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Business Insider
a day ago
- Business
- Business Insider
How a nonprofit's AI tool is giving aid workers life-saving answers during humanitarian crises
For "CXO AI Playbook," Business Insider takes a look at mini case studies about AI adoption across industries, company sizes, and technology DNA. We've asked each of the featured companies to tell us about the problems they're trying to solve with AI, who's making these decisions internally, and their vision for using AI in the future. Founded in 1979, Mercy Corps is a global humanitarian aid organization based in Portland, Oregon. It operates in more than 40 countries, and has roughly 4,000 employees supporting communities affected by poverty, disaster, conflict, and the climate crisis. The majority of its staff members are from the countries where they work. Situation analysis: What problem was the organization trying to solve? In the developing world, agricultural crises like droughts, crop failures, and loss of livestock can rapidly escalate into humanitarian crises. Mercy Corps has experience anticipating these emergencies and reducing their impact. But a lack of timely, reliable data often prevents that knowledge from reaching the right people at the right time. Alicia Morrison, the director of data science at Mercy Corps, saw potential in generative AI for getting relevant information into the hands of decision-makers more quickly. The goal was to build a tool that could provide aid workers with quick, reliable answers to the day-to-day questions they face in the field. The answers would be based on past projects, research, and proven approaches, and include links to sources and citations so workers can know where the information comes from. "Making that tool available to the people doing the work helps them learn from what's been done and imagine new possibilities," she told Business Insider. "That's when we get the most creative ideas and uses of information." Key staff and partners Mercy Corps took part in Tech To the Rescue's AI for Changemakers program, a global accelerator that helps nonprofits experiment with AI. Through intensive, short-term training programs, Tech To the Rescue gives organizations a chance to pitch AI ideas and connect with private sector partners who can help bring them to life. Mercy Corps matched with Cloudera, a software company focused on data management, analytics, and AI. "They had the idea and we believed we could contribute our time, resources, and skills and add value," said Rob Dickens, a solutions architect at Cloudera. Cloudera donated engineering time and platform credits to develop the product, which is called the AI Methods Matcher. Dickens said development took about seven weeks, and the tool runs on Cloudera's AI Inference service, which uses Nvidia technology. AI in action Methods Matcher uses a type of generative AI called retrieval-augmented generation. It draws on an archive of successful projects to search for relevant information, summarize it, and offer recommendations. Now, decisions that aid workers make on the ground — from calculating vegetation health to tracking fertilizer distribution — can be guided by data. Morrison said the tool speeds up decision-making by reducing the time and manual research required to analyze large volumes of information. With Methods Matcher, Mercy Corps' teams can identify actions that have worked elsewhere and get evidence-based suggestions in real time. For example, in countries facing severe inflation, Mercy Corps often provides multipurpose cash assistance. But the organization needs to know the purchasing power of that cash to make an impact. In this case, an aid worker in the field might ask the tool, "How do I determine how much cash aid to give people in a region with rising inflation?" Methods Matcher responds with a tailored answer based on past Mercy Corps projects and research. Aid workers can ask follow-up questions in the same session, and because the tool "remembers" the conversation history, they can build on earlier questions without having to start over. The tool helps teams in the field quickly access information without waiting for support from HQ. "They can see for themselves how valuable this kind of information can be," Morrison said. Did it work, and how did leaders know? Since the tool's launch in November 2024, Morrison said that while they have yet to report metrics on the tool's impact, there has been strong early adoption among field teams. Mercy Corps is now working with Cloudera to expand Methods Matcher, develop new AI tools, and build data literacy across the organization. It's also gathering feedback on Methods Matcher from staff to understand what's working and what needs improvement. "We're a nonprofit, so we don't have a big team of in-house AI experts," Morrison said. "We're learning as we go — figuring out how to maintain these tools, how to evaluate them, and how to get people across the organization on board for the long haul." What's next? Mercy Corps has experienced a significant shift in funding in recent months, but Morrison said Methods Matcher and other AI tools remain "a priority investment area." She added that the organization will continue to improve based on team feedback. Dickens said Cloudera plans to bring agentic AI into the tool through its Agent Studio, automating tasks like gathering real-time data, analyzing trends, and generating reports or recommendations. This will allow Methods Matcher to surface relevant news and social media reports from affected areas, making it more responsive to events on the ground. "Aid workers will get richer, real-time context instead of manually compiling daily or monthly reports," he said.
