In Kenya, the emergency phone line often goes unanswered due to a lack of resources since being reinstated in 2013, and there are over 50 numbers for various emergency services in Nairobi (1). To rectify rising morbidity and mortality rates an integrated command and control structure is essential, as well as more resources in the relevant departments (2). Through his enterprise Usalama Technology, James is addressing the challenge in Kenya and abroad with his two co-founders, Edwin and Marvin.
The flagship mobile platform is a personal safety companion that links vulnerable people to urgent emergency assistance. It enables users to quickly and simply send emergency messages to emergency service providers. The application makes use of GPS to capture users' exact geographical locations, which is relayed together with the emergency scenario to the responders to ensure that response is fast and efficient. An additional feature is the 'crime distress call' which allows victims to communicate quickly with predefined contacts of close family and friends. Users also receive security-related news updates relevant to their area, can view and connect with nearby users, and can choose to share their locations with selected users to provide additional comfort and protection. The service has grown steadily, serving 1,200 users in its inaugural year, and now 30,000 just 4 years later.
During the Covid-19 outbreak, Usalama launched a new platform to connect people with places of worship and help the places of worship to manage their capacity in a responsible and 'Covid-compliant' manner. Users register as members for their respective place of worship, and additionally, they use contact tracing to make sure that if there is a recorded case of the virus the spread is controlled and people are made aware. The platform was launched and 111,000+ members have registered, making a cumulative 330,000 bookings at 89 different venues. An additional pandemic-related service was to send over 120,000 Covid awareness messages to users and contacts of Usalama. In 2021, the group is looking to expand through East Africa once it has established a stable base in Kenya.
