Professor Sundeep Sahay
Information School
Visiting Professor
Full contact details
Information School
The Wave
2 Whitham Road
91̽»¨
S10 2AH
- Profile
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I am an Indian citizen and have been working as a Professor in the Department of Informatics, University of Oslo, since 2000. Prior to that, I held academic positions at the University of Alberta, Canada (1995-1999), University of Salford, Manchester, UK (1994) and the Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, UK (1992-1994). I completed my PhD in Information Systems at the Florida International University, Miami, USA (1989-1992) on the topic of "Social Construction of Geographic Information Systems". My early postgraduate education was in India, doing a Master’s in Management Studies (1976-1981) at Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani, followed by a Master’s of Engineering in Industrial Development (1982-1983). While working in Alberta, Canada, I did an MA in Philosophy and while in Oslo, I have completed a Master’s in Public Health, registered at the University of Western Cape, South Africa.
This multi-disciplinary educational background has all sought to contribute to a broad and critical understanding of the social-political-cultural issues surrounding ICTs for Development (ICT4D), which I have empirically studied in multiple settings over these last 20+ years. At Cambridge, the focus of my post-doctoral research was around the use of Geographical Information Systems for forestry management in India and Malaysia. The research at Alberta was around the study of global software development to India, involving various countries including Canada, UK, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. This study provided learning into what a country like India gained and lost in the process of building capabilities in global software development. This work also contributed to other studies in Iran and Costa Rica, countries which were seeking to emulate India in becoming a global software development hub. The work in Oslo has primarily been around action research studies on strengthening health information systems across more than 25 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, with a key focus on India.
- Research interests
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My current research focus is on strengthening Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) surveillance systems in India and some sub-Saharan African countries. Taking a social science perspective on health systems, I am also focused on analysing the nature of health inequities in developing countries and what kind of role the digital may play in mitigating these inequities. I am an Affiliate Professor at the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, and am in the process of establishing a joint research unit called "Social Studies of AMR in a Global Context". I am currently a primary supervisor for 6 doctoral candidates working on diverse topics such as Antibiotics Consumption from an Equity Perspective in India, Digital Systems in Humanitarian Settings, ICT-enabled Counter Networks for Conflict Mitigation in Kenya, Digital Governance from an Institutional Entrepreneurship Perspective in Sri Lanka, Citizenship and Digital Infrastructure in India, Patient-centred HIV Care in India, and Historical Analysis of Institutional Dynamics over a 20-year Perspective in the Evolution of Health Information Systems in Mozambique. I am principal investigator on 3 grants related to AMR Surveillance in India, Digital Health Course Development, and Data Governance in Fragile Settings of Palestine and Jordan.
- Professional activities and memberships
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Academically, I have around 250 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and conferences, and have been principal supervisor for about 25 doctoral students, and about 40 Master’s theses. I have done various policy assignments for the World Health Organisation (WHO), Asian Development Bank (ADB), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Ministry of Health in India, including assessment of national Health Information Systems in India, Tajikistan, Ethiopia, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and West Africa. I have also founded a social enterprise, HISP India (see ) in India, which since 2000 is working on strengthening health information systems with the Indian government and also with governments in other South Asian countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.