Arab News
16-05-2025
- Health
- Arab News
Children die as USAID aid cuts snap a lifeline for the world's most malnourished
DIKWA, Nigeria: Under the dappled light of a thatched shelter, Yagana Bulama cradles her surviving infant. The other twin is gone, a casualty of malnutrition and the international funding cuts that are snapping the lifeline for displaced communities in Nigeria's insurgency-ravaged Borno state. 'Feeding is severely difficult,' said Bulama, 40, who was a farmer before Boko Haram militants swept through her village, forcing her to flee. She and about 400,000 other people at the humanitarian hub of Dikwa — virtually the entire population — rely on assistance. The military restricts their movements to a designated 'safe zone,' which severely limits farming. For years, the United States Agency for International Development had been the backbone of the humanitarian response in northeastern Nigeria, helping non-government organizations provide food, shelter and health care to millions of people. But this year, the Trump administration cut more than 90 percent of USAID's foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall assistance around the world. Programs serving children were hit hard. Bulama previously lost young triplets to hunger before reaching therapeutic feeding centers in Dikwa. When she gave birth to twins last August, both were severely underweight. Workers from Mercy Corps enrolled them in a program to receive a calorie-dense paste used to treat severe acute malnutrition. But in February, Mercy Corps abruptly ended the program that was entirely financed by USAID. Two weeks later, one of the twins died, Bulama said. She has no more tears, only dread for what may come next. 'I don't want to bury another child,' she said. 'Very traumatic' Globally, 50 percent of the therapeutic foods for treating malnutrition in children were funded by USAID, and 40 percent of the supplies were produced in the US, according to Shawn Baker, chief program officer at Helen Keller Intl and former chief nutritionist at USAID. He said the consequence could be 1 million children not receiving treatment for severe malnutrition, resulting in 163,500 additional deaths per year. For Helen Keller Intl, its programs in Bangladesh, Nepal and Nigeria have been terminated. 'It is very traumatic,' said Trond Jensen, the head of the United Nations humanitarian office in Maiduguri, Borno's capital, of the funding cuts, noting that other donors, including the European Union, have taken similar steps this year. 'One of the things is the threat to the lives of children.' UNICEF still runs a therapeutic feeding center nearby, which now supports Bulama's surviving baby, but its capacity is stretched. It is turning away many people previously served by other aid groups that have pulled out due to funding cuts. Intersos, an Italian humanitarian organization, has the only remaining facility providing in-patient services for malnutrition in Dikwa, treating the most perilous cases. Its workers say they are overwhelmed, with at least 10 new admissions of seriously malnourished children daily. 'Before the USAID cut, we made a lot of progress,' said Ayuba Kauji, a health and nutrition supervisor. 'Now my biggest worry is high mortality. We don't have enough resources to keep up.' Intersos was forced to reduce its staff from 30 to 11 in Dikwa after the USAID freeze. Its nutrition and health facilities now operate solely on support from the Nigerian Humanitarian Fund, a smaller pot of money contributed by a few European countries. That funding will be finished in June. The crisis is equally acute in Maiduguri, where the economy is reeling from massive terminations of aid workers. At another Intersos-run facility, 10 of the 12 doctors have left and four nurses remain, with 50 new admissions of malnourished children per week. 'It used to be far less,' said Emmanuel Ali, one of the remaining doctors. Beyond nutrition The effects of the funding cuts extend far beyond nutrition. At the International Organization for Migration's reception center in Dikwa, thousands of displaced families and those escaping Boko Haram captivity are stranded. There are no new shelters being built and no support for relocation. 'Before, organizations like Mercy Corps built mud-brick homes and rehabilitated damaged shelters to absorb people from the IOM reception center,' said one official at the center, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the situation. 