Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of United Arab Emirates, Ruler of Dubai
DIHAD
13 – 15 March 2023

Dubai World Trade Centre

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13 – 15 March 2023

Dubai World Trade Centre

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Registration Terms and Conditions

Home Registration Terms and Conditions

REGISTRATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The below terms and conditions apply to Attendees registering or companies sponsoring the registration of professionals and/or students interested in attending the 19th edition of Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development Conference & Exhibition – DIHAD 2023 (the “Event”) to be held from the 13th to the 15th of March 2023 at the Dubai World Trade Centre organized by INDEX Conferences & Exhibition Organization Est. (the “Organizer”). By submitting your registration, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions stipulated below

ATTENDANCE AT THE PROFESSIONAL CONFERENCE

By completing this registration form, you confirm and acknowledge that you are attending the conference in your capacity as an Advisor, Board Member, CEO – Chief Executive Officer, CFO – Chief Financial Officer, Consultant, COO – Chief Operating Officer, Coordinator, Diplomat, Director, Journalist, Manager, Physician, Project Manager, Student, Technician and Volunteer working in the field of or with an interest in the field of the aforementioned Event. The conference is for the benefit of the persons listed above only and not for lay persons or persons who do not qualify for the categories listed above. INDEX reserves the right to refuse admission, and the same will be notified accordingly to the delegates.

CONFERENCE FEES & PAYMENT TERMS

  • Prices for each Event plus VAT, where applicable, are correct at the time of publication. INDEX reserves the right to change the prices at any time but changes will not affect registrations which have already been confirmed by INDEX.
  • Any VAT chargeable is to be payable by the delegates in addition to, and at, the same time as, the registration.

Payment Terms for Early bird & Standard rates and closing dates for registration.

  1. Early bird rates are contingent upon payment being received upon application. All discounts can only be applied at the time of registration and discounts cannot be combined. In the event that more than one discount is applicable, delegates will receive the discount with the lowest value. All
    discounts are subject to approval.
  2. The closing date for the super early bird rate is 31st of August 2022 for all payment methods. Full and clear payment must be received on or before 31st of August 2022 in order to obtain the super early bird rate. The Events Team is unable to honor any requests to obtain the super early bird rate after these dates.
  3. The closing date for the early bird rate is 15th of December 2022 for all payment methods. Full and clear payment must be received on or before 15th of December 2022 in order to obtain the early bird rate. The Events Team is unable to honour any requests to obtain the early bird rate
    after these dates.
  4. Standard registration commences on 16th of December 2022 and only payments via cash or credit card (online) will be accepted.

THIRD PARTY AND GROUP REGISTRATION

  • If you are booking on behalf of another person, you confirm that you are authorized by that person to make the booking, and that the person has confirmed their agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions. You acknowledge and agree that both you and the person for whom you are making the booking will be bound by these terms and conditions mentioned herein.
  • You also acknowledge and agree to provide details of the attendees in the required format as requested by the Event’s team.
  • INDEX shall not be liable for the consequences or damages directly or indirectly ensuing from incorrect, misleading, imprecise or incomplete information either contained in the registration form or based on any other details furnished by the exhibitor; INDEX reserves the right to refuse to consider inadequately or not fully completed registration forms or registration forms submitted later than the date specified.

INFORMATION FOR REGISTERED ATTENDEES

  • Entry will be regulated through receipts issued by INDEX. Registration number will be issued only upon receipt of payment and entry to the Event will be permitted by the registration number. Please carry a print of the payment receipt and registration number.
  • In the event you have registered, but yet to receive the payment receipt, please contact registration@dihad.org

CANCELLATION, SUBSTITUTION/REGISTRATION TRANSFER & REFUND POLICY

No refunds can be given. Conference fees once processed cannot be cancelled or refunded, however the following is permitted under the discretion of INDEX:

