Harness Phone Potential: RAS

Ken Banks, who invented a cell phone messaging service which has revolutionised how people communicate with one another in developing countries, said: “People are using mobile phones to lift themselves out of poverty by creating small businesses.” He spoke about how entrepreneurs, from cities to rural areas, were using cell phones in ingenious ways, to transfer money, deliver important public health messages and monitor the supplies of life-saving drugs.

There are £350million cell phone users across Africa. In Botswana, vets in remote areas are using the technology to create a comprehensive map of cattle diseases, which allows them to act quickly in case of a serious outbreak, immunising cattle before the animals die needlessly.

In South Africa an informal economy has emerged around mobile phone technology.
However, there has been very little progress in these areas in Zimbabwe. One area where the technology has been reasonably successful is political accountability, where subscribers have used cell phones to spread vital messages about state-sponsored violence, rigged results and visions of hope for a new Zimbabwe.

They achieved this through the use of Frontline SMS, a free tool invented by Banks which can be used with the most basic of mobile phones...