'Now, that has stopped.' Jensen, the UN humanitarian head in Maiduguri, said, 'sadly, we are not seeing additional funding to make up for the US cuts.' He warned that vulnerable people could turn to risky ways of coping, including joining violent groups. A global problem The crisis in Nigeria is part of a larger reckoning. According to Kate Phillips-Barrasso, Mercy Corps' vice president for policy and advocacy, 40 of its 62 US-funded programs with the potential to reach 3.5 million people in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Somalia, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Lebanon and Gaza have been terminated. In Mozambique, where jihadist violence in the north has displaced over a million people since 2017, humanitarian organizations face steep shortfalls with 'devastating' effects on the needy, said Frederico João, chairman of the forum of NGOs in the region. More widely, the USAID funding cut compromises Mozambique's health sector, especially in HIV/AIDS care, said Inocêncio Impissa, cabinet spokesman. The government now seeks alternative funding to prevent total collapse of health systems.
Hamilton Spectator
16-05-2025
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
Children die as USAID aid cuts snap a lifeline for the world's most malnourished
DIKWA, Nigeria (AP) — Under the dappled light of a thatched shelter, Yagana Bulama cradles her surviving infant. The other twin is gone, a casualty of malnutrition and the international funding cuts that are snapping the lifeline for displaced communities in Nigeria's insurgency-ravaged Borno state. 'Feeding is severely difficult,' said Bulama, 40, who was a farmer before Boko Haram militants swept through her village, forcing her to flee. She and about 400,000 other people at the humanitarian hub of Dikwa — virtually the entire population — rely on assistance. The military restricts their movements to a designated 'safe zone,' which severely limits farming. For years, the United States Agency for International Development had been the backbone of the humanitarian response in northeastern Nigeria, helping non-government organizations provide food, shelter and healthcare to millions of people. But this year, the Trump administration cut more than 90% of USAID's foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall assistance around the world. Programs serving children were hit hard. Bulama previously lost young triplets to hunger before reaching therapeutic feeding centers in Dikwa. When she gave birth to twins last August, both were severely underweight. Workers from Mercy Corps enrolled them in a program to receive a calorie-dense paste used to treat severe acute malnutrition. But in February, Mercy Corps abruptly ended the program that was entirely financed by USAID. Two weeks later, one of the twins died, Bulama said. She has no more tears, only dread for what may come next. 'I don't want to bury another child,' she said. 'Very traumatic' Globally, 50% of the therapeutic foods for treating malnutrition in children were funded by USAID, and 40% of the supplies were produced in the U.S ., according to Shawn Baker, chief program officer at Helen Keller Intl and former chief nutritionist at USAID. He said the consequence could be 1 million children not receiving treatment for severe malnutrition, resulting in 163,500 additional deaths per year. For Helen Keller Intl, its programs in Bangladesh, Nepal and Nigeria have been terminated. 'It is very traumatic,' said Trond Jensen, the head of the United Nations humanitarian office in Maiduguri, Borno's capital, of the funding cuts, noting that other donors, including the European Union, have taken similar steps this year. 'One of the things is the threat to the lives of children.' UNICEF still runs a therapeutic feeding center nearby, which now supports Bulama's surviving baby, but its capacity is stretched. It is turning away many people previously served by other aid groups that have pulled out due to funding cuts. Intersos, an Italian humanitarian organization, has the only remaining facility providing in-patient services for malnutrition in Dikwa, treating the most perilous cases. Its workers say they are overwhelmed, with at least 10 new admissions of seriously malnourished children daily. 'Before the USAID cut, we made a lot of progress,' said Ayuba Kauji, a health and nutrition supervisor. 