UNDP South Sudan Accelerator lab hosts stakeholder validation meeting on mHealth.

Lifeline on Wheels: A Digital Ambulance Platform to save Mothers in South Sudan

August 5, 2025

A group of people seated in a modern meeting room, engaging in a discussion. — Discussing the application

UNDP/Sarah Abraham

Author

Jacqueline Aringu

Head of Experimentation, Acc Lab, UNDP South Sudan

Maternal Mortality remains one of the most pressing health challenges, and the urgency to find local, scalable and inclusive solutions has never been greater. Women across South Sudan, continue to face preventable complications and even death due to lack of timely access to emergency maternal care due to delayed access to medical services because of either long distance to medical facility or lack of awareness of existing ambulance services – women continue to bear the burden of difficult and unfortunately fatal deliveries.

But now, a new innovative solution is paving a new path and is gaining traction, not just because of its innovativeness and ingenuity, but because it is being shaped and validated with the very people it seeks to serve.

A presenter gestures towards a digital screen during a meeting, with audience members visible. — Junub Open Space presenting the Application

UNDP/Sarah Abraham

To address this, the UNDP Accelerator lab is working with Junub Open Space – a national innovation hub in co-creating this mHealth solution – a digital ambulance platform designed to link expectant mothers in emergencies with available ambulances and health facilities, reducing the time for mother and baby to receive medical attention.

This platform is more than just an app; it is a lifeline. it’s designed to meet demand and supply, operating both via an online APP on play store or SMS (offline) allowing families, attendants and health workers to locate and access the nearest available ambulance, secure payments and live tracking of the ambulance.

This stakeholders' validation workshop hosted by the developers at the UNIPOD brought together different civil society organizations working in the area of maternal health, students in the field of medicine, UNDP South Sudan Student Ambassadors, private ambulances owners as well as government officials from the state ministry of health to demonstrate and a checkpoint to reflect on ways to improve the product.

A woman in a white shirt speaks to an audience at a meeting, with a colorful banner in the background.

A speaker addresses a group in a conference room, with green wall decor and a long table.

A person in a black shirt uses a smartphone while seated at a table.

What next?

No woman should lose their life-giving birth. With the power of innovation and community-driven solutions, we are getting closer to this reality every day.