[UgaBYTES] Google and Grameen Foundation launch AppLab

[Peter Burgess]

Dear Colleagues

Does anyone have any further information about this ... it seems that
it might have huge potential if it is used in the correct way. I can
also see serious limitations because of the quality of the Google data
and the lack of validation of data ... but I don't know enough about
how the application works to be definitive about this. Let me know if
you have any useful information.

Peter
___________
Peter Burgess
Tr-Ac-Net Inc ... The Transparency and Accountability Network
Community Analytics (CA)
Integrated Malaria Management (IMM)
Microfinance Focus Magazine in New York
website: www.tr-ac-net.org
tel: 917 432 1191 or 212 772 6918 or 212 744 6469
email: peterbnyc at gmail.com
skype: peterburgessnyc
Books: Search Peter Burgess at www.lulu.com

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Africa: Google and Grameen Foundation launch AppLab
Tuesday 28 July 2009 / by Claire Schaffner
The Grameen Foundation (a micro-credit bank) and Google have launched
AppLab, a range of applications available via SMS (Short Message
Service), in Uganda. This initiative allows those without Internet to
access information quickly and cheaply. This service will soon be
introduced to other African countries.

Henceforth, high-tech phones are not the only ones to provide access
to the Google search engine. June 29, The Grameen Foundation
microcredit bank, MTN (mobile phone company) and Google launched
Google SMS, a range of applications available via sms, under their
AppLab (Application Laboratory) project. For now, the service is only
available in Uganda, but it should soon be introduced to other
countries.

The application is simple: the user sends an SMS with a question (to
Google SMS Tips) or a keyword (to Google SMS search) and receives an
answer that best matches their search. The service replaces online
search engines, while the computer is replaced by a mobile phone. A
farmer can, therefore, receive forecasts, market prices, advice on how
to grow crops through biological methods, on his/her mobile phone,
among others.

AppLab also provides information services in the health area; locating
the nearest clinic, information on HIV and malaria, answers to
adolescent puberty-related questions.

Google Trader, a virtual marketplace service, can also be accessed:
this service allows sellers of agricultural products and commodities
to locate and communicate with buyers. The phone service is expected
to cut travel costs, while making information that has so far been
inaccessible available to certain populations, especially in rural
areas where electricity and Internet access is often poor.

Meeting the needs of local people

To implement the project, Grameen Foundation has been working with
local partners to help identify the needs of the population. Before
the service, adapted to specific local populations, is launched, a
preliminary study is conducted to ensure that the needs of the local
populations are met. In Uganda, the Grameen Foundation has been
working with local agencies since 2007. The Busoga Rural Open Source
Development Initiative (BRODSI), among others, provided data on the
needs of farmers and helped develop solutions proposed by AppLab.

Grameen Foundation is also involved in assisting the development of
village phone operators for the benefit of users who cannot read, do
not speak English or own a laptop computer. The service includes the
possibility to rent a mobile telephone or even ask for help to send
and receive SMS.

The service, since its inception, has continued to grow. When a
request is unknown to the search engine, it is directed to a service
which processes and relays information to the Google SMS database. SMS
use is expanding in Africa and signify a niche market for operators
who wish to reach less accessible areas. A few months ago, mobile
phone operators across sub-Saharan Africa launched banking services
via SMS.