What Drones Are Really Changing In Africa (Hint: It's Not Media Or Tech)

As drone technology has become more affordable and more pervasive in African countries, the role played by these winged gadgets has both shifted in some places and consolidated in others.

Initially heralded as the harbinger of a promised revolution in African digital media, the advent of flying cameras opened up new perspectives but, after several years of buzz, it is clear they are unlikely to ever have the impact of, say, the introduction of photography itself; or that of mobile phones, which have radically overhauled not just African communications but also access to information across the continent.   

So where do drones fit into this landscape? The answer, it turns out, is far more exciting than providing fancy gadgets for cowboy journalists or wealthy voyeurs. African scientists are discovering and inventing truly unique ways to apply drone technology to their own locations—with landscape-changing and life-saving results. These range from a drone-based blood transfusion service in Rwanda to drone-enabled farming in Sudan, and even a drone service that is helping Nigerian archaeologists identify ancient settlement sites.