The Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) produced a report in November 2020 on the future of technology and innovation from the COVID-19 response. The Response Innovation Lab’s both in Iraq and Uganda were highlighted.

Khalid Hashi, founder of the Somali-based OGOW EMR health record innovation talks about the lessons he has learned as a social entrepreneur in a humanitarian setting.

Saul Kabali, who started as an intern at the Uganda Response Innovation Lab shares the 6 lessons he learned from his time at the lab, and how it has impacted the growth of his innovation - SafeBangle.

The REF is an innovative Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) mechanism in the Uganda refugee response. The study showcases REF as a good practice for community engagement in a refugee response setting and hopes to inspire other countries to do the same and attracting more support for the REF in the country.

Chris Lukolyo, Digital Country Lead UNCDF digital and Charlene Cabot, manager of the Uganda Response Innovation Lab interviewed with Smart24TV about innovation inclusiveness in Uganda during the Kampala Innovation Week 2020.

Response Innovation Lab is working with Save the Children’s Migration and Displacement Initative (MDI) and their Predictive Displacement Project to host local convener events.

Covid-19 has hit the most marginalized groups hardest, in terms of sustaining their livelihoods, and maintaining education opportunities for their children. At the same time, undeniable creativity is being noted as the crisis also catalyzes innovations. Yet, we face challenges in rolling out those innovations. Listen to this session hosted by Charlene Cabor, RIL Uganda Lab Lead alongside representatives from the Social Innovation Academy, A Hand Uganda, GSMA, and Starthub Africa to learn more.

Amidst the challenges brought by the spread of COVID-19, one in particular has been the increased need for handwashing. The WASH sector has been working on access to hygiene for decades with some level of success; however six months into the global Coronavirus pandemic, nearly two billion people across the globe lack the soap and water needed to properly wash their hands. In Uganda, our partners at Engineers Without Borders – USA (EWB-USA) brought a challenge to the Response Innovation Lab:An effective soap dispensing solution was needed to accompany the handwashing stations in public spaces such as the busy Ntinda market.

The world is counting on innovations in virology, epidemiology, and other medical fields to deliver a vaccine for the novel Coronavirus and treatment for Covid-19. These breakthroughs are likely to be made in labs from the world’s leading economies. However, there is a critical second tier of issues whose solutions are already emanating from much more diverse contexts. NGOs in resource-poor settings are trying new methods of sharing information through multi-media channels and new forms of content. While these types of innovation may not lead to a cure for the disease, they are addressing critical problems in its transmission and spread; in addition to the direct implications of this pandemic, the long-term impact on the well-being of individuals remains obscure and will inevitably add another layer of challenge to people’s lives

Hear from an enterprise, a business support organization, an academic institution, and a consulting firm based out of Somalia and how they are working towards being more resilient to shocks caused by a crisis, such as COVID-19.

In partnership with the Dutch Relief Alliance, the Uganda RIL is excited to announce the DRA Innovation Fund’s third call for proposals. The DIF 3 Local Call aims to promote humanitarian innovation as locally as possible. The focus of this call will be on local humanitarian innovations in Uganda. The deadline to apply is 25 Oct 2020.

Startup Uganda and UNCDF have joined forces to promote a competition of ideas in response to four challenges: 1) Leveraging Last Mile Distribution Networks 2) Citizen Engagement 3) Financial Health for MSMEs 4) Digital Literacy. The submission deadline is Sept 30, 2020.

For World Refugee Day, the Pears Program for Global Innovation showcased an article on RIL’s work in developing a strong ecosystem for humanitarian innovations to survive and thrive in specific emergency contexts, as well as highlights local Uganda innovator Akaboxi.

A challenge faced by many refugees and rural community members in Uganda is the safety of saving money and the opportunities to access loans. Refugees frequently do not have access to banks, nor are they able to open bank accounts due to a lack of credit history or collateral. Not having a secure place to store money, makes saving challenging and risky. Akaboxi is tackling these problems straight on and transforming opportunities for financial service providers across Uganda.

A challenge faced by many refugees and rural community members in Uganda is the safety of saving money and the opportunities to access loans. Refugees frequently do not have access to banks, nor are they able to open bank accounts due to a lack of credit history or collateral. Not having a secure place to store money, makes saving challenging and risky. Akaboxi is tackling these problems straight on and transforming opportunities for financial service providers across Uganda.

I worry about Iraq. My main concerns are the same as many Iraqi people – we worry that we might never have a country where people live in peace. We are also worried about our personal safety. I’m from the Khanqeen district in the Diyala governorate. It’s a small city with a Kurdish majority. I graduated from University in 2013 but like many Iraqi students, I didn’t find a job easily after I finished my studies, which was not what I was expecting. I thought after I graduate my dream job will be waiting for me the next day. Within a year of my graduation, ISIS took over many places in Iraq, including Jalawla and Sadiya’a subdistrict in Khanqeen. ISIS was 15 kilometres away from my home.

Somali RIL has been working with the innovators Sisitech to further develop the Digital Attendance App to support World Visions supported schools across Somalia with better tracking, supporting, and communicating attendance and outcomes to parents, districts, and the government.