In an initiative to leapfrog infrastructural challenges affecting the delivery of healthcare solutions in parts of Rwanda, the country has launched a drone delivery network to transport vital blood supplies to remote areas of the country.
The initiative is a partnership between U.S. start-up, Zipline and the government of Rwanda to use drones to deliver all blood products for selected hospitals and health centres.
The partnership set to revolutionise healthcare delivery in Rwanda. Commenting on the launch, President Paul Kagame said on Twitter: “This use of unmanned commercial drones to transport essential medical products is a milestone for Rwanda in many respects. It demonstrates the possibility of transforming business models in many industries beyond healthcare”.
President Kagame: I hope that this project will inspire more innovation and entrepreneurship in commercially viable technologies in #Rwanda
— Presidency | Rwanda (@UrugwiroVillage) October 14, 2016
President Kagame has extolled the benefits of ICTs, writing on Twitter “We recognise its power to change lives, and contribute to the rapid socio-economic transformation we want. Good enough is no longer enough. We need to aim for the best. #MedDronesRw”.
President Kagame: Technology becomes relevant & meaningful when it works for people & addresses challenges they face in different fields
— Presidency | Rwanda (@UrugwiroVillage) October 14, 2016
The project will see drones being first being deployed in Muhanga district, 50 kilometres (31 miles) west of the capital Kigali, and it is expected to expand to other parts of the country by 2017, with the objective to offer the service to 21 hospitals across the country.
Read: Rwanda to start using drones to deliver blood products for 20 hospitals
African countries have started embracing drone technology to address various needs. Malawi has been working with Unicef on a project to explore the use of drones (which carry the blood samples from health centres to laboratories) to speed-up HIV testing and diagnosis in infants.
Other examples of countries using drone include leveraging drone technology to fight poaching (South Africa-Kruger National Park), and transportation of birth control, condoms and other medical supplies (Ghana-Dr One project) amongst others.
The initiative in Rwanda has continued to draw widespread applause on social media, and there’s hope that the initiative could spur the development of similar projects in the delivery of medical supplies in remote parts of Africa.
Twitter reactions:
https://twitter.com/ali_naka/status/787129484977864705
Knowing the amount of work that went into the Drones project, I couldn't be more proud of Rwanda. Prosper on Rwanda Nziza. #MedDronesRw
— Kami (@blessdkami) October 14, 2016
A tech milestone as @zipline launches use of med-supplier drones in Rwanda. 👍🏽 initiative, may we see more great innovations come our way.
— Gilbert Rwabigwi (@Rwabigwi) October 14, 2016
From today, @zipline will deliver blood to hospitals using drones, an initiative with the Government of Rwanda. Embracing innovation…..
— Clare Akamanzi (@cakamanzi) October 14, 2016
Rwanda is today launching a program that uses drones to deliver blood to rural areas to reduce maternal mortality among other emergencies 👏🏿
— HENRY Okelue (@4eyedmonk) October 14, 2016
LOVE. @zipline uses drones to deliver blood to hard to reach areas in Rwanda! Finally, someone shows how drones have real use! #NextEconomy
— palak shah (@palaknshah) October 10, 2016