UNICEF to Provide Internet in Kyrgyzstan

UNICEF to Provide Internet in Kyrgyzstan – Using Blockchain!

UNICEF has identified a unique use of blockchain technology. It plans to use this revolutionary tech to provide internet in schools in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan. UNICEF is currently in talks that will allow the organization to use blockchain to provide internet to schools. It plans to implement this project in 1560 schools that had previously had little to no connection to the internet.

This initiative is called Project Connect. According to an official from UNICEF in Kyrgyzstan, providing internet is one of the strongest goals for UNICEF in the country. Munir Mammadzade said the main focus is currently spent on mapping, connectivity, and accounting. The accounting hurdles need particular attention according to Munir.

Blockchain's true power is in helping, not profit

Blockchain technology has been around for barely ten years, but it has already begun revolutionizing various industries. Banking and finance are the two sectors that everyone is familiar with. Bitcoin has been in the news both for its meteoric rise and its catastrophic fall. However, blockchain use has found its way into accounting, agriculture and even supply-chain management.

Established blue-chip companies are funding entire R&D laboratories for creating blockchain solutions to real-world problems. Companies as varied as IBM, Facebook and Microsoft have all jumped on the blockchain bandwagon. This is in stark contrast to the approach of personal computing from IBM and the rise of mobile phones and apps from Microsoft. Banks, which are usually very conservative entities, have jumped on the security that blockchain can offer. HSBC and JPMorgan are both heavy investors in the field.

Blockchain is also the first technology that is not constrained geographically. It is seeing a massive improvement in the United States, all over Asia and in Europe as well. Impressive breakthroughs are being made in South America and Africa giving this technology the title of the first, true global invention.

Trust in developing nations an issue

The overemphasis of capital and profit to date has overshadowed all of its potential in more philanthropic areas. Areas with low centralized authority and weak institutions can use blockchain to manage giant public networks, with trust in the system being taken care of by a computer algorithm.

This is why UNICEF looks to blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology to help with its projects. The organization has invested over $200 000 in various start-ups that deal with blockchain in a way that UNICEF can use to improve the lives of millions of people.

Project Connect, if successful, can then use what was learned in Kyrgyzstan and move it into rural India. Many industry leaders believe that the true potential of blockchain is in using it to alleviate human misery. IBM has recently revealed that it was going to develop a blockchain platform for medical uses. Specifically, they want to help with the problem of poorly made, dangerous counterfeit drugs that are sold in Africa by unscrupulous companies.

IBM is betting on its experience with using blockchain for good to pay off in the long run. Governments are already in talks for the tech giant to provide cost-effective solutions for various departments. Among the countries already in talks with Big Blue are Canada, Argentina, and Australia.

One use that many see being default in the future will be using blockchain for national elections. This has global impact and many in the industry wish to see this become a reality.

Author: Ali Raza. Article was written for Crypto-Rating.com