IEEE Humanitarian Technologies News

Welcome to this edition of the HT newsletter, the last edition for 2024. As usual, your valuable efforts and support continue to be highly recognized and appreciated and truly make our world a better place to live for the current and future generations. 

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the November IEEE Board of Directors meeting series where I met with representatives from current and prospective partners across IEEE. It was fulfilling to share our joint achievements and explore how we could continue to work together in the future. 

On another note, I was also privileged to attend the International Humanitarian Technology Conference (IHTC) in Bari, Italy. During this event, I presented on recent achievements and plans for the future, as well as interacted with the various stakeholders in the humanitarian ecosystem at IEEE to share experiences and ideas.

Afterwards, I attended the National Innovation Summit organized by the IEEE Uganda Section, and presided over by Uganda’s state minister for Information, Communication Technology (ICT) and National Guidance. I joined the other speakers in stressing the importance of developing and promoting humanity-centered innovations and enterprise for sustainable development.

From there I traveled to Cape Town, South Africa to participate in the IEEE Global  Communications (GLOBECOM) conference. During this event HTB hosted 2 panels focusing on Tech4Good in Africa: Driving Sustainable Connectivity and Telecom Growth in the Era of AI. Our invited panelists emphasized the importance for African professionals and policy makers to collaborate in developing homegrown AI modules to respond to the increasing connectivity gaps on the continent.

Warm greetings!

I’m humbled and honored to write this 2024 year-end message. What a fantastic journey it has been as I complete my HTB tenure. Personally, It was a transformative experience to have led and served on SIGHT (2018 – 2020), IEEE HAC (2021-2022), and IEEE HTB (2023-2024) to record-breaking global achievements in membership growth, partnerships, and engagements.  I’m proud to have been a part of this story and spearheaded several key programs. IEEE Humanitarian Technologies has witnessed many milestones in the last six years, leading to the establishment of HTB in 2022.  Particularly in recent times, I’m proud to have led partnership programs, and joint strategic programs with IEEE Regions, major boards, and  IEEE Societies. These impactful collaborations have positioned HTB to deliver greater impact in years to come. I also reflect on the external partnerships such as ITU, UN agencies, and several global forums across the world. The SIGHT program has witnessed outstanding growth from about 5,000 to more than 65,000 members today. It gives a deeper sense of satisfaction that these programs were greatly appreciated by members and partners making IEEE a world leader in the humanitarian technologies space.

In 2024, HTB achieved great heights in partnership efforts. We engaged with entities across IEEE including IEEE AP-S, IEEE MTT-S, IEEE EDS, IEEE HKN, IEEE ComSoc, IEEE IAS, IEEE SPS, Region 8, and many more. We continued our strong collaboration with the HT consortium programs including IEEE EPICS, IEEE MOVE, and IEEE Smart Village to promote them and their valuable offerings. We launched “Partnering for Impact” where we closely collaborate with IEEE Societies to deliver ideation sessions that will lead to joint programs. We thank the IEEE Foundation for supporting our efforts to restructure the existing Taenzer Grant into a new program  “AI for Disabilities” to be delivered in 2025. We also participated in several global forums like GITEX, several IEEE Technical Society’s leading conferences, and Regional meetings where we showcased HTB’s strategic plans and impactful work in 2024. I thank all members of the IEEE HTB partnership ad-hoc for your contributions and support. 

I thank the IEEE AP-S and MTT-S leadership for inviting me to deliver a keynote on HT partnership opportunities to benefit chapter leaders at MAPCON, held in Hyderabad, India. Our sessions were well received by attendees with their commitment to participate in HT programs. Also, we had exciting and productive engagements with our partners at the IEEE Board Series in Texas, USA.