UX Research for Social Impact in Africa

Written by Teacup Lab.

We’re very happy to share that, for the next five years, Teacup will be part of a big project, funded by the European Commission, with a bold mission: developing an AI-powered app to help detect and manage skin Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This is our first time joining a European project, and we’re super excited to pour all our research skills and experience into something on such a large scale, especially a project whose main goal is social impact, not just economics.

Why this matters

Skin NTDs are a group of infectious diseases common in tropical and subtropical regions. They disproportionately affect communities living in poverty, often in areas with poor sanitation, close contact with disease vectors or livestock, and very limited access to healthcare.

For these diseases, clinical examination is still the main way to diagnose them. But the challenge is that effective control programs depend on local healthcare providers having solid training in diagnosis… and in many cases, that’s hard to come by.

Here is where the SkincAIr Project enters: a collaborative effort to create a digital tool that supports health providers in diagnosing and treating skin NTDs more effectively.

Our role in the project

Teacup’s job will be making sure this solution is culturally relevant, user-friendly, and grounded in the everyday realities of frontline healthcare workers, the people who are often closest to patients and who will actually be using the app.

Since the app will first roll out in three countries (Kenya, Ethiopia and Senegal), we’ll be doing fieldwork in each to make sure it’s a good cultural fit for all.

What we hope to achieve

The insights we collect will feed directly into designing and refining a user-centered prototype for early diagnosis and care. This means we’ll build from real-world knowledge of:

• Diagnostic practices.
• The main challenges healthcare workers face.
• How these differ across urban, suburban, and rural settings.
• The perspectives of different roles, from frontline workers to dermatologists.

In short, we’re laying the groundwork for solutions that are not only technologically sound but also practical, relevant, and respectful of local realities.

Follow our journey

Over the next few years, we’ll be travelling to Sub-Saharan Africa, working closely with our partners on the ground. We’ll share our learnings, stories from the field, and behind-the-scenes glimpses right here on the blog. Stay tuned, the Teacup adventure in Africa is just getting started.

You can read the original article here.

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