Blockchain for Development, feedback from a webinar
In January, l attended the webinar on Blockchain for Development, which was hosted by NETHOPE solutions. With the cryptocurrency buzz and the bitcoin bullish behavior l was curious to learn about this new technology and how it is applied in development and also how it can be assimilated within food and agriculture.
The webinar title was “Blockchain for Development: Moving from Hype to Reality”. This was the fifth of the ongoing ICT4D webinar series by the NetHope community
What is blockchain?
It is a shared ledger that records the history of transactions -It cannot be altered without detection. Blockchain technology allows for highly secure digital transactions and recordkeeping, and has been applied in a number of transaction in different fields.
“Blockchain creates a secure and transparent ledger system that’s available to all parties within a supply chain including producers, retailers, logistics providers, and regulators. This shared ledger compiles a comprehensive record of each asset, all transactions in its history, and its current ownership” (Menker, 2017)… read more
About the webinar?
The webinar which was graced by 3 speakers who have a strong background in development and within ICT4D did justice to the theme of the discussion.
The presenters focused on how blockchain technology is currently used, its barriers to wider adoption, and different ways that organizations are using blockchain technology to support their humanitarian aid and development programs.
The following questions were used as discussion points by the presenters
- How to identify when blockchain technology is beneficial and meets the actual needs of specific countries and aid recipients?
- What are the unique hurdles to blockchain implementation for NGOs and UN agencies and their different financial incentives or objectives to other sectors?
- What is the truth behind concerns about data security and potential financial losses? And how can those be addressed?
- How can the development sector improve awareness and trust in blockchain solutions?
- How can the development and humanitarian aid community better collaborate around blockchain research, innovation and implementation?
Resources shared
- GSMA paper https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Blockchain-for-Development.pdf
- Technology Salon: http://technologysalon.org/use-blockchain-international-development/
- https://www.cgdev.org/blog/making-blockchain-technology-work-development-need-data-and-dialogue
Presenters were
Sonja Ruetzel, ICT4D Conference Manager, Nandini Harihareswara, Regional Technical Specialist and Ahmed Dermish, Ecosystem Specialist, Digital Finance, Global Technical Specialist, both from Mobile Money for the Poor (MM4P) - United Nations Capital Development, Jordan Weinstock, Senior Vice President, Strategic Impact Advisors, and Helen James, Head of Digital and Member Communications, Start Network
More information here
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