Month: March 2018

21st Century IT for humanitarian programming

markhawkins Innovation Leave a comment

IT as an industry has played a supportive role to organisations but mainly as a “back office” service. The scope of this support service has traditionally ranged from fixing personal computers for individuals to keeping large cooperate data systems such as finance, HR and document storage running. But things need to change and in fact, they are changing as the IT role starts to adapt to a new 21st century way of working. In the humanitarian space, the delivery of programmes are beginning to use more technology. This means that the programmes people will require expert advice about technology to build and then run successful technology driven programmes.  

One of the barriers to success is that there is a disconnect between IT people and the humanitarian people who run programmes. On the IT side, they use incomprehensible language or can appear to be inflexible about how technology is delivered. The programmes people can sometimes typecast IT into a limited role thinking that all IT does is to fix computers and perhaps have little to contribute to the delivery of programmes.  

In this article, I am going to shine a spotlight on the wide range of technologies that IT teams support and then propose a model where technologist can work closely with the programmes teams to deliver great results for the populations which are supported by programmes.

The limitless scope of technology

IT is not just all about laptops and email accounts. We would not think of a hospital as a place just full of doctors. There is a range of specialists such as heart surgeons, tropical medicine experts, phycologists, pathologists, Nurses, Nuclear Medicine experts, Dietitians, radiographers just to name a few. The world of IT is similar with many specialists covering a mass of different technologies. Maybe “IT” as a brand no longer works?  Perhaps we should change it?

So using its current brand, what can the IT team bring to programmes?  Quite a lot in fact. The Tuesday Technical (and blog) has been running since 2014 and has plenty of examples of technology being used in a field setting. Here are just a few examples of where solutions go well beyond what is considered traditional IT:

UAVs (Drones): This is an emerging technology in the Humanitarian Sector. Initially smaller quad blade units have been used for aerial video, but larger UAVs have been used in search and rescue operations and to deliver medicines. The Emergency Telecoms Cluster established a new working group to work out how this new technology would be used within an emergency response setting.

Sustainable energy solutions: Technology needs electricity rights?  So who owns it?  It’s still technology and should sit within the same tech family as traditional IT. Sustainable energy is needed to run any remote tech that we might place in a remote community. Solar energy systems are often not sustainable as programme design often lacks the methods which could be used to keep systems working. But the good news is that there are now potential partners emerging which can deliver energy on a cost recover model.

In the emergency setting, as we use tech to deliver information and services to the affected communities via smart or feature phones, then we need to provide the means for people to charge their devices.

Communications and connectivity: One of the new buzz words is “Communications as aid” Whether it’s the provision of mobile phones to facilitate family reunion or Wi-Fi hots-spots, the future will see a rapid increase in the provision of communications and connectivity to the populations affected by a disaster. Providing connectivity and communications via radio, satellite or local networks has been core business in the Humanitarian IT sector and we are really good at it.

Internet of Things (IoT): In a connected world, we are starting to see a growth in a multitude of devices which are connected to the internet. Examples include real time vehicle tracking, Cold chain monitoring, and environmental sensors. This technology can be used to give early warning of water supply issues to communities or allow central support teams to monitor the health of a remote solar energy installation.

3D Printing: NGOs work in remote places which are difficult to get to. 3D printing is gaining in popularity and in a nutshell, this technology will make objects accurately. Early technologies have been able to create plastic items and potentially able to create plumbing items for WASH programmes. Technology is moving on, and more complex items can be made. Some units now print 3D objects using metal! 

There are many more examples I could give where technology can add a lot of value to programmes. These are just practical examples. There is also a huge industry of data products such as mapping (GIS), Health (HIS) and so on.

Working together as a team

The technologist need to come out of the basement and speak to the programmes experts in plain language. At the same time, the programmes experts need to open the door and let the technologist in. The good news is that we are already seeing the beginnings of this approach. But we need to keep up the momentum to get even closer so that where technology is used to support programmes, we deliver success.

