Satida Collect Is An App That Identifies Regions Most Vulnerable To Food Insecurity

Food security is a major problem in India, both because of unpredictable weather patterns, like droughts and because of its large population. In order to combat food insecurity all across the world, scientists at Vienna University have developed an app called Satida Collect that will process different types of data to identify and predict where malnutrition rates will be high.

Factoring In

Satida Collect uses various factors to analyse food security in a region. First, it collates information about weather and soil moisture that can reveal how well crops can be produced in the area. Then, it also uses crowd sourced data to analyse population figures, socio-economic problems (such as low income rates or violent conflicts) and the region’s previous experiences with malnutrition to find out which regions are most at risk.

A Helping Hand, Before It’s Too Late

Once the app collates the data (provided that there is a stable internet connection), it can create a map of the region that visually highlights areas that immediately need food aid.

Using this information, organisations such as Doctors Without Borders and other welfare organisations can quickly move into areas that need help.

“Today, smartphones are available even in developing countries, and so we decided to develop an app to help us collect the necessary data”, said Mathias Karner, one of the app’s developers.

The app has been tested with positive results in Central Africa. The app is free and open for all users to install.