Kenya has among the most dangerous roads in the world, but developers of a new mobile phone application say their software could help make driving in the country safer.
The app, called ‘Nduru’ after the Swahili word for ‘scream’, allows Kenyans to report accidents, reckless drivers, dangerous vehicles and other high road risks.
Road safety is a big concern in Kenya, as 510 out of every 100,000 vehicles are involved in fatal accidents as compared to 260 in South Africa and 20 in the UK.
There were 7,596 accidents recorded in Kenya in 2011 with 3,005 fatalities, according to traffic police in that country.
But with more than 28 million mobile phone subscribers in Kenya, developers of Nduru hope the widening reach of the mobile phone will help increase road safety.
“We did a pilot study with about 50 users who said they liked the application and they are willing and ready to use it,” said ‘Nduru’ software developer Thomas Kioko.
The application is available on the Nokia S40 platform and also has an SMS version. An Android application is set to follow.
Allowing users to report dangerous drivers or vehicles as well as corrupt police officers, it is intended to flag situations that could potentially lead to an accident before they do.
It also provides crucial information such as first aid tutorials, emergency numbers, details of accident blackspots and the nearest emergency services.
“It occurred to us that emergency vehicles like ambulances and fire engines have their hotlines indicated on the vehicle but few users take notice of this,” said Kioko.
“Once the user downloads the app, he will have a map with an updated index of the health facilities around the area they are travelling in and the hospitals that are closest to their location,” he says.
Nduru Mobile App from Thomas Kioko on Vimeo.
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