Sophie Ngoma

A Congolese physician who pioneered mobile health clinics in conflict zones

Sophie Ngoma (b.1978) is a Congolese doctor who revolutionized healthcare delivery in war-torn regions. Working in the Democratic Republic of Congo's North Kivu province, she created Mobile Health Congo in 2013, a network of motorcycle-mounted clinics providing maternal care and disease prevention in areas inaccessible by road. This innovative approach has served over 500,000 people in conflict zones.

Ngoma's team developed a SMS-based health alert system that reduced maternal mortality by 40% in pilot regions between 2015-2018. Her work was featured in Nature magazine for its use of low-cost technology in humanitarian crises. In 2016, she co-authored the WHO guidelines on healthcare in conflict areas, emphasizing mobile solutions.

She established the Peace Health Africa training center in Goma, certifying 1,200 community health workers by 2019. Her TEDx talk 'Why Healthcare Must Come to Patients' has over 2 million views. Despite threats from armed groups, Ngoma continues her work, recently expanding services to Ebola-affected regions.