TECH ENABLERS
Key technologies that underpin many of the use cases which global tech actors can improve upon, make more affordable, and share with local innovators.
Better more affordable connectivity
What:
Invest in better and cheaper connectivity. Investments are needed in metro fiber, mesh and
Wi-Fi networks to help people connect more cheaply and easily.
Why it’s needed:
Cost and reliability of data is holding back innovation in markets where most people are already spending a higher proportion of their income on mobile data than the US and Europe for less reliable, slower data services.
blended learning
multi-modal skilling
emergency response
smart recruiting
commuter ride-sharing
water metering
Integrated data and analytics
What:
Increase the intelligence and sustainability of new solutions. Help innovators locally host cloud services by continuing to innovate on making these solutions more affordable. Work with local innovators to subsidize data storage and analytics solutions from AWS and others to help reduce overhead costs.
Why it’s needed:
Local innovators are in the best position to identify immediate needs and develop products that serve them. But they struggle to scale and optimize learnings over time to improve their business models as well as capture impact data.
blended learning
multi-modal skilling
emergency response
smart recruiting
commuter ride-sharing
water metering
Cashless payment systems
What:
Support the creation of a digital finance system that is interoperable and coordinated between markets. Access to payment systems is a crucial building block for any innovator designing a B2C service, particularly systems with seamless cash in and cash out capabilities.
Why it’s needed:
Despite the growth in digital financial services, largely driven by the tech sector, 2 billion people remain without any form of bank account.
emergency response
smart recruiting
commuter ride-sharing
water metering
Smart matching algorithms
What: Create new marketplaces for providers and customers. To work effectively and benefit low income communities, services that use smart matching algorithms need access to more powerful algorithms that can match service providers and customers at very low cost based on a set of dynamic and contextual factors.
Why it’s needed: Many tech innovations address market failure or value chains that are dominated by informal providers. Access to these algorithms can allow innovators to better adapt to changing local needs and capture value dynamically, even in low cost transactions.