  1. Registration may be transferred to another person (substitution) subject to agreement with INDEX and supported by clear written communication, in special conditions such as personal ailments or nonissuance of visas, INDEX reserves the right to reject such a request (Deadline for name change is dated 20th of February 2023).
  2. In the event that INDEX cancels an event for any reason (except for force majeure circumstances), you will receive full amount of the conference fee paid.
  3. In the event that INDEX postpone an event for any reason (except for force majeure circumstances) and the delegate is unable or unwilling to attend on the rescheduled date, you will receive full amount of the conference fee paid.
  4. Subject to the foregoing point 2 & 3, in the event of cancellation or postponement of the Event due to force majeure, no refunds will be given.
  5. INDEX reserves the right to cancel any registration after confirmation in which case all fees paid will be refunded. You acknowledge that the refund of registration fees is your sole remedy in the event of cancellation of your registration by INDEX and all other liability is expressly excluded.
  6. Except as specified above, no credits will be issued for other forms of cancellation.
  7. INDEX is not responsible for any loss or damage as a result of a transfer, substitution, alteration and/or cancellation/postponement of an event. INDEX shall assume no liability whatsoever in the event this conference is canceled, rescheduled or postponed due to fortuitous event, act of God,
    unforeseen occurrence or any other event that renders performance of this conference impracticable, illegal or impossible. For the purpose of this Clause, a fortuitous event shall include, but not limited to war, fire, extreme weather or other emergencies

PROGRAMME CHANGES

Please note that Speakers and topics were confirmed at the time of publishing; HOWEVER, it may be necessary due to unforeseen circumstances to alter the content, timing speakers or venue. INDEX reserves the right at any time to postpone, change the format, alter or modify the advertised Speakers and/or topics if necessary, participants, content, location and timing of the Event or any other aspect of the Event, in each case without liability for any reason whether or not due to causes beyond its reasonable control. In the event that the conference is canceled, and other aforementioned occurrences, delegates will be notified promptly prior to the advertised date of the event. INDEX accepts no liability in respect of any loss or damage, whether direct, consequential or otherwise arising from any delay in providing the conference or change of venue. Please visit the relevant site, which is updated regularly.

Non – Appearance/Cancellation of Speakers

  • Should Speaker(s) of this event fail to appear, either due to illness, accident or by cancellation, adverse weather conditions or any travel disruption, INDEX accepts no liability for these, and that neither party nor any representative shall be liable for any payment and/or refunds.
  • INDEX reserves the right without liability to refuse admission to, or to eject from the Event, any person in its absolute discretion, including (without limitation) any person who fails to comply with these terms and conditions or who in the opinion of INDEX represents a security risk, nuisance or annoyance to the running of the Event. You agree to comply with all reasonable instructions issued by INDEX or the venue owners at the Event.

BANKRUPTCY OR LIQUIDATION

In the event of any Attendee committing an act of bankruptcy or if a limited company being wound up, this terms and conditions shall be determined void and all monies already paid shall be retained by INDEX.

ACCOMMODATION/TRAVEL

  • Please note that accommodation and travel are not included in the conference fee.
  • Accommodation/ travel arrangement must be made by the Attendees.

PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITY

  • No Attendee shall engage in or permit filming, sound or video recording, telecasting and broadcasting at the Event venue unless prior written approval is obtained from INDEX.
  • No distribution of publicity materials is allowed during the conference anywhere within the vicinity of the Conference or anywhere else within the Event Venue.

PHOTOGRAPHY AND OTHER IMAGE RECORDINGS

  • All types of unauthorised photography and recording/transmitting of audio or visual material, data or information is expressly prohibited.
  • Photography and recordings photographs will be taken at the conference by an official Event photographer, which may be used by INDEX in post-event publicity and on future marketing materials. In registering to attend the Event, Attendees agree to the official photographer taking such
    photographs, and to INDEX using the photographs as set out above. If you do not wish to be in any photography, kindly notify a member of INDEX Events Team immediately upon arrival at the conference for further guidance.

NOTE: Please note that other attendees at the conference (delegates, speakers, exhibitors and sponsors etc.) may also take photographs; INDEX accepts no responsibility in connection with the use of these photographs.

ATTENDEE IDENTIFICATION

Full particulars of Attendee must be submitted to INDEX for approval and registration before they may be admitted to the Event. As the personnel are approved by INDEX’s authorised personnel, they will be issued badges for identification and admission purposes. Attendees shall ensure that authorised personnel:

  1. Display their badges whenever requested by the Organizer whilst in the Venue; and
  2. Do not pass their badges to any other person(s).

