From malaria to energy: Why solutions from the South don’t reach the people who need them most

Malaria wasn’t on Masaki Umeda’s mind when his drone startup, SORA Technology, launched in 2020 in Nagoya, Japan.

At the time, he and his colleagues were focused on delivering medical supplies to hard-to-reach regions of Africa, but after talking with the health ministry, they realized that an AI-powered solution would be more useful in fighting the deadly disease that kills more than half a million people on the continent every year.

“We fly drones over targeted areas and collect raw data,” explains Umeda. “Then the AI ​​tool identifies the location and characteristics of the waters such as turbidity (turbidity due to the presence of particles such as algae or microorganisms), temperature range and surrounding vegetation, all of which allow us to classify the risk of breeding sites.”

When shared with government agencies, this information allows them to instruct ground spraying companies to focus their activities on specific high-risk spots, rather than simply masking large-scale areas.

Amid shrinking international aid and budgets, cost-effectiveness is a top priority for cash-strapped countries, and solutions offered by innovators and start-ups are more important than ever.

The potential of SORA Technology to save lives (and money) led to Mr Umeda being invited to take part in the 2026 UN Science and Technology Forum as a “leading innovator,” along with several early-stage solution developers from diverse backgrounds dedicated to solving real-world challenges.

The startup offers a variety of solutions, from e-waste recycling in Zambia to solar energy solutions in Argentina and community-based renewable energy hubs in Nigeria.

“This innovation provides broader lessons,” said Li Junhua, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. “They remind us that innovation is most effective when combined with collaboration, local ownership and a clear path to improvement.”

‘Extraordinary talent’ locked

The Featured Innovator Program is the UN’s effort to increase awareness of the large amount of talent, especially from developing countries, that is untapped due to limited access to finance, technology and opportunities.

“It’s not a gap in innovation, it’s a gap in inclusion.” Lok Bahadur Thapa, President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), said at the start of the Forum.

“Too many innovators are disconnected from finance and markets. Too many solutions are not reaching the communities that need them most.”

Rita Orji understands all too well the challenges facing talented young people in the Global South. He is Professor of Computer Science and Canada Research Chair in Persuasive Technologies (digital tools designed to influence attitudes or behavior) at Dalhousie University in Canada.

Growing up in a remote village in southeastern Nigeria, without electricity or running water, he told STI Forum that he had never seen a computer up close before he attended Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

I chose the field in hopes that it would help me change things for my community and people like me,” he said. “I spent my undergraduate years learning how to code, how to build systems, and think computationally without owning a computer.” Despite this, he graduated with first class honours.

Ms Orji shared her story as an example of the many “incredible talents” in the Southern Hemisphere who, unlike her, cannot take part – not because they lack the ability but because they do not have the access.

‘Technically brilliant, developmentally useless’

Digital tools designed in countries of the South, by talented individuals who live and work in those countries, Ms. Orji said, will help ensure that they are truly effective.

“When the world talks about AI and countries in the South, what is often talked about is transfer. Design AI in the north, implement it in the south, adapt it, and ultimately make it affordable. That model is a throwback,” he said.

“Countries of the South should not be seen as late adopters of intelligent design in other countries. These countries must help lead the way in shaping intelligence.”

Currently, most AI tools assume that their users are literate, English-speaking, and digitally fluent, and this excludes most of the world’s people. According to Ms. Orji, this makes them “technically brilliant but developmentally useless to those who need them most.”

“The question we face today is not whether countries in the South are ready for an AI future, but whether the Global AI future is ready ready to learn from the Global South.”

Find out more about the innovators featured at the 2026 STI Forum Here.