in the dark because their kerosene lamps and diesel generators aren’t environmentally viable, especially if they lack access to suitable alternatives. He explores ways to finance and deliver a just climate transition — while also eradicating energy poverty.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
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Rwanda Launches $13 Million Outcomes-Based Early Childhood Education Programme
Building on its early childhood reforms, the Government of Rwanda is pioneering outcomes-based financing as a core part of its national strategy, linking funding to measurable improvements in the quality and inclusivity of early learning.
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Press Release: Government of Rwanda, Bboxx Team Up to Deliver 50,000 Affordable LPG Kits in Major Clean Cooking Push
Bboxx’s role builds on its ongoing partnership with the Government of Rwanda to drive inclusive energy access through innovative, data-driven solutions.
- Categories
- Environment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Right Decision, Wrong Reasons: The Way Forward from the Attack on Global Aid
The global aid system is fracturing, with profound implications for the roughly 4 billion people who live on less than $7 a day — and especially for the 120+ million who have been forcibly displaced from their homes. But as Simon Marot Touloung, Elana Banin and Jakob Øster argue, while recent attacks on the system may be overly simplistic, they point to a real issue: Humanitarian aid had failed to evolve, and it is structurally incapable of catalyzing the long-term economic transformation displaced communities need. They explore some market-based alternatives to traditional aid, and propose five principles to guide the transition from the failing aid model toward new approaches that can actually deliver resilience and dignity.
- Categories
- Investing
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Africa is Done Waiting: 10 Key Takeaways from Africa HealthTech Summit 2025
NextBillion was a media partner at last week's Africa HealthTech Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, which focused on the theme: “Connected Care: Scaling Innovation Towards Universal Health Coverage.” NextBillion managing editor James Militzer shares 10 takeaways from the event — and four video interviews with key thought leaders — covering topics that range from the role of the private sector in driving healthtech innovation, to the problem of "pilotitis" and the need for a new narrative around African development.
- Categories
- Health Care
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Press Release: Report: The Global Energy Alliance Shows How Partnerships Power Energy Access, Job Creation, and Carbon Reduction at Scale
As showcased in its newly released 2025 impact report, the Global Energy Alliance's public-private-philanthropy partnership model builds country-led coalitions and leverages catalytic finance and technical expertise to advance a sustainable energy future.
- Categories
- Energy, Investing, Technology
- Region
- Global
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