It was such a pleasure to speak with @themaybe.org about our new investigation
What’s more, a confidential document we obtained showed that the government knew that its model was “inequitable, especially for poor households” but deployed the system regardless. www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
Exclusive: amid unrest, President William Ruto promised to give all Kenyans access to healthcare. But the algorithm favours the rich, an investigation has found
What seemed like a shiny technical solution, however, actually made Kenya’s healthcare situation much worse.
For this Tech Story of the Week, @alixdunn.com speaks to @gabrielgeiger.bsky.social and Purity Mukami, two journalists who worked together to rebuild the algorithm and test it themselves.
What we found was striking: the system overcharges the poorest Kenyans while undercharging the wealthiest.
It’s remarkably crude, using variables like whether your walls are made of dung or plywood, you own a radio, and your level of education to predict your income. Simply having access to electricity, or completing high school can lead to an actually poor household predicted as rich.