My personal view is that the brand “IT” has run its course and needs to be replaced. ICT4D has gathered some support, but still not dynamic enough. “Technology for Programmes” or T4P might just do it! 

So what does T4P look like in the 21st century?  How can we bring the technologist to the programmes table?  The answer is simpler than you might think. Humanitarian programmes have been running for many decades with organisations like Save the Children approaching 100 years of aid delivery. The technologist can add much more to future programming as technology becomes more reliable and available. Here is an idea on how this can work:

Programmes teams already have a perfect model which delivers excellence. For most programmes there will be a tangible output which could be along the thematic areas of food, shelter, education, health, wash, child protection, and much more. For each of these thematic areas, programmes people will access technical experts for their input. This leads to a programme design which can then be fleshed out with a budget and implementation plan.

Technology has a role to play and I would like to see a new breed of T4P experts joining the team to work alongside all of the other thematic experts supporting the delivery of programmes. The T4P expert will need to be a good communicator and act as a broker between the programmes team/thematic experts and then the appropriate subject matter experts (SMEs) within the technology teams. Ideally with T4P experts involved in programme design from the start, we will be able to have a more positive impact where technology is needed.

IT as a function as a service provider will still be needed, but IT departments will need to expand and include a new pool of T4P talent to help deliver 21st Century programmes. There will need to be some mind-set changes. In larger organisations, more flexibility will be needed to deliver solutions to programmes as the old model of “One Size fits all” is not likely to work. T4P experts will need to build up a knowledgebase of solution so that when a new programme is considered, the following thought process is used: 

1.       For the new programme, what is their technical needs?
2.       What are we doing already in other places which is similar?  Do we already have an appropriate solution?
3.       If not, what are others doing?  Is there a solution we can buy off the shelf?
4.       And if there are no current solutions, can we build one? 

IT teams and the new breed of T4P experts will need to get out and network. Organisations like Nethope and the Emergency Telecoms Cluster are already working on beneficiary facing solutions. Though these extended networks, T4P experts can keep up to date with the new technology which is being developed which will contribute to the T4P expert becoming the Trusted Technology Expert for Programmes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mobile World Congress 2018: Latest tech news from Barcelona

markhawkins connectivity Leave a comment

The Mobile World Congress is the annual gathering of the mobile phone industry each year in Barcelona. Some commentators (The Register and BBC Technology) have slammed the event as boring. For those who went to Barcelona with the intention to discover new smartphones, then yes, innovation is a little thin on the ground as most smartphones look similar and mostly Android based. 

But the mobile world is much more than smart phones. The Internet of Things (IOT) is a concept where mobile connectivity connects devices and services to the internet. MWC2018 was bursting with plenty of innovation this year. 

IOT is an evolving market and we will see plenty of innovation over the next few years which will be very useful to the aid sector. In this article we will explore a handful of solutions which may be useful to NGOs.

Mobile phone technology have evolved massively over the years. Whilst historically set up for  voice communications, the networks are getting more geared towards providing increasingly  faster data services. Future 5G technology will be able to exceed 100Mb/s. The current 3G and 4G technologies are delivering good services in many countries. In some developing countries,  traditional wired infrastructure does not exists and we are seeing a leapfrog affect where nations ignore building traditional copper infrastructure in favour of building reliable mobile networks.

In the years ahead, it’s likely that many NGO offices will be using major mobile network operators for office internet connectivity.  You might think this approach might be far in the future when 5G arrives. The reality is that good quality mobile internet is “here and now” as long as the right technology is used to access the networks. New multi-channel routers means that we can get more out of existing 3G and 4G networks simply by using multiple SIM cards simultaneously.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

e-sim technology: When first introduced, the SIM card was the size of a credit card. The SIM was reduced to the mini format and then followed by micro sim and finally the nano sim. The electronic SIM (e-sim) is a new approach where a virtual SIM card is delivered to device electronically. This approach will make life easier for people who travel as they might in the future have a wallet of e-sims stored on their smartphones so that they can access the best rates and use local numbers in the countries where they are visiting.

