Apps for Africa
The top 10 solutions relying on technology and developed specifically for African conditions and challenges are listed here… take a look, you might want to sign up.
1. Exatype
Developed at the South Africa National Bioinformatics Institute at the University of the Western Cape, Hyrax Biosciences has created a HIV drug testing technology in the cloud, based on an Amazon Web Services. Exatype tests HIV drug resistance with unprecedented speed and accuracy and at a fraction of the cost. It solves the problem of drug resistance by showing which drugs would be most effective for each individual patient, thus increasing response and improving treatment. Find out more at hyraxbio.co.za
2. Vula Mobile
The Vula App, developed by Dr William Mapham, helps health workers in rural areas send data and photos of cataracts to a specialist in a nearby city. They can then diagnose the problem, suggest a solution, and even book appropriate surgery, eliminating need for numerous trips to the city for those who live in remote areas. Once the treatment has been identified, they can go visit the specialist to undergo the surgery. Vula added cardiology, orthopaedics and burns in April 2016. For more information visit vulamobile.com
3. Sproxil
Sproxil, developed by Ashifi Gogo, is fighting the danger of counterfeit medicine through a simple SMS system. Participating drugs companies apply for scratch-panel stickers that can be attached to their medication packaging. Customers scratch off the panel to reveal a code which they text to Sproxil. The company checks the code against its database of genuine drugs and texts back a confirmation of authenticity. Buyers can also scan the barcode or simply ring a call centre staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week to verify that the drugs are genuine. Sproxil has also introduced incentives for consumers to use the service, such as mobile phone air time rewards. More than 70 drugs companies have signed up to the service, including multinationals such as GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis and around 28 million verifications have taken place globally since the scheme was launched in 2009. Visit sproxil.com for more information.
4. Fyodor: Urine Malaria Test (UMT)
Created by Fyodor, a US based biotechnology firm founded by Eddy Agbo, the urine malaria test provides point-of-need diagnosis of the Plasmodium parasite using dipstick technology as used with manual pregnancy tests. The do-it-yourself solution delivers a diagnosis within 25 minutes and can be executed with little or no training. The potential of offering accurate and early diagnosis of malaria can speed up the process of tackling the disease in rural areas lacking in healthcare infrastructure and also reduces the risk of the wrong treatment, greatly aiding the fight against malaria. For more information visit fyodorbio.com
5. Api-Palu
Dr Valentin Agon developed Api-Palu, an anti-malaria drug treatment made from natural plant extract, making it significantly cheaper than anti-malarial drugs currently on the market. Api-Palu has great inhibitory effects on 3D7 strains of plasmodium falciparum the causative agent of malaria. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 88% of malaria cases and 90% of malaria deaths reported globally with some African governments spending up to 40% of their public health budgets on malaria treatment. The Api-Palu treatment, which is available as tablets, capsules, or syrup, will therefore make a huge change for patient and budget alike. More information can be found at apibenin.org
6. BRCK
Ushahidi, a Kenya-based company, has developed “the BRCK” a unique and innovative product. It is a rugged modem designed for harsh environments with limited power and connection. It can switch between different types of connection such as Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G and 4G. It comes with 80 hours of battery life which is vital during Africa's frequent blackouts, like Kenya's nationwide power blackout in 2013. The BRCK can also create secure networks wherever it is set up, collect weather data and can perform remote repairs via the cloud. In addition, the way in which the product has been designed has prompted its partnership with educators, merging the BRCK with a Raspberry Pi (a low-cost, credit-card sized computer) to create robust tablets with large battery life and an easy-to-use interface. This low-cost solution, called the Kio, is being used in schools. Learn more at brck.com
7. The Cardiopad
The Cardiopad is a computer tablet capable of diagnosing heart disease in rural households with limited access to medical services. Cardiovascular diseases kill some 17 million worldwide annually. A programme on the Cardiopad, designed by Cameroonian engineer Arthur Zang, collects signals generated by the rhythmic contraction and expansion of a patient's heart. Africa's first fully touch-screen medical tablet then produces a moving graphical depiction of the cardiac cycle, which is wirelessly transmitted over GSM networks to a cardiologist for interpretation and diagnosis.
