Trends and Innovation from the U-Report Solutions Mapping Campaign

The U-Report Solutions Mapping Campaign was launched by the Accelerator Lab in UNDP and the UNICEF Innovation to identify emerging issues and to understand innovative solutions developed during COVID- 19 Movement Control Order (MCO). The campaign adopted a bottom-up methodology and user-led approach that explored the stories of grassroot innovations shared by participants, which revealed their concerns and needs. This then enables the most viable solutions to be recommended and shared with the wider community.

The virtual campaign run via U-Report-powered chatbots received over 274 submissions of grassroot innovations and provided insights about existing gaps. Top 10 winners were selected for their interesting and innovative submissions, each receiving vouchers worth RM100. Amongst them are passionate educators who rode the technology wave by creating apps and using social media for education purposes, a youth who assisted elderly neighbors in performing religious activities online during Ramadan, and a 14-year-old boy who knitted face masks adapters for hijab-wearing Muslim women.

Read up on the submissions of the Top 10 Winners here. For the Bahasa Melayu version, click here.

The entries ranged from solutions for income generation and business revenue, assistance of vulnerable groups, to solutions related to physical and mental health, and working and learning at home. It is noteworthy that while many managed to adapt to the new norm, some parts of the society showcased an inability to adapt during the pandemic – due to factors such as crowded living space, digital illiteracy, lack of resources, etc. Such predicaments have yet to be addressed effectively at the national level. Nevertheless, the campaign has showcased that the youth are indeed agents of change – capable of coming out with solutions and looking out for the needs of their communities.

Click here to view all the submissions collected throughout the campaign. We would like to extend our gratitude to all participants for their participation and for helping to shed light on the trends and innovations in their respective communities.

The infographic below shows the summary of trend and narratives from the entries collected.