E-sims have yet to find their way onto smartphones, but they have arrived already in some technologies such as the Telna GSM router. The router is fitted with four e-sim channels which means that 3G or 4G performance is quadrupled over single SIM technologies. The device is cloud managed which makes provisioning of services easy.

The four e-sims are loaded by Telna, but for organisations which have better rates with other providers who use traditional plastic SIM cards, they still can be used as the SIM cards can be sent to Telna where they are then applied to the device in e-format.

The Telna system could be a suitable option to many NGO field sites as it gives organisations the flexible technology needed to switch providers easily in a rapidly changing market. Reliability can also be improved as different networks can be applied to the four available channels.

This technology is going to be applied to Save the Children emergency response pre-positioned equipment. Traditionally satellite technology such as BGAN and  VSAT has been used in emergency settings, but as we learnt in some parts of the Caribbean in 2017, GSM networks have improved their resilience and come back online quickly. So how much does this technology cost?  The router is $999 and data costs $25 per GB. When compared to some packages in developed countries, this might appear pricy, by when compared to a 5Mb/sec VSAT connection which costs $5,000 per month (maximum throughput of 25GB), the 3G router would only cost $625 to deliver the same volume of data.

One other innovation from Telna is the sticky sim – this is a sticker which goes onto a standard SIM card turning the existing SIM card into a dual SIM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AT&T: As a global brand, AT&T has some IOT products in the market.  AT&T recently  signed global agreement with Caterpillar (Makers of engines, generators and construction equipment) to use GSM networks to monitor the performance of assets. For NGOs, this IOT offering could be a great way to monitor the health and fuel performance of generators.

AT&T is also working on a range of technologies to support healthcare. Telemedicine technology is available to carry out basic checks such as heart rate / blood pressure and even to analyse saliva for certain indicators. This information can allow qualified doctors in remote locations to diagnose conditions and prescribe medicines.

The transport of Vaccines is also a challenge in hot countries,  the tech flask (in the picture) has the ability to monitor location and temperature of its contents whilst in transit. This gives the confidence to medics that the vaccine is safe and have arrived in good condition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Eutelsat: WMC2018 is all about terrestrial solutions…, right?  Well amongst the hundreds of 3G tech companies I was surprised to see Eutelsat pushing its latest spin off company Konnect.  Over the past two years or more, Eutelsat has been very vocal about its future VSAT offering (Ka Band). The new satellite internet technology is targeted at the domestic market and aims to go head to dead with other internet providers, especially in rural settings.

With the roll out of fibre across Africa, Satellite based internet could be regarded as a shrinking market. But when you look at the number of physical cables connecting Africa to the rest of the world, it is clear that there is a finite amount of capacity which may be problematic to the various companies emerging to supply internet based services. More sea cables will improve the situation, but in the meantime, the Eutesat/Konnect offer might add some value, especially to rural communities.

Konnect services are not available commercially yet. Trials are planned in Kenya and some other countries in the next few months. At WMC2018, Konnect was showing off a rugged unit which incorporates VSAT, Wi-Fi and a content server. This technology would be a great system to use in a rural school as some content can be loaded onto the box for education (and not rely on live internet). This system is also designed to manage a power feed from a solar energy system.

Conclusion: Whilst the World Mobile Congress lacked breakthroughs in new smartphones (Apple and Google tend to launch products at times of their own choosing), there was a great deal of innovation on display which leavers the benefits of a connected world via GSM. Shengen is regarded as the Silicon Valley of China. Lots of innovators from Shengen were at MWC2018 showcasing a lot of technology. IOT is going to be the new buzzword over the next couple of years. The MWC forum is an area for NGOs should watch as this is where we will be able to identify excellent tools to help our humanitarian community delver technology enabled programmes.