PhD researcher at the University of Cape Town, Min’enhle Ncube is a Zimbabwean anthropologist exploring the intersection of maternal health, data, and artificial intelligence. Her doctoral research, supported by ethnographic fieldwork in Zambia, investigates how startups deploy digital technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) to improve maternal health. Her findings reveal critical data practice gaps, including unrepresentative datasets used in low-resource settings.
Throughout her postgraduate studies, Min’enhle’s core focus has been maternal health, early childhood health, and similar topics in medical anthropology. Her current research trajectory was inspired by her experience as a social scientist at HighTechXL in Eindhoven, Netherlands, where she applied user experience (UX) methodologies to bridge the gap between emerging technologies and end-user needs.
Recognizing the challenges women face in Zambia such as the lack of mobile devices and unrepresentative data, Min’enhle partnered with the Mozilla Foundation to launch Artificial Intelligence in Maternal Health in Zambia (AIMZ). This initiative supports startups like Dawa Health in improving data collection practices and enhancing UX for mobile technology aimed at maternal health care. Her work seeks to ensure that AI-driven health innovations are grounded in local contexts and inclusive of underserved populations.
After completing her PhD, Min'enhle plans to harness technology for social impact in Southern Africa, improving the lives of women and youth by collaborating with aXessPoint, a scale-up specializing in streamlining property communication and collaboration. Together, they aim to adapt the platform for use in Eswatini and Botswana, ensuring its technology addresses the unique needs of these communities.
