(SAN JOSE, Calif. and Accra, Ghana) Sept. 2, 2009
As if to underscore the importance of information & Communication Technologies in improving upon healthcare delivery in the developing world, and the role that local innovators in countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and Rwanda, can play in that process, the Tech Museum for Innovation in San Jose California, named the mPedigree Network (www.mPedigree.Net) as a Laureate in the 2009 edition of the TECH AWARDS.
(BRIGHT SIMONS, AN AFFILIATE OF IMANI AND AFRICANLIBERTY.ORG NAMED A 2009 TECH AWARDS LAUREATE BY THE TECH MUSEUM FOR INNOVATION, SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA)
Bright Simons, Coordinator of the mPedigree Network, was today named to The Tech Awards Laureates 2009, as one of 15 global innovators recognized each year for applying technology to benefit humanity and spark global change. The Tech Awards, a signature program of The Tech Museum, and presented by Applied Materials, Inc., selected mPedigree Network (www.mPedigree.Net) from among hundreds of nominations representing 66 countries.
mPedigree Network (www.mPedigree.Net) has been working in West Africa, and recently in East Africa, to achieve stakeholder consensus around the use of mobile phone technology to enable consumers detect and weed out dangerous fake and counterfeit medicines that kill at least 2000 people daily in the developing regions of Africa, South and South-East Asia.
The Tech Awards: Technology Benefiting Humanity (www.techawards.org) is one of the premier annual humanitarian awards programs in the world, recognizing technical solutions that benefit humanity and address the most critical issues facing our planet and its people. The awards program honors 15 scientists and innovators annually alongside
the recipient of the Global Humanitarian Award. Last year’s Humanitarian Award went to Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States of America.
Laureates are selected by a prestigious panel of international judges organized by the Center for Science, Technology, and Society at Santa Clara University, and made up of Santa Clara University faculty as well as leaders from educational and research institutions, industry and the public sector around the world.
“The Tech Awards is an incredible honor, recognizing individuals and organizations whose ideas and execution of those ideas are changing the world,” said Franklin Cudjoe, Ag. Chief Evangelist of the mPedigree Network. “We are proud to be among those recognized for their contributions, and will continue to develop solutions that improve the overall well being of people worldwide. We are particularly ecstatic that our efforts to counter the trade in fake medicines in the region has received so resounding an endorsement from none other than the prestigious Tech Museum for Innovation”
“The global challenges of the day have become increasingly strident, more deeply rooted,” said Peter Friess, president of The Tech Museum. “Still, there is hope. These incredibly impressive Laureates have all proven to be equal to, or better than, the challenge to make the world a better place. By celebrating their accomplishments today, we are encouraging future innovators to work toward solutions to make the world healthier, safer and more sustainable.”
Established in 2000, The Tech Awards recognizes 15 Laureates in five universal categories: education, equality, environment, economic development and health. These Laureates have developed new technological solutions or innovative ways to use existing technologies to significantly improve the lives of people around the world. One Laureate in each category will receive a $50,000 cash prize during the annual Awards Gala in San Jose, Calif. on November 19.
Key sponsors supporting The Tech Awards include Applied Materials, Inc., Intel Corporation, Nokia, Microsoft, The Swanson Foundation, BD Biosciences, Polycom, Genentech, Wells Fargo, SAP, eBay, KPMG, Accenture, The Quattrone Foundation, Google, NBC11, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, The Fairmont San Jose, Montgomery Hotel, Marriott San Jose and American Airlines. Key partners include Santa Clara University’s Center for Science, Technology, and Society, World Federation of United Nations Associations, United Nations Development Programme, World Bank Institute, Catholic Relief Services, The CORE Group, National Center for Technology Innovation and Opportunity International.
The Health Category in which mPedigree Network (www.mPedigree.Net) is one of the three Laureates is sponsored by Nokia, the Finnish mobile handsets giant.