Kenya: Usalama the ‘panic button’ app that helps save lives
Usalama, the mobile app that sends a distress signal when a user shakes their phone three times alerting emergency services of their location.
How the idea came up
Crime rates in Nairobi is twice the national average (IPSOS), and contacting emergency providers can be cumbersome. After an unfortunate incident where he found himself robbed by a group of men who stole his laptop, developer and entrepreneur Edwin Inganji decided that it was time to come with a plan to help other people in the same situation. He and his two other developer friends, James Chege and Marvin Maka, sat down, and created “Usalama”, an alert emergency services.
How the app works
“Usalama” focuses on four types of emergencies: medical emergencies, security emergencies, roadside rescue and gender-based violence.
“In case of distress, users simply shake their phone to open the app or tap and hold the volume to trigger the alert. This notification contains the user’s exact GPS coordinates, name, phone number and other data. The distress call is sent to the next of kin of the user, and to the emergency responder’s online response center. The service provider transmits it to his application, the receiving agent can then respond.”
Source: CNN