*Attendee must wear the badge issued by the Organiser at all times. Additional attendees/staff will be permitted upon payment of the relevant registration fees.

NOTE: For verification purposes, INDEX shall reserve the right to request for any identification.

DATA PROTECTION

  • INDEX may collect and process personal company data, which may include personally identifiable data such as the contact person’s email, address and contact number (“personal data”) in order to perform its obligations pursuant to this Terms and Conditions as well as to provide Attendees information about future events. INDEX will mainly collect the personal data directly from Attendees when they complete the Application Form or through other approved INDEX third party service providers. Provision of the personal data would be mandatory. Without such information INDEX may not be able to perform its obligations under this Terms and Conditions, such as to contact the Attendee with anything related to the registration/Event (if any).
  • Such data will generally not be transferred or shared with any other entity, though there may be disclosure or sharing of personal data for purposes of compliance with laws, regulations or directives by regulators or authorities. By submitting personal company data to INDEX and signing the application form, Attendee’s expressly consent, on behalf of their officers and employees, to the transfer and processing of that personal company data in the UAE and elsewhere.

*Compliance with all applicable data protection laws is of the utmost importance, this also includes the European General Data Protection Regulation of May 2019 (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (the GDPR). Where shared Personal Data that constitutes EU Personal Data is transferred by the Organiser in a location outside of the European Economic Area “EEA”, the Organiser shall comply with its obligations pursuant to Chapter 3 of the GDPR (Rights of the data subject) and Part V of the PDPA (Access to and Correction of Personal Data).

Consent and rights of the Attendee

  1. By agreeing to this Terms and Conditions, the Attendee consent to the collection and use of his/her personal data as outlined in this Statement, including the use and provision of his/her personal data for direct marketing. Please send requests to access or correct data, to cease communications, and questions or complaints to: E-mail: registration@dihad.org.
  2. Attendees’ information is kept on INDEX group companies’ database and used by INDEX group companies to assist in providing selected products and services which may be of interest to the Attendee and which will be communicated by letter, phone, fax, email or other electronic means. The personal information which you provide to us will be held by us on a database and may be shared with INDEX group of companies for direct marketing purposes. Please note, however, that INDEX may release the Attendee’s personal data if required to do so by law, or by search warrant, subpoena or court order.
  3. For company-related data, INDEX utilise such information for the purpose of sending eventrelated offers, managing business processes with you as a Attendee, information and advertising prior and after the event, communication and attendee databases updating in the UAE and abroad, and market research.
  4. If you do not wish your personal data to be used together with the company data, you are free to object at any time to the further use and communication of your personal data to third parties by emailing it to us at registration@dihad.org

NOTE: Each attendee badge will be marked with a barcode which can be scanned by Exhibitors to capture his/her personal information such as name, job title, organisation and email address. By agreeing to provide the badge for scanning to the Exhibitor, the attendee consent to the collection and use of his/her personal data solely for direct marketing purposes by the Exhibitor. Please inform the Exhibitor at the time if you do not wish to have your details scanned.

DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

Attendee’s personal data without the data subject’s permission, will not be disclosed or shared with any third parties for purposes other than those stated at the time the data was collected. INDEX will retain the personal data it holds confidential but in certain circumstances, may provide or transfer the personal data to:

  1. Its agents, advisers, service providers, contractors, and auditors, in connection with their operations and/or services for facilitating and enhancing their operations, conducting analysis, research and auditing based on the personal data;
  2. Its overseas offices, affiliates, joint ventures partners, which are also exhibition organisers, for the purpose of conducting direct marketing in relation to the promotion of and invitation to their trade fairs in UAE and around the world;
  3. Persons to whom the Organiser is required to make disclosure under applicable laws in or outside the United Arab Emirates.

COPYRIGHT

All intellectual property rights in all materials produced or distributed by INDEX Conferences and Exhibitions in connection with this Event is expressly reserved and any unauthorized duplication, publication or distribution is prohibited.

