Google has announced on its official blog that it is working with UNICEF to fight the deadly Zika virus outbreak which possibly contributed to WHO’s declaration of a Public Health Emergency. According to Google, the company’s engineers and UNICEF have been working behind the scenes, analyzing and further mapping data of the difficult to contain virus.
Firstly, a platform is being built to process data from various sources, for instance, weather and travel patterns. This enables UNICEF to better visualize potential virus outbreaks and ultimately, to identify the risk of Zika transmission in different countries and regions so that UNICEF, governments and NGO’s can prioritize their resources more efficiently.
Google has also improved search results on Zika, which is now available in 16 languages globally, alongside an overview of the virus, symptoms and public health alerts which are updated accordingly. In addition to that, Google has collaborating with YouTube creators like Sesame Street and Brazilian physician Drauzio Varella to raise awareness about the virus prevention through their own channels.
Also, a $1 million grant is provided by Google to UNICEF to assist them outside the virtual world. Google claims that 4 in 5 people who carry the virus do not display any symptoms, making Zika harder to be identified and traced. Let’s hope that Google’s efforts will not go to waste.
Source: Google
