At this years Nethope conference, which I attended last week, the stand out for me was a presentation of a project run by Grameen – their Community Knowledge Worker programme in Uganda.

The project employs Community Knowledge Workers who live in communities in Uganda.  These CKWs, many of whom were previously Agricultural Extension Workers, are “trusted neighbours” who can be consulted on a variety of issues that are deemed useful for smallholder farmers in Uganda.  More details about the CKW programme can be found on the Grameen website.

At the presentation I attended, Grameen showcased the technology they are using to support their CKWs.  Each CKW is supplied with an IDEOS android mobile phone – these retail for $80 in Kenya.  The phones have three Grameen authored apps installed.

The first app, CKW Search, is a searchable repository of information that the CKW can consult through a very simple menu.  This information is stored locally on the phone, but is updated automatically when a 3G signal is available.  Each query is logged in the system with GPS coordinates, and this information is sent back to Grameen when a 3G signal is available.

The second app, CKW Survey, is a simple forms based app the CKW can use to capture images, video and text, as well as fill out surveys – typically the CKW will survey farmers who use their services.  Again the data is stored locally on the phone until a 3G signal is available.

The final app, CKW Pulse, is the hub through which Grameen can communicate with the CKWs.  This can be used to message an individual CKW or a group.  Each CKW can monitor their own performance based on the work they have done with the other two apps.  CKWs can also log support calls through CKW Pulse.

In addition to these applications, the CKWs can supplement their income by selling airtime on the phones, and selling phone charging services using the solar chargers they have for chargind the IDEOS phones.

At the backend, Grameen are using Salesforce to collect the data, and have a live dashboard where various aspects of the CKW service can be monitored.  The survey application is based on the Open Data Kit – a free open-source set of tools built to make survey building and data collection quick and easy.

This project is a great showcase of what can be achieved by joining up widespread mobile phone coverage, low cost smart phones, online database systems, and a well trained local workforce.

There are a number of opportunities that Christian Aid could take advantage of here.

• Simple surveys on touch screen phones are a great way to collect baseline data and aggregate it quickly, before and after other initiatives have been carried out.
• The ability to collect images, audio and video and send them quickly through 3G networks means that collecting stories about our work is easier and more immediate than ever.
• The Pulse application could be a useful way to immediately keep in touch with partner organisations, reminding them about deadlines, contacting them with specific messages, or allowing them to see the results of M&E activities and understand their performance.
• The Search application is a simple way of making different kinds of information available offline.  This could be useful for Christian Aid staff, as well as in programme work that employs the “trusted neighbour” model or similar.

For more information on the Grameen CKW project I suggest the following reading:

• Grameen’s CKW project site, for general details of the CKW service
• The CKW technology page, for details of the applications and backend
• The CKW Dashboard
• The OpenDataKit website for info on the tools used to build the CKW apps