FORCE MAJEURE

INDEX shall be under no liability if it shall be unable to carry out any provision of the Terms and Conditions for any reason beyond their control including Act of God, legislation, war, terrorist activity, fire, flood, drought, failure of power supply, lock-out, strike or any other act of God, including but not limited to health concerns (such as bird flu, infectious related health outbreaks, pandemic or other related communicable disease), climatic, economic, political, financial crisis or social situation at local, national or international level, or any other general cases of “force majeure” whether or not “ejusdem generis” with the foregoing, or any cause not within INDEX control or for any loss or damage sustained in the event that the opening or holding of the Event is prevented, postponed or abandoned or if the hall becomes totally or partially unavailable for the holding of the Event due to any of the foregoing causes.

EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY

INDEX excludes all liability for loss, injury or damage to persons or property at the Event. All indemnities, warranties, terms and conditions (whether express or implied) are excluded. INDEX accepts no liability for any loss or damage whatsoever that you may suffer in connection with or arising from the Event whether direct, indirect or consequential (including but not limited to loss of profit, loss of business or any other type of economic loss) or otherwise. In the event that INDEX is liable to you for any reason, it’s total liability to you in relation to the Event (whether under these terms or conditions or otherwise) is limited to the amount of the registration fees paid by you to INDEX ONLY. The limitations and exclusions in this condition only apply to the extent permitted by applicable law.

AMENDMENT

INDEX reserves the right to amend these terms and conditions from time to time and you will be subject to the terms and conditions in force at the time your registration is submitted.

ADDITIONAL RULES AND REGULATIONS

  • INDEX reserves the right to interpret, alter and amend these General Terms and Conditions and to issue additional rules and regulations at any time they consider necessary for the orderly operation of the Event, all interpretations of these Conditions and any additional rules and regulations by the Organiser shall be final.
  • Attendee shall abide by the rules and regulations of the Event Venue which are deemed to be integral parts of and incorporated into these General Terms and Conditions. In the event of conflict between the provisions of such rules and regulations and these General Terms and Conditions, these General Terms and Conditions shall prevail.
  • In the event of a breach of any of the conditions herein INDEX may in all cases retain all monies paid by the Attendee and recover further monies from the Attendee as provided herein. All communications should be addressed to:
    INDEX Conferences & Exhibition Organization Est
    INDEX Holding Headquarters,
    P.O. Box: 13636, Road D-62,
    Opposite Nad Al Hamar,
    United Arab Emirates.
    Tel: +97145208888
    Fax: +97143384193
    E-mail: info@dihad.org
    Website: www.dihad.org

ATTENDEE RULES & REGULATIONS

By completing this Attendee Registration Form, the Attendee acknowledges receipt of and agrees to comply with all the rules and regulations stated herein.

GOVERNING LAW

These terms and conditions are governed by the laws of the United Arab Emirates, as applied in the Emirate of Dubai, and any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of Dubai courts.

Disclaimer for Leisure Activities notice (when applicable)

You should consider carefully whether you will be able to participate fully in the leisure activities offered as part of the visitor programme. INDEX warns that some activities may be physically demanding or carry inherent dangers. You accept that it is entirely your responsibility to decide whether participation in any activity in the attendee programme is appropriate to your capabilities, aptitude, fitness and health, and it is also your responsibility to observe all safety requirements and instructions that you may be given in relation to such activities. To the extent permitted by law, neither INDEX nor its officers or employees will accept any liability whatsoever for any direct, indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages, whether due to negligence or any other cause, arising from participation in any part of the visitor programme, including but not limited to activities outside the conference or exhibition. In the event of death or personal injury, the liability of INDEX and its officers and employees is limited accordingly.

Organised By :
INDEX Conferences & Exhibitions Org. Est.
INDEX Conferences & Exhibitions Org. Est.

COPYRIGHT © 2023. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Shortage of ‘Human Resources for Health’ in Developing Countries

Supported by Noor Dubai

Subtitle:

The shortage of health workers in developing countries may undermine the attainment of the Sustainable development goals, universal health coverage and undermine control of epidemics/pandemics. So how do we improve the number and quality of health workers in developing countries?

