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December 2, 2025
Sand Technologies
While these gains are worth celebrating, persistent gaps remain. About two thirds of countries still lack reliable data on births, deaths and causes of death. The lack of real-time collection, visibility and analysis of critical data means that preventable deaths, medicine shortages and delayed outbreak detection continue to persist. Africa also carries 24% of the world’s disease burden but has just 3% of the global health workforce. Building resilient health systems is therefore not just about adding more facilities or personnel, it is about ensuring decision-makers have the intelligence they need, exactly when they need it.
The challenge before us is clear: how can we equip health leaders with the health intelligence they need to act more effectively with the limited resources they have?
Launched in Rwanda earlier this year, the Health Intelligence Center (HIC) is aiming to address this challenge. Pioneered and implemented by the Rwandan Ministry of Health, the HIC serves as a strategic national platform designed to collect, process and analyze real-time data from across the health system, strengthening evidence-based decision-making and policy development.
Building on the journey of the HIC, Sand Technologies—together with key implementing partners—is working to extend the vital feedback loop between data and action to other African countries. At the center of this effort is the Health Operating System (HOS), an AI-powered platform that connects fragmented data and transforms it into actionable insights.
The HOS is built around three core elements: Health Intelligence Centers are giving governments the ability to detect outbreaks earlier, forecast medicine needs and test policies before they go live. Connected Clinics are digitized and solar-powered, feeding real-time data into national systems and strengthening primary healthcare delivery. And Digital Health Academies are providing training across health system layers by supporting health workers to deliver better care and ensuring governments can own, operate and scale sustainably.
Government-embedded AI hubs give leaders a live dashboard of the nation’s health. They can spot outbreaks early, predict medicine shortages, and test policy impacts before they happen.
We train national teams to run and improve their HealthOS and AI models from day one. This builds lasting, in-country expertise so the system thrives long after donor funding ends.
The impact so far in Rwanda has demonstrated what is possible when technology meets future-driven leadership. Alongside the Rwandan Ministry of Health and Society for Family Health, more than 125 health posts have been digitized, now connected with electronic medical records, Starlink internet and solar power. Data quality is exceeding 85% on completeness, timeliness and accuracy, unlocking critical insights for prevention. Healthcare worker satisfaction has also jumped from 60% to 80%, while reduced manual reporting has given staff back three days per month. These results are not isolated. They are part of a movement that is scaling; six additional countries by the end of 2025 and more than twenty by 2030.
As technology, data and artificial intelligence evolve at unprecedented speed, one thing remains certain: the future of healthcare will depend on how effectively we harness them. Rwanda’s leadership offers lessons for the continent, demonstrating how when governments lead with an innovative vision and partners bring critical technology, we can build resilient, equitable systems that deliver on the promise of UHC.
Join us at this year’s Global Digital Health Forum to see how we’re using AI and data to strengthen Africa’s health systems and turn challenges into lasting impact.
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