Leading technology firm, Vodacom says it has partnered with Kaduna State government to launch an ICT for development initiative.
According to the partners, the project will support mass service delivery in healthcare, education and agriculture through the deployment of tailored ICT solutions to promote greater efficiency in each sector.
The first, ‘SMS for Life 2.0’, is a mobile technology-based healthcare program in Kaduna State which aims to improve the delivery of healthcare for citizens who access public health services as well as increase the availability of chronic or essential medication by monitoring drug stock levels.
Meanwhile, Vodacom has started with the training and deployment of SMS for Life 2.0 in Kaduna, with over 250 facilities using the platform to date.
The initiative will be implemented in all thirty six states, according to the tech firm.
“Vodacom is taking the lead in leveraging mobile technology to address healthcare, education and agricultural challenges in Africa.
We see technology playing an increasing role as an enabler of economic development as governments on the continent are able to leapfrog developmental stages, says Vuyani Jarana, Chief Officer of Vodacom Business.
He said Vodacom’s critical role through its partnership with Kaduna State is to help improve service delivery in the region, supporting healthy, well-educated and economically active citizens.
Malam Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State, welcomes the progressive evolution of the partnership with Vodacom. “The Kaduna State Government is delighted to apply technology to advance governance and the delivery of public services. Working with Vodacom, we seek to further enhance service delivery, improve data collection and strengthen accountability.”
In addition Vodacom has also introduced a mobile school management solution in Kaduna State which provides real-time visibility of all management activities at schools. A school feeding programme module allows the State to monitor feeding programmes in schools to ensure that pupils on the programmes receive quality meals.
The district office has access to real time reports on teacher and learner data through the application. The solution, which uses mobile phone and tablet technology, will be implemented in 4 000 schools across the State.
Jarana says that Vodacom has both the technology and the experience to increase access and improve delivery efficiency in health, education and agriculture services. The experience comes from private projects conducted across Africa over the last five years.
The next phase of Vodacom’s partnership with Kaduna State will focus on agriculture by launching Vodacom’s ‘Connected Farmer’ platform in Kaduna.
Connected farmer is a cloud-based web and mobile solution which supports smallholder farmers’ registration and profiling. This enables them to be linked to financial institutions, agribusinesses, information, services and markets, all with an aim to increase their productivity.