Context:

The World Health Organization in its 2006 World Health Report reported that over 4 million more health workers are needed globally to prevent crisis in the health sector. Out of which Africa alone needs 1.5 million workers. Thus 36 of the 57 countries in the continent have critical shortages of human resources for health.

Globally all countries are challenged by worker shortage, skill mix imbalance, maldistribution, negative work environment, and weak knowledge base. However, it is worse in the poorest countries mostly of Africa and Asia where the workforce is under assault by HIV/AIDS, epidemics, out-migration, poor working environment, demotivation, undertraining and inadequate investment.

The critical shortage of health workers in developing world especially Africa is a major impediment to achievement of health/developmental goals, and could hinder the ability to control epidemics and pandemic outbreaks. In many developing countries this shortage not only affects provision of life saving interventions like childhood immunization, maternal services and prevention/treatment of the major infectious diseases –HIV, Malaria and Tuberculosis; but also hampers response to serious epidemics and pandemics like Ebola, Hemorrhagic fevers, Yellow fever and Covid-19. In addition to this the increasing aging population and change of life style in these developing countries results in rising burden of chronic diseases and non-communicable diseases like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cancers etc needing more well trained health personnel’s and facilities.

This shortage is made worse within these countries by a vicious cycle of outbreaks of epidemics that further deplete the workforce and emigration of health workers to other parts of the world. The gross mal-distribution of the workers where by majority of health workers are in the urban areas but most of the population lives in rural areas in these countries, aggravates the situation. Furthermore the opportunities for continuous medical education and self-development is generally limited.

Thus, this human resource for health crisis in the developing countries especially Africa is not only about the quantity of the health workers and their distribution but also their quality. Due to weak educational systems and training facilities, occasioned by poor investment, health workers in many of these countries are not only inadequately trained but also lack the continuous medical education to handle emerging life threatening emergencies and chronic health conditions.

The crisis is partly caused by underfunding from governments due to competing developmental demands with very weak economies. This results in fewer ill-equipped training institutions, undertraining, under-recruitment, lack of facilities, demotivation, brain drain etc. The pull of higher salaries in industrialized countries and the push of poor working conditions at home along with political and social strife drive thousands of health workers to jobs abroad each year. This ever increasing brain drain from these poor weak countries to richer nations of the West and Middle East compound an already bad situation.

Challenge statement:

The SDG goal 3 (Ensuring health living and promoting wellbeing for all for all ages), the universal health coverage and ability to withstand epidemics and pandemics like Covid-19 cannot be achieved in many countries if the human resources for health crisis in these countries is not tackled.

So how can we address this gross shortage of health workers in developing countries especially Africa in terms of not only the number of the health workers, but their distribution and their expertise (knowledge and skills?). What innovative and technological approach can be applied to address this big challenge?

The digital literacy divide between e-learners: how to narrow the gaps?

Supported by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

Title: The digital literacy divide between e-learners: how to narrow the gaps?

Concept: In a world that everyone is using the digital sphere to communicate and learn, there is still a gap between the e-learners as some have high digital literacy while many still have more limited literacy.

MSF’s e-Learning team (TEMO) aims at reaching 95% of the organization’s staff and not only 25% with high digital literacy, access to computers, access to internet, etc.

Challenge: In this scenario and in order for all staff to have access to distance learning and eLearning Solutions like Tembo can offer, what are proposals and ideas to promote digital literacy for the e-learners to narrow the gaps?

Overcoming Challenges to the Inclusion of Beneficiaries with Disabilities in Emergencies

Supported by International Humanitarian City

Keywords: Emergency Preparedness & Response; Disabilities

Introduction:
IHC for the 2020 Humanitarian Hackathon decided to focus the attention on a group of vulnerable populations affected by Disabilities. The purpose of this challenge is to stimulate people to think outside the box and come up with possible innovative tools that the humanitarian community can offer to people exposed to emergencies and having different kinds of disabilities. In particular, mobility and communication/ability to attract attention are two crucial factors when it comes to the immediate aftermath of a disaster as well as the short and long-term living situation the affected disabled population may find themselves in. The purpose is to integrate and enrich the humanitarian prepositioned stocks with appropriated equipment and aid and therefore strengthen the emergency preparedness and have tools ready for their use in the response phase. The aim is to involve the Humanitarian Hackathon 2020 participants and transform their ideas in humanitarian aid for the benefit of the disabled. Looking at the list of the humanitarian relief items stocked within various humanitarian hubs it appears that no specific items are kept in stock specifically to support the differently-abled living in areas affected by disasters.