'Now my biggest worry is high mortality. We don't have enough resources to keep up.' Intersos was forced to reduce its staff from 30 to 11 in Dikwa after the USAID freeze. Its nutrition and health facilities now operate solely on support from the Nigerian Humanitarian Fund, a smaller pot of money contributed by a few European countries. That funding will be finished in June. The crisis is equally acute in Maiduguri, where the economy is reeling from massive terminations of aid workers. At another Intersos-run facility, 10 of the 12 doctors have left and four nurses remain, with 50 new admissions of malnourished children per week. 'It used to be far less,' said Emmanuel Ali, one of the remaining doctors. Beyond nutrition The effects of the funding cuts extend far beyond nutrition. At the International Organization for Migration's reception center in Dikwa, thousands of displaced families and those escaping Boko Haram captivity are stranded. There are no new shelters being built and no support for relocation. 'Before, organizations like Mercy Corps built mud-brick homes and rehabilitated damaged shelters to absorb people from the IOM reception center,' said one official at the center, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the situation. 'Now, that has stopped.' Jensen, the U.N. humanitarian head in Maiduguri, said, 'sadly, we are not seeing additional funding to make up for the U.S. cuts.' He warned that vulnerable people could turn to risky ways of coping, including joining violent groups. A global problem The crisis in Nigeria is part of a larger reckoning. According to Kate Phillips-Barrasso, Mercy Corps' vice president for policy and advocacy, 40 of its 62 U.S.-funded programs with the potential to reach 3.5 million people in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Somalia, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Lebanon and Gaza have been terminated. In Mozambique, where jihadist violence in the north has displaced over a million people since 2017, humanitarian organizations face steep shortfalls with 'devastating' effects on the needy, said Frederico João, chairman of the forum of NGOs in the region. More widely, the USAID funding cut compromises Mozambique's health sector, especially in HIV/AIDS care, said Inocêncio Impissa, cabinet spokesman. The government now seeks alternative funding to prevent total collapse of health systems. Charles Mangwiro in Maputo, Mozambique, contributed to this story. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Children die as USAID aid cuts snap a lifeline for the world's most malnourished
DIKWA, Nigeria (AP) — Under the dappled light of a thatched shelter, Yagana Bulama cradles her surviving infant. The other twin is gone, a casualty of malnutrition and the international funding cuts that are snapping the lifeline for displaced communities in Nigeria's insurgency-ravaged Borno state. 'Feeding is severely difficult,' said Bulama, 40, who was a farmer before Boko Haram militants swept through her village, forcing her to flee. She and about 400,000 other people at the humanitarian hub of Dikwa — virtually the entire population — rely on assistance. The military restricts their movements to a designated 'safe zone,' which severely limits farming. For years, the United States Agency for International Development had been the backbone of the humanitarian response in northeastern Nigeria, helping non-government organizations provide food, shelter and healthcare to millions of people. But this year, the Trump administration cut more than 90% of USAID's foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall assistance around the world. Programs serving children were hit hard. Bulama previously lost young triplets to hunger before reaching therapeutic feeding centers in Dikwa. When she gave birth to twins last August, both were severely underweight. Workers from Mercy Corps enrolled them in a program to receive a calorie-dense paste used to treat severe acute malnutrition. But in February, Mercy Corps abruptly ended the program that was entirely financed by USAID. Two weeks later, one of the twins died, Bulama said. She has no more tears, only dread for what may come next. 'I don't want to bury another child,' she said. 'Very traumatic' Globally, 50% of the therapeutic foods for treating malnutrition in children were funded by USAID, and 40% of the supplies were produced in the U.S., according to Shawn Baker, chief program officer at Helen Keller Intl and former chief nutritionist at USAID. He said the consequence could be 1 million children not receiving treatment for severe malnutrition, resulting in 163,500 additional deaths per year. For Helen Keller Intl, its programs in Bangladesh, Nepal and Nigeria have been terminated. 