In 2008, MTN Uganda partnered with Grameen Foundation and launched a series of innovative SMS services based around livelihoods and health. At first farmers could ask for a weather forecast in their area, but soon they launched interactive services:
- Farmers ask questions by SMS about how to look after their crops and animals and receive prompts and information from a database of knowledge provided by farming associations
- SMS Akatale – connects farmers selling crops with buyers – farmers could offer their harvest (eg 20 bunches of bananas, and buyers could bid to buy them)
- Ask questions about sexual health and receive prompts and information from a database of answers developed by Marie Stopes and StraightTalk Foundation
The illustrations were created by Baingana Andrew.
The mobile sexual health service was launched in Ghana in 2010 together with additional services around antenatal and neonatal services MOTECH (Mobile Technology for Community Health).
MTN’s “Village Phone” allows a citizen to provide information about agriculture and health to their community accessed over the phone.
Community Knowledge Workers
These phone operators became known as “Community Knowledge Workers” and could also gather information by phone from the village about field sizes, crops planted, and harvests on behalf of FAO. They went on to collect survey data through their phones for private and public sector organisations as they matured into a sustainable business.
We worked with Grameen and MTN to plan these services and build databases from partners of trusted information, to market them, and to train Community Knowledge Workers how to access information on their phone, fill in surveys and market their services.