Scenarios:
The most frequent emergency scenarios are due to natural disasters such as floods, Tsunamis, Earthquake, cyclones, volcano eruptions, fire-forest etc…in addition to conflict areas. Hackathon participants are invited to think about the disabled population in those scenarios, and particularly, how the disabled can attract rescue teams or humanitarian workers providing assistance. Options for innovative solutions may focus on preventive measures, especially for the populations most exposed to risks and living in prone and hazard areas and subject to frequent natural disasters. Other innovative solutions may focus more on the immediate response following disasters when the affected population is forced to vacate their accommodation, which is appropriately equipped for their disability and moved into newer and less familiar areas. How can we help them?

Below are some tips for the various potential disabilities.

Suggestions:

  • Overall, items that could be useful to most disability categories could be:
  • A Tools to attract attention (which can be distributed to all vulnerable people affected)
  • A disability-friendly app
  • Stool bags compatible with a foldable wheelchair toilet seat
  • Clear masks for lip-reading for the rescue teams
Improving Small Farmers Access to Knowledge About Crop Production Techniques through E-Agriculture

Supported by International Humanitarian City

In several humanitarian response areas, are blessed with diverse climatic conditions for almost all crops (cereal, fruit and vegetable crops), besides ample opportunity to grow high value vegetables as off season in certain zones and pristine climatic niches as well production of certain fruits and vegetables seedling in low, high and walk in tunnels.

Moreover, there is also immense scope of growing short duration vegetable in three successive seasons i.e. summer, winter and autumn such as tomato, broccoli and potato. The small farmers in general are neither aware of the opportunities of effective utilization of their physical , financial and human resources nor know the ways and means to utilize their available resources. Thus they follow the hit and trial rules to grow crops which often incur heavy losses to them.

DISTANCE LEARNING CHALLENGES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN A POST COVID-19 WORLD

Supported by Dubai Cares

COVID-19 exacerbated pre-existing gaps in Developing Countries, which were already strained, underserved and faced significant tech capacity limitations, causing serious learning disruptions.

Context

The world has been brought to a standstill by the impact of COVID-19. Airports, restaurants, movie theaters and other elements of the social environment have been disrupted by this virus’ contagion. While watching movies and dining in public are not essential to our lives, work and education are.

Education systems and learning have been heavily disrupted by COVID-19. At its apex, school closures reached over 180 countries. Currently, according to the UNESCO Education Impact Tracker, there are still 34 country wide school closures and over half a billion affected child learners. “The medium and long-term implications of the learning crisis [has] forced 1.6 billion learners worldwide out of the classroom” (UNESCO). This is especially true for education in developing countries, which were already facing poor economic conditions while also coping with low literacy, numeracy, enrollment and proficiency.

In July, UNESCO estimated “that about 24 million learners, from pre-primary to university level, are at risk of not returning to school in 2020 following the education disruption due to COVID-19. Almost half of them are found in South and West Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. University students are affected the most, due to the costs related to their studies. Pre-primary education is the second most affected while at primary and secondary level 10.9 million students are at risk, 5.2 million of whom are girls.”

As closures forced students and parents home, the need for connectivity and hardware arose. “Today half of the world’s population (3.6 billion people) still lack an internet connection.” Many countries with low economic development and lack of connectivity, adapted via national broadcasts over TV and Radio, “yet the benefits of internet-based solutions vis-à-vis radio and TV solutions are considerable: connected digital technologies allow for the possibility of two-way communication, real-time interaction, gamified learning, and much more. Investments poured into efforts to make digital tools the principal hubs of learning, rather than brick-and-mortar school sand classrooms” (UNESCO).