'It is very traumatic,' said Trond Jensen, the head of the United Nations humanitarian office in Maiduguri, Borno's capital, of the funding cuts, noting that other donors, including the European Union, have taken similar steps this year. 'One of the things is the threat to the lives of children.' UNICEF still runs a therapeutic feeding center nearby, which now supports Bulama's surviving baby, but its capacity is stretched. It is turning away many people previously served by other aid groups that have pulled out due to funding cuts. Intersos, an Italian humanitarian organization, has the only remaining facility providing in-patient services for malnutrition in Dikwa, treating the most perilous cases. Its workers say they are overwhelmed, with at least 10 new admissions of seriously malnourished children daily. 'Before the USAID cut, we made a lot of progress,' said Ayuba Kauji, a health and nutrition supervisor. 'Now my biggest worry is high mortality. We don't have enough resources to keep up.' Intersos was forced to reduce its staff from 30 to 11 in Dikwa after the USAID freeze. Its nutrition and health facilities now operate solely on support from the Nigerian Humanitarian Fund, a smaller pot of money contributed by a few European countries. That funding will be finished in June. The crisis is equally acute in Maiduguri, where the economy is reeling from massive terminations of aid workers. At another Intersos-run facility, 10 of the 12 doctors have left and four nurses remain, with 50 new admissions of malnourished children per week. 'It used to be far less,' said Emmanuel Ali, one of the remaining doctors. Beyond nutrition The effects of the funding cuts extend far beyond nutrition. At the International Organization for Migration's reception center in Dikwa, thousands of displaced families and those escaping Boko Haram captivity are stranded. There are no new shelters being built and no support for relocation. 'Before, organizations like Mercy Corps built mud-brick homes and rehabilitated damaged shelters to absorb people from the IOM reception center,' said one official at the center, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the situation. 'Now, that has stopped.' Jensen, the U.N. humanitarian head in Maiduguri, said, 'sadly, we are not seeing additional funding to make up for the U.S. cuts.' He warned that vulnerable people could turn to risky ways of coping, including joining violent groups. A global problem The crisis in Nigeria is part of a larger reckoning. According to Kate Phillips-Barrasso, Mercy Corps' vice president for policy and advocacy, 40 of its 62 U.S.-funded programs with the potential to reach 3.5 million people in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Somalia, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Lebanon and Gaza have been terminated. In Mozambique, where jihadist violence in the north has displaced over a million people since 2017, humanitarian organizations face steep shortfalls with 'devastating' effects on the needy, said Frederico João, chairman of the forum of NGOs in the region. More widely, the USAID funding cut compromises Mozambique's health sector, especially in HIV/AIDS care, said Inocêncio Impissa, cabinet spokesman. The government now seeks alternative funding to prevent total collapse of health systems. Charles Mangwiro in Maputo, Mozambique, contributed to this story. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Winnipeg Free Press
16-05-2025
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Children die as USAID aid cuts snap a lifeline for the world's most malnourished
DIKWA, Nigeria (AP) — Under the dappled light of a thatched shelter, Yagana Bulama cradles her surviving infant. The other twin is gone, a casualty of malnutrition and the international funding cuts that are snapping the lifeline for displaced communities in Nigeria's insurgency-ravaged Borno state. 'Feeding is severely difficult,' said Bulama, 40, who was a farmer before Boko Haram militants swept through her village, forcing her to flee. She and about 400,000 other people at the humanitarian hub of Dikwa — virtually the entire population — rely on assistance. The military restricts their movements to a designated 'safe zone,' which severely limits farming. For years, the United States Agency for International Development had been the backbone of the humanitarian response in northeastern Nigeria, helping non-government organizations provide food, shelter and healthcare to millions of people. But this year, the Trump administration cut more than 90% of USAID's foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in overall assistance around the world. Programs serving children were hit hard. Bulama previously lost young triplets to hunger before reaching therapeutic feeding centers in Dikwa. When she gave birth to twins last August, both were severely underweight. Workers from Mercy Corps enrolled them in a program to receive a calorie-dense paste used to treat severe acute malnutrition. But in February, Mercy Corps abruptly ended the program that was entirely financed by USAID. Two weeks later, one of the twins died, Bulama said. She has no more tears, only dread for what may come next. 