ICTworks by Inveneo

If you are a developer (mobile & web) or part of the health industry or generally just interested in knowing more about Electronic Medical Records, join OpenMRS on Monday 24th of January from 11am-12pm and learn about the exciting opportunities in the areas of electronic medical records systems development, implementation, training and project management.

OpenMRS Meet up in Nairobi

Speakers lineup:

1. Paul Biondich- OpenMRS & Regenstrief Institute
2. James Kariuki- AMPATH
3. Fred Fries- Regenstrief Institute

What is OpenMRS?

OpenMRS is a software platform and a reference application which enables design of a customized medical records system with no programming knowledge (although medical and systems analysis knowledge is required). It is a common platform upon which medical informatics efforts in developing countries can be built. The system is based on a conceptual database structure which is not dependent on the actual types of medical information required to be collected or on particular data collection forms and so can be customized for different uses.

Tech@State gets into technology and policy  for its fourth edition Feb. 11 when we explore Open Source as software and technical culture. This hot topic is one that warms the hearts of evangelists and makes blood run cold in those who think open source software (OSS) is an invitation to mayhem. We'll seek to address both camps and educate everyone in between with morning guest speakers like:

Vivek Kundra, CIO of the United States
Susan Swart, CIO of the U.S. Department of State
Macon Phillips, White House Director of New Media
Jeremy Allison, Creator of Samba
Chris DiBona, Open Source and Public Sector Programs Manager at Google
Linda Cureton, CIO at NASA
Lin Wells, Director, Center for Technology and National Security Policy at the National Defense University

In the afternoon, we'll hold several breakout panels where our guest experts can interact with the audience.

Tech@State events regularly sell out so register now to hold your place.

As part of FOSS Advocacy in West Africa and Beyond - (FOSSWAY), Worlali Senyo recently captured key findings in a comparison of Proprietary Software (PS) and Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) usage in Ghana. Below is a summary of his findings.

Most people use Proprietary Software

The study showed that in the desktop environment Windows OS dominated by as much as 84.7% whiles Linux OS constituted 11.9% followed by 3.4% for Unix OS of respondents. It was observed that the reason for Windows OS dominating is because desktop computers bought came with Windows OS pre-installed. Other reasons where attributed to the ease of use and availability of applications, and technical support.

Yet these are not always legal Windows licenses. There is a worrying trend of wide use of pirated PS, especially Microsoft Windows and Windows based applications. In actual fact some users in Ghana think that all software can be downloaded and shared for free.

Differences in Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

The study asked respondent to rank key setup-cost factors (software licenses, hardware, technical support, and training for staff) on a scale from 1 (least) to 5 (most) and it emerged that hardware cost contributed significantly to overall set-up cost ranking 4 for PS and 3 for FOSS. Software licenses where less significant in their contribution to set-up cost for FOSS ranking 2 compared to PS which ranked 4.

On technical support FOSS was ranked 3 whiles PS ranked 4. Finally, Training was ranked 3 for both PS and FOSS. Although the study did not include specific questions on piracy, the research team gathered that software piracy was high especially amongst individual users.

Challenges to FOSS use

The major challenge the study identified was the absence of any FOSS policy in Ghana and the existing procurement policy does not clearly stipulate terms for procuring software. It is interesting to note that in the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) a software is defined as "something you buy a license for" which basically saying means we do not consider FOSS.

Users still have the perception that FOSS solutions are complex to use. Another dominant challenge cited in the study is the lack of support for FOSS solutions. Others include compatibility, too frequent updates and too many OS types.

In Kenya, coffee farmers are concerned about getting a fair price for their beans, and worry about "ghost kilograms" - the undercounting of raw and processed bean weights - that can happen with handwritten accounts.

So the Kenya Coffee Producers Association (KCPA) looked around for a coffee bean accounting system they could utilize to accurately track coffee sales to factories, and help the factories themselves manage coffee production. Yet they found proprietary software applications just too expensive.

The Open Source Solution

According to Rop Kiplagat, once KCPA discovered CoopWorks, an open-source software that had originally been developed for dairy cooperatives, they saw an impressive shift in coffee grower results:

CoopWorks tracks all the steps of coffee collection, processing and sales. The system has a member management feature for collecting the data of individual members. It has an accounting module with cash book registers, ledgers and a payroll system. Other features include asset registration, loan management, inventory for the cooperative store and report publication.

