Project Details
Title:
The Ɔbaa Panin Project - accessible maternal health technology,
Details:
The Ɔbaa Panin Project, a pioneering initiative in accessible maternal health technology, has officially come to a close at the DCS HCI Lab, University of Ghana. Conceived as a pilot study, the project explored how fully oral, Akan-speaking AI can deliver evidence-based maternal health information to mothers regardless of literacy level.
Built in close collaboration with midwives and aligned with Ghana’s Safe Motherhood protocols, the AI assistant was designed with safety and contextual relevance at its core. As a pilot, it also surfaced chatbot features that will need further refinement and optimisation as the system matures.
At the closing workshop, participants heard a thought-provoking presentation on agentic AI systems, grounded in a Ghanaian study by Dr. Frank Yeboah, which sparked debate on responsible, human-centred AI design. The event transitioned into an inception meeting that brought together researchers from the DCS HCI Lab, the Department of Engineering, the Department of Languages, and the School of Disability Studies.
This new collaborative effort will focus on a smart, computer-vision-assisted walking stick for blind and visually impaired people, designed to enhance safe navigation, spatial awareness, and real-world usability, with Akan language integration as a core feature. The project extends the lab’s broader commitment to accessibility, local language support, and human-centred design across different domains.
Project leads emphasise that closing Ɔbaa Panin marks a transition rather than an endpoint, creating space for new questions, partnerships, and research directions. They expressed gratitude to funders Google and BANGA-UG, as well as the researchers, practising midwives, and other contributors whose expertise made the work possible.