Theme Education Introduction A maj A major obstacle facing students doing science subjects in Tanzania is the insufficiency of laboratory apparatus, chemicals, reagents and other items that students would use for practicals. Many schools opt for alternative to practicals during the final examinations of secondary education. The scarcity of the virtual labs that address the challenges of Tanzanian education is another concern. Many virtual laboratory software programs are not free and do not adequately fit with the syllabus of the science subjects taught in Tanzania Secondary Schools. Many schools lack adequate ICT physical infrastructure and electrification in schools, low level of ICT skills and experience and lack of localized software and content. Purpose /need/rationale The Virtual Labs Project will enable students with no access to real laboratories to have a feel of what is happening in the laboratory using the multimedia. This will improve their understanding and the zeal for creativity as concepts that are difficult for teachers to instruct will be visually illustrated. The project will enable students with real laboratories to increase their confidence by using the virtual labs before getting into the real laboratories. The multimedia in the virtual lab allows a student to visualize experiments, restart or correct a mistake he/she has made thus the fear of destroying apparatus or wasting the reagents/chemicals is minimized. The cost of reagents and chemicals will be minimized as the probability for students to misuse the reagents and chemicals is reduced. This has the advantage of helping schools to reallocate the budget that would have been otherwise used in purchasing reagents/chemicals to other school priorities. The successful undertaking of the virtual lab project shall effectively complement the Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow project being undertaken by the MoEVT. Project Description Virtual labs are one way of using the ICT to address teaching and learning. Virtual labs constitute an environment that use technologies to illustrate concepts learned in class by students simulating the real labs. Virtual labs provide the students with tools, materials and lab sets on computer in order to perform experiments subjectively or within a group anywhere and anytime. These experiments are saved on CDS or on web site. Virtual labs do not replace the real labs but are a means to complement what has been learned in class before going to the real lab. For schools that do not have real labs as is the case with most schools that are located in rural areas, virtual labs are a good means for students to experiment and have a feeling of what is happening in the lab. Students can use reagents, apparatus, samples and other resources visually as many times as possible without depleting them. Virtual labs too have been said to reduce the fear to students in handling chemicals and other apparatus before getting into the real lab. Budget and Contacts Still working on it Members interested 1.Augustine Malero in the research 2.
R2: Telemedicine
Proposed call Theme Health Introduction Tanzania faces serious challenges to improving the health and well-being of its people. The Ministry of Health and its partners in government, the donor community and civil society have responded with concerted action, in many cases achieving significant gains. The current Tanzania health system suffers from continuing disparities in health outcomes between the poorest and the richest and those in rural versus urban areas. At the same time the are barriers to service experienced by the poor due to distance, formal and informal health charges, and other obstacles. The normal workflow of the Tanzania health system requires the patients in need of service to travel to the closest clinic or hospital to receive basic treatment, and to more distant institutions for specialized or emergency care or for hospitalization. This model does not provide comprehensive and efficient