“According to UN estimates, nearly 500 million students from pre-primary to upper secondary school did not have any access to any remote learning. Three quarters of these students lived in the poorest households or rural areas. More nuanced data showed finer disparities that traced and functioned to accentuate existing social, economic, gender and geographic fault lines. Analysis from Brookings shows that at the height of school closures, around 90 percent of high-income countries were providing some form of online remote learning, but only 25 per cent of low-income countries were doing the same” (UNESCO).

 

One of the flagship innovations responding to this at a global level is GIGA, an initiative launched by UNICEF and ITU in September 2019 to connect every school to the Internet and every young person to information, opportunity and choice. GIGA is supporting the immediate response to COVID-19, as well as looking at how connectivity can create stronger infrastructures of hope and opportunity in the “time after COVID.” The main objective of GIGA is to connect 2 million schools and 500 million children by 2025 and 5 million schools and 1 billion children by 2030, via funding of local infrastructure entrepreneurs and open source digital public goods.

Lastly, the long term effects of diminished education is worth considering, as “the World Bank has projected the financial cost of this learning loss to be as high as USD $10 trillion or 10% of global gross domestic product” (UNESCO). The human and economic impact of stunted education will ripple through the next decade as less educated students, workers and citizens will enter a world that is simultaneously regressing (climate change) and rapidly evolving (technology). Those that are already economically disadvantaged are at greater risk of getting left behind even more.

Challenge Statement:

As discussed above, distance learning is not always feasible due to low prevalence of connectivity and hardware in developing nations and economies, where the population is less able to purchase cell phones and laptops, while the public and private sectors are less likely to build connectivity infrastructure such as cell towers and Wi-Fi access points.

  • How can distance learning solutions be delivered to low income / remote / rural areas with low hardware saturation and lack of internet access so as not to exclude them from education services and systems they were already underserved by?
  • Think of innovative*, feasible and scalable solutions for learning disruption in developing countries

Things to keep in mind for solution design and review criteria:

  • Developing contexts often have limited access to transportation, clean water and sanitation
  • *Innovation does not necessarily mean very high tech and revolutionary. Sometimes the most innovative thing is using or reformulating something basic and abundant in a new and low cost way
  • Reflect on the sustainability of the design, as many solutions end up collecting dust after initial investment and intervention
  • Think through the replicability and scalability of the solution for global reach in similar environments
  • Contemplate potential cross-sectorial collaboration (telecom, government, and academia)
  • Consider the operational part of it: how is it going to work, under what umbrella, with what organizational or collaborative structure
  • Deliberate on the Who and How of funding your solution
Water Scarcity and Accessibility to Clean Water

Supported by UAE Water Aid

The UAE Water Aid Foundation, Suqia, under the umbrella of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, works diligently to provide clean and safe drinking water to communities in dire need and that lack basic access to water. Thus, Suqia contributes directly to Goal 6, Clean Water & Sanitation, of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. It also has important contributions to goals 1 (no poverty), 3 (good health and well-being), 4 (quality education), 5 (gender equality) and 17 (partnerships for the goals).

Access to clean and safe water remains one of the most critical challenges faced by many around the world. While governments and societies work together to provide solutions to communities in need, the number of those who lack access to basic drinking water services continues to increase till date. According to recent statistics, the figure has reached a staggering 785 million in 2019. In many communities, people spend up to 6 hours each day collecting water. Not only does walking long distances while carrying 20 liters of water cause severe health issues, but it also keeps children out of school and wastes time that families could be using to earn an income.

Utilizing various solutions including artesian wells, water purification stations, water filters, water distribution networks and others, we were able to provide clean drinking water for more than 13 million people in 36 countries around the world.

The main challenge is in providing communities that need it the most. Often these communities are in remote locations difficult to get to and may be overseen in search of the places that require access to clean drinking water.

Although, the water infrastructure is not available, tele-communication networks are often available.

How can we utilize the tele-communication networks or mobile applications to support our goal of reaching out to communities in need? We are looking for a solution that would be easy to use where individuals can pin-point locations globally that face water shortage and lack easy access to clean drinking water. The solution would ideally identify the type of need in the area, the water quality, the approximate number of people living in the area, etc ..