8. eyeWitness to Atrocities
In this era of digital witnessing, international criminal prosecutors have experienced considerable challenges in verifying the credibility of images and videos that have been uploaded to social media channels. Responding to this challenge, the International Bar Association (IBA), in collaboration with LexisNexis, has launched a new app that enables users to take photos and record video footage whilst automatically collecting GPS coordinates, date and time stamps. The user can submit the footage directly from the eyeWitness app to a database maintained by LexisNexis, where it is stored in a secure repository that functions as a virtual evidence locker, safeguarding the footage for future investigations and legal proceedings. Find more information at eyewitnessproject.org
9. MFarm
For many small-scale farmers, the only source of information about the market rate for crops comes from the very people who are trying to buy them. The lack of pricing transparency means that farmers do not always get the best deal. MFarm seeks to solve this by providing up-to-date market prices via an app or SMS, direct to farmers. It also connects farmers with buyers directly. The MFarm app gives monthly analysis of the crop prices in different markets, showing the price trends. The farmer is then able to make informed decisions on what to plant, when to plant, how to price his produce and where to sell it. In addition to pricing information and group selling, MFarm has also developed a group buying tool, allowing farmers to pool resources to negotiate better prices for things like fertiliser. More information at mfarm.co.ke
10. Esoko
Esoko is a technology platform that integrates smallholder farmers into the formal value chain by providing a robust communications infrastructure, allowing smallholder farmers to be reached quickly and served inexpensively through mobile phones. The platform enables multiple stakeholders in the value chain to push critical information to small-holder farmers such as market prices, agronomic and training tips, while also providing the ability to survey farmers to understand their needs and desires. Studies revealed real improvements in farmer incomes due to services such as Esoko price alerts. This investment not only offers high social impact for small holder farmers, but in the longer-term, the platform has the potential to impact the information dissemination and overall efficiency of agricultural value chains in sub-Saharan Africa. Find out more at esoko.com
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Developed at the South Africa National Bioinformatics Institute at the University of the Western Cape, Hyrax Biosciences has created a HIV drug testing technology in the cloud, based on an Amazon Web Services. Exatype tests HIV drug resistance with unprecedented speed and accuracy and at a fraction of the cost. It solves the problem of drug resistance by showing which drugs would be most effective for each individual patient, thus increasing response and improving treatment. Find out more at hyraxbio.co.za
2. Vula Mobile
The Vula App, developed by Dr William Mapham, helps health workers in rural areas send data and photos of cataracts to a specialist in a nearby city. They can then diagnose the problem, suggest a solution, and even book appropriate surgery, eliminating need for numerous trips to the city for those who live in remote areas. Once the treatment has been identified, they can go visit the specialist to undergo the surgery. Vula added cardiology, orthopaedics and burns in April 2016. For more information visit vulamobile.com
3. Sproxil
Sproxil, developed by Ashifi Gogo, is fighting the danger of counterfeit medicine through a simple SMS system. Participating drugs companies apply for scratch-panel stickers that can be attached to their medication packaging. Customers scratch off the panel to reveal a code which they text to Sproxil. The company checks the code against its database of genuine drugs and texts back a confirmation of authenticity. Buyers can also scan the barcode or simply ring a call centre staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week to verify that the drugs are genuine. Sproxil has also introduced incentives for consumers to use the service, such as mobile phone air time rewards. More than 70 drugs companies have signed up to the service, including multinationals such as GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis and around 28 million verifications have taken place globally since the scheme was launched in 2009. Visit sproxil.com for more information.
