Vodafone Mobile Clicks is the largest contest for the best mobile internet startup in the world. We are proud to announce that ‘Akvo Phone’ has been selected to represent the Netherlands in a live final at PICNIC Festival, which will be held in Amsterdam this Friday. We will compete against the best of Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom – and are still in the race to win a total prize money of 150,000 Euro.
You can help by voting for your favourite entry. At the live final, the ranking from the public vote will carry equal weighting to the vote of one official panel member.
So, what is Akvo Phone?
Akvo Phone is a mobile application for smartphones that allows field reporting on development aid projects, directly from a mobile phone. Reports via Akvo Phone allow pictures, text, phone identity, geographic location (GPS) and time of report, to be digitally signed and uploaded to the Akvo Really Simple Reporting (Akvo RSR) system – verified for non-tampering. We have a working prototype running on a Nokia N97.
One-click reporting
A picture can tell a thousand words, but a picture with guaranteed time, date, location and sender ensures that those words also reflect reality. Akvo Phone makes ‘1 click reporting’ a reality. Point the camera at a new well, the foundations of a school being built or a community gathering. The Akvo Phone application ensures that the picture, where and when it was taken and by whom, is not manipulated.
Why one-click reporting?
Many small NGOs spend as much as 50% of their time writing documents, either applying for funds or reporting on how the funds are being spent. One-click picture reporting, using the Akvo Phone in combination with Akvo Really Simple Reporting, will free up time for the field workers to get on with the job, increase transparency, allow for better collaboration and improve how projects are being reported.
About Akvo Really Simple Reporting
Akvo Really Simple Reporting is part of the revolutionary online Akvo communications platform for development aid projects, enabling field reporters to use the internet and mobile phones to quickly and effectively report on their work.
Akvo Phone as a universal service
There is clear demand for the Akvo Phone service outside the context of development aid. Please find this short explanation from the upcoming book, The Future we Deserve.
About Akvo
This video explains the big picture Akvo vision
Akvo Foundation is a non-profit organisation that provides open-source internet and mobile phone tools for the development aid sector. We are currently working with over 200 partners in 47 developing countries.
Peter van der Linde is the partner – director of Akvo.