Background

What is Mobile for Good?

Mobile for Good (M4G) is a social franchise project designed to use mobile technology to improve the lives of people in the developing world. It aims to send essential health, employment and community content via SMS on mobile phones in order to inform and empower disadvantaged individuals and help bridge the digital divide the widening technology gulf which exists between rich and poor countries.

The content services are targeted at Bottom-of-the-Pyramid (BOP) consumers generally defined as the low income segment of the population that lives on less then two USD a day; although the business concept also includes premium services aimed at higher income groups, which allows services offered to the BOP to be subsidised.

When did it all begin?

In 2003, OneWorld UK set up an initiative in Kenya, called OKN Mobile which aimed to deliver life-changing information through mobile telephony to bottom-of-the-pyramid individuals in urban settlements. Since the operational launch in the end of 2004 the project has been hugely successful, and to build on the success the social franchise project came into play as a way of scaling up across Africa and Asia. The operation in Kenya will become the first franchise of Mobile for Good.

OneWorld UK has plans to roll out the M4G franchise in other countries, such as Tanzania, South Africa and Egypt. OneWorld UK is therefore developing a business model and technology which can then be used by social entrepreneurs to repeat the success of Kenya within their own country.

Market Need

Research carried out in Africa shows that this continent is the fastest-growing mobile phone market in the world, with an annual growth rate of 67 per cent. Further studies in Kenya showed that, even in rural areas, a large proportion of the population had access to mobile phones, usually due to sharing handsets with friends and family. These figures, combined with relevant employment and health statistics, suggested a market need for the delivery of affordable and targeted information to marginalised communities.

How does it work?

A social franchise model has been developed by OWUK to provide entrepreneurs with a package of tools which will allow them to set up a M4G business in their country.

The tools provided include:
- a generic business model
- a technical platform
- marketing advice
- links with local telecommunications companies
- ongoing consultancy

Whos involved?

OneWorld is dedicated to harnessing the democratic potential of the internet and other ICTs to promote human rights and sustainable development. Launched in 1995, www.oneworld.net is the world's first, and still foremost, portal on human rights and sustainable development. It informs public opinion and decision-makers about the state of the world's people with information aggregated from 1,500 non-governmental organisations (NGOs), 1,000 radio stations, and 4,000 film-makers. OneWorld also works to fulfil its mission through a number of projects in the South using flexible digital technologies to inform and empower people often otherwise overlooked by the information society.

The OneWorld UK team, based in London, support the project currently in operation in Kenya.

The OneWorld team in Kenya manages and operates the Mobile for Good venture in Kenya, and helps customise the project to the countrys needs.

The Mobile for Good project also benefits from generous funding from corporate partners, Vodafone Group Foundation and Accenture Foundation.