Over the past few weeks, Simprints – a CIFF-supported tech organisation – have been recognised by several major international bodies in light of their work on health security and pandemic response, such acknowledgments include:

1. 1. MIT Solve (Massachusetts Institute of Technology initiative to find tech-based social entrepreneurs), Winner of the 2020 ‘Health Security and Pandemics’ Challenge’ for Biometrics for Vaccines Delivery.
   2. The Elevate Prize Foundation, Winner of the ‘Elevate Prize for Health Security’ and;
   3. Financial Times & International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group), Winner of the ‘Health, Wellness, and Disease Prevention’ Award, and the ‘Excellence in Disruptive Technologies’ Award, for the biometric ID technology for impact verification in global health and development.

As the latest Goalkeepers report from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation suggested, the Covid-19 pandemic threatens to undo ’25 years of progress in just 25 weeks’ in developing regions. This is where the work of organisations like Simprints is vital, as building digital ID systems in places where formal ID is not present, enables such individuals to access essential services.

Across the world, over one billion people do not have a form of formal identification, such as a passport or drivers’ license. A form of identification is critically important during a pandemic when basic services are disrupted, as you must be able to verify who is still being reached and who isn’t. Digital ID can help deliver resources equitably and effectively.

At CIFF, we are supporting Simprints to deliver such services through our Geshiyaro programme, evaluating the success of breaking the transmission of soil transmitted helminths and schistosamiasis in the Wolaita zone in Ethiopia.

To find out more about Simprints and their work, click here.

To find out more about how biometrics can be game-changing in the development space, click here.