With the old manual data entry system, the cooperatives did not know how much coffee the milling factory would produce from their beans, and therefore, did not know what the financial return would be. The new system, however, can convert the coffee bean weight into an estimated value once it goes into the mills. The software also monitors the coffee deliveries based on each cooperative’s tracking numbers. Once the coffee is sold, the payment is received into the system and credited to the appropriate cooperative’s account.

Expanding and Customizing Software

CoopWorks already produces a member statement of inputs bought on credit and the proceeds of deliveries sold to millers - helping farmers better understand their costs and profits. And since its Open Source, KCPA is also expanding the software to fit their particular membership needs. KCPA is delivering coffee and input prices to members on their cell phones via SMS and will soon link to mobile banking as well.

An interesting conversation sparked by a blog post on the Ushahdi blog is the main reason for this post.

The post by Erik Hersman raises issues about open source software and tools created in Africa and ICT for Development (ICT4D). In the post Erik contends that although it is great that these tools are being used for development oriented Non Profit work, the technology (tools and software) themselves should be separated and not classified as ICT4D tools.

What is ICT4D (ICT for Development)? It’s usually defined as the application of technology in third world countries, not as technology. In other words, a technology platform or tool is not ICT4D, though it is used by ICT4D practitioners to do their work.

As you may (or may not know), Erik Hersman is one of the main people behind Ushahidi, a powerful tool which has been used to aid crisis management in several instances including Haiti (and initially in Kenya during election violence there).

However as an open source project, Ushahidi is first and foremost a tool for monitoring and mapping information, from several channels (the web, twitter, SMS) and creating a visual representation of  data. It is for this reason Ushahidi has been well suited for crisis management, especially since its initial development  was centered around a crisis.

However just as with Wordpress, Drupal, and Mozilla projects, it is a Free Open Source Software whose use is limited only by the talent and passion pof the developers and community which adopt and adapt the software. Erik therefore states that just as Drupal and Wordpress cannot be classified as ICT4D tools because the Non Profit and Development community use them extensively so should Ushahidi not be pigeon holed as an ICT4D only tool.

Truth be told my heart leapt with joy after reading the blog post? Why you may ask. I believe my comment in response to the post summaries it perfectly.

Whew this post just made my day and clarified an issue for me. For some time now I have been wondering time and again if using Ushahidi (and other such open source projects) for a commercial project would be a betrayal of the vision on which the tool was built? It has made me a bit apprehensive about trying out an installation and playing around to see its potential.

When I say play around since I am more into use cases than the code (to each his own) it would be along the lines of what problems can Ushahidi be used to solve. Is it suited for bus routing, reporting crime, locating fire hydrants. Unless I tinker I will not know.

This post gives me a clear mind to tinker without feeling like a sellout if the idea is one which can be commercialized. Separating the tools from their use is important.
Nana Kwabena Owusu

Now there are excellent tools out of Africa which have been used really well by NGOs and get a lot of media attention in that context but are not necessarily ICT4D tools. It seems my apprehensive sentiments about taking software which was deemed (wrongly as Erik points out) for non-profit or social enterprise work and maybe using it in For Profit ventures is shared by others.

Here is a comment from Jon Gosier in response to my comments about this apprehension and how to address it.

Agreed @Nana I’ve had this conversation with a number of investors and organizations interested in SwiftRiver as well. It’s ridiculous to say what we’re building is strictly ICT4D when clearly there are so many other potential applications for the technology. That’s exactly how we’re approaching development and some of the things we have in the works.

With Ushahidi, Wordpress, Drupal, I see it as being very much the same senario. Ideally the people and organizations who use these open source products, support the non-profits making them…and there’s nothing to stop you for building whatever you want, given the right set of tools and vision.
Jon Gosier

(Read the full blog post and the great comments at the Ushahidi Blog )

The blame (for lack of a better word) is not entirely from the Western media or ICT4D community. Erik admits its time to really showcase the potential of Ushahidi away from ICT4D but it is up to the community and people like you and me too. Its time to create sometime beyond any possible initial uses the team might have imagined and make it a truly great FOSS project.

As I stated in my comment I would love to tinker with this and other such projects to see the potential for other uses and now I can knowing it was meant for just that. I hope to highlight other African FOSS projects which can be tinkered with soon.

Nana Kwabena Owusu originally published It’s Different. African Open Source Technology and ICT4D on 233tech.com