'I don't want to bury another child,' she said. 'Very traumatic' Globally, 50% of the therapeutic foods for treating malnutrition in children were funded by USAID, and 40% of the supplies were produced in the U.S., according to Shawn Baker, chief program officer at Helen Keller Intl and former chief nutritionist at USAID. He said the consequence could be 1 million children not receiving treatment for severe malnutrition, resulting in 163,500 additional deaths per year. For Helen Keller Intl, its programs in Bangladesh, Nepal and Nigeria have been terminated. 'It is very traumatic,' said Trond Jensen, the head of the United Nations humanitarian office in Maiduguri, Borno's capital, of the funding cuts, noting that other donors, including the European Union, have taken similar steps this year. 'One of the things is the threat to the lives of children.' UNICEF still runs a therapeutic feeding center nearby, which now supports Bulama's surviving baby, but its capacity is stretched. It is turning away many people previously served by other aid groups that have pulled out due to funding cuts. Intersos, an Italian humanitarian organization, has the only remaining facility providing in-patient services for malnutrition in Dikwa, treating the most perilous cases. Its workers say they are overwhelmed, with at least 10 new admissions of seriously malnourished children daily. 'Before the USAID cut, we made a lot of progress,' said Ayuba Kauji, a health and nutrition supervisor. 'Now my biggest worry is high mortality. We don't have enough resources to keep up.' Intersos was forced to reduce its staff from 30 to 11 in Dikwa after the USAID freeze. Its nutrition and health facilities now operate solely on support from the Nigerian Humanitarian Fund, a smaller pot of money contributed by a few European countries. That funding will be finished in June. The crisis is equally acute in Maiduguri, where the economy is reeling from massive terminations of aid workers. At another Intersos-run facility, 10 of the 12 doctors have left and four nurses remain, with 50 new admissions of malnourished children per week. 'It used to be far less,' said Emmanuel Ali, one of the remaining doctors. Beyond nutrition The effects of the funding cuts extend far beyond nutrition. At the International Organization for Migration's reception center in Dikwa, thousands of displaced families and those escaping Boko Haram captivity are stranded. There are no new shelters being built and no support for relocation. 'Before, organizations like Mercy Corps built mud-brick homes and rehabilitated damaged shelters to absorb people from the IOM reception center,' said one official at the center, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the situation. 'Now, that has stopped.' Jensen, the U.N. humanitarian head in Maiduguri, said, 'sadly, we are not seeing additional funding to make up for the U.S. cuts.' He warned that vulnerable people could turn to risky ways of coping, including joining violent groups. A global problem The crisis in Nigeria is part of a larger reckoning. According to Kate Phillips-Barrasso, Mercy Corps' vice president for policy and advocacy, 40 of its 62 U.S.-funded programs with the potential to reach 3.5 million people in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Somalia, Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Lebanon and Gaza have been terminated. In Mozambique, where jihadist violence in the north has displaced over a million people since 2017, humanitarian organizations face steep shortfalls with 'devastating' effects on the needy, said Frederico João, chairman of the forum of NGOs in the region. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. More widely, the USAID funding cut compromises Mozambique's health sector, especially in HIV/AIDS care, said Inocêncio Impissa, cabinet spokesman. The government now seeks alternative funding to prevent total collapse of health systems. Charles Mangwiro in Maputo, Mozambique, contributed to this story. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
