RTI International and IBM Research - Africa... -- RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. and NAIROBI, Kenya, July 15, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --

RTI International - a leading nonprofit research institute - and IBM's (NYSE: IBM) Africa research lab have announced a partnership to deploy big data analytics and cognitive technologies to help transform development approaches in Africa and around the world. In one of the first projects, IBM and RTI are developing and testing intelligent systems to capture data about schools in Mombasa County, Kenya. Through the partnership, RTI and IBM Research – Africa will explore ways of using advanced technologies to capture accurate data about challenges in areas such as healthcare, agriculture, water and education. Drawing on the power of big data analytics, researchers will provide insight to governments, aid agencies and other organizations who are looking to make more informed decisions about investment and development while having greater visibility of results ... The partnership comes as a rapid rise in mobile and Internet of Things technologies are producing unprecedented amounts of data. In developing countries, mobile phones, digital devices and low-cost sensors connected to improving cellular networks are reaching previously disconnected communities with the potential to produce new insight about how people live and the challenges they face ... "