Malaria continues to be one of the toughest health and economic burdens in Africa, claiming over 600,000 lives each year, mostly among children. But a new tech-driven approach may be shifting the game.
SORA Technology, a Japanese startup, is leading a project to deploy AI-guided drones that detect and eliminate mosquito breeding grounds with precision. Working with the RAI (Revolutionising African Immunisation) initiative, SORA has launched operations in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and parts of Kenya.
Instead of mass spraying or fogging entire areas, these drones identify actual breeding sites using smart sensors and then apply larvicides exactly where they are needed. This cuts down on chemical use, lowers costs, and speeds up response times. Early results from Ghana show up to 70 percent reduction in insecticide use, 40 percent cost savings, and a 50 percent drop in labour expenses.
For countries where health budgets are tight and resistance to insecticides is rising, these gains are significant. In May 2025, SORA secured US$4.8 million in funding, mainly from Japanese investors, to expand its operations to six additional African countries and support local health ministries with implementation.
Beyond health outcomes, this is also about data and innovation. Founder Yosuke Kaneko described health tech as an investment, not an expense. The project generates precise environmental data that can be shared across sectors, from agriculture to climate planning.
The method also addresses a long-standing problem: drug and insecticide resistance. By targeting larvae early and using AI to limit exposure, SORA’s drones reduce the risk of resistance, keeping prevention tools effective for longer.
This tech-driven model is showing how AI and automation can deliver not just better health outcomes, but also stronger value for governments, startups, and infrastructure players. If scaled properly, it could offer a blueprint for tackling other public health challenges across the continent.
The question is no longer whether tech belongs in African health solutions. It is how fast and how far it can go.