4. Fyodor: Urine Malaria Test (UMT)
Created by Fyodor, a US based biotechnology firm founded by Eddy Agbo, the urine malaria test provides point-of-need diagnosis of the Plasmodium parasite using dipstick technology as used with manual pregnancy tests. The do-it-yourself solution delivers a diagnosis within 25 minutes and can be executed with little or no training. The potential of offering accurate and early diagnosis of malaria can speed up the process of tackling the disease in rural areas lacking in healthcare infrastructure and also reduces the risk of the wrong treatment, greatly aiding the fight against malaria. For more information visit fyodorbio.com
5. Api-Palu
Dr Valentin Agon developed Api-Palu, an anti-malaria drug treatment made from natural plant extract, making it significantly cheaper than anti-malarial drugs currently on the market. Api-Palu has great inhibitory effects on 3D7 strains of plasmodium falciparum the causative agent of malaria. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 88% of malaria cases and 90% of malaria deaths reported globally with some African governments spending up to 40% of their public health budgets on malaria treatment. The Api-Palu treatment, which is available as tablets, capsules, or syrup, will therefore make a huge change for patient and budget alike. More information can be found at apibenin.org
6. BRCK
Ushahidi, a Kenya-based company, has developed “the BRCK” a unique and innovative product. It is a rugged modem designed for harsh environments with limited power and connection. It can switch between different types of connection such as Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G and 4G. It comes with 80 hours of battery life which is vital during Africa's frequent blackouts, like Kenya's nationwide power blackout in 2013. The BRCK can also create secure networks wherever it is set up, collect weather data and can perform remote repairs via the cloud. In addition, the way in which the product has been designed has prompted its partnership with educators, merging the BRCK with a Raspberry Pi (a low-cost, credit-card sized computer) to create robust tablets with large battery life and an easy-to-use interface. This low-cost solution, called the Kio, is being used in schools. Learn more at brck.com
7. The Cardiopad
The Cardiopad is a computer tablet capable of diagnosing heart disease in rural households with limited access to medical services. Cardiovascular diseases kill some 17 million worldwide annually. A programme on the Cardiopad, designed by Cameroonian engineer Arthur Zang, collects signals generated by the rhythmic contraction and expansion of a patient's heart. Africa's first fully touch-screen medical tablet then produces a moving graphical depiction of the cardiac cycle, which is wirelessly transmitted over GSM networks to a cardiologist for interpretation and diagnosis.
8. eyeWitness to Atrocities
In this era of digital witnessing, international criminal prosecutors have experienced considerable challenges in verifying the credibility of images and videos that have been uploaded to social media channels. Responding to this challenge, the International Bar Association (IBA), in collaboration with LexisNexis, has launched a new app that enables users to take photos and record video footage whilst automatically collecting GPS coordinates, date and time stamps. The user can submit the footage directly from the eyeWitness app to a database maintained by LexisNexis, where it is stored in a secure repository that functions as a virtual evidence locker, safeguarding the footage for future investigations and legal proceedings. Find more information at eyewitnessproject.org
9. MFarm
For many small-scale farmers, the only source of information about the market rate for crops comes from the very people who are trying to buy them. The lack of pricing transparency means that farmers do not always get the best deal. MFarm seeks to solve this by providing up-to-date market prices via an app or SMS, direct to farmers. It also connects farmers with buyers directly. The MFarm app gives monthly analysis of the crop prices in different markets, showing the price trends. The farmer is then able to make informed decisions on what to plant, when to plant, how to price his produce and where to sell it. In addition to pricing information and group selling, MFarm has also developed a group buying tool, allowing farmers to pool resources to negotiate better prices for things like fertiliser. More information at mfarm.co.ke
10. Esoko
Esoko is a technology platform that integrates smallholder farmers into the formal value chain by providing a robust communications infrastructure, allowing smallholder farmers to be reached quickly and served inexpensively through mobile phones. The platform enables multiple stakeholders in the value chain to push critical information to small-holder farmers such as market prices, agronomic and training tips, while also providing the ability to survey farmers to understand their needs and desires. Studies revealed real improvements in farmer incomes due to services such as Esoko price alerts. This investment not only offers high social impact for small holder farmers, but in the longer-term, the platform has the potential to impact the information dissemination and overall efficiency of agricultural value chains in sub-Saharan Africa. Find out more at esoko.com
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