05 May 2014
Guidelines for mobile phone projects released
The use of mobile telephony as an innovative development tool across the health, education and justice sectors in Papua New Guinea has been supported by research funded by the Australian Government.
The 2012-2013 ‘Utilising Mobile Phones for Development study’ comprised three concurrent pilot projects into cellular technology and its impact in improving service delivery outcomes in maternal health, early childhood education and law and justice throughout select regions.
Improving PNG’s poor maternal health is being achieved through the ‘Childbirth Emergency Phone project’ which is providing rural front-line health workers with a free-call number to access time-critical advice and effectively address childbirth complications.
The project led by the Milne Bay Provincial Health Authority has seen marked improvements in the authority’s response framework for the communication, coordination and service delivery of maternal health outcomes across Milne Bay Province.
Early childhood education delivered in Madang and Simbu provinces have seen significant advances through the delivery of lesson plans and support material delivered through the ‘SMS Story’ program implemented by a non-government organisation, Voluntary Services Overseas.
The literacy program has demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in the reading ability of students whose teachers receive stories and lesson plans via SMS. The approach is expected to be implemented in other regions where books and other traditional teaching resources are limited.
Improving law and justice remote data collection has progressed under the auspices of Magisterial Services and the Department of Justice and Attorney General. The mobile phone trial implemented text messaging as a mainstream data collection method for enhanced service delivery.
Minister, Development Cooperation at the Australian High Commission, Stuart Schaefer commended all stakeholders involved in the mobile phone study and said the guiding principles released were available for adoption by individuals and organisations seeking an accessible and effective development instrument to complement other established and emerging aid programs.
“The Australian Government, through this research, is exploring new ways in which this evolving technology can support development of the Government of Papua New Guinea in ways that are culturally appropriate and applicable to people.”
“We are eager to see the outcomes of this research develop and translate into further tangible, long-term socio-economic gains not only at a provincial but national level” said Mr Schaefer.
Lead Mobile Communications Research Consultant Dr. Amanda Watson said the guiding principles arising from the mobile phone research findings could apply to a variety of development contexts, with the overarching message that cellular technology can be used as a low-cost and effective medium to improve service delivery, principally in rural areas.
There are twelve lessons learnt from the three pilot projects. The overarching lesson is that mobile phone service can be used to improve service delivery, particularly for rural areas. A valuable finding is that service providers based in rural areas, such as teachers and health workers, do own and use mobile phones. It was also found that voice calls and text messages are effective in addressing communication needs in Papua New Guinea.
Recharging of handset batteries remains a challenge in localities where electricity supply is unavailable or intermittent. In the health project implemented, solar mobile phone chargers were provided to rural health centres, so that health workers could keep their mobile phone batteries charged.
From the lessons learnt, guiding principles about how best to utilise mobile phones in development efforts have been developed. It is intended that the guiding principles would be useful for any organisation or individual considering the introduction of mobile phones in service delivery in Papua New Guinea or in a similar context.
A key guiding principle is: ‘simple is best’. In other words, where existing technology is available, it is best to utilise this technology, rather than introducing new, more complex technologies.
Another important guiding principle is: ‘design should be appropriate to the PNG context’. While rural-based workers do have access to or own mobile phones, costly services are unlikely to be affordable for these people and therefore will not be utilised. It is possible to establish free-call phone lines or free text messaging services, both of which have proven to be suitable to the current situation in the country.