Scaling Missing Maps in Uganda and DRC

Millions of people in the most vulnerable, conflict-affected places are still missing from all publicly available maps, with the places they live appearing as single points without names. Provision of targeted preventive or faster curative interventions are impossible without knowing precise origins of a patient, where refugees/IDPs have sheltered, and locations of and gaps in basic services. Humanitarians lack this foundational data essential for time-critical prioritization decisions that can save lives.

In order to alleviate this challenge, the HOT team collaborated with district health teams to design village-level, book-sized maps. These book-sized maps were distributed to the village community health workers to help them navigate, locate, and record their movements even without using smartphones. The HOT team has also developed district-level gazetteers that were shared with health centers across the district to assist in reducing the time spent on patient tracing. To maximize the benefit of the maps and gazetteers, over 800 health workers were trained in the use of the maps and data.

Read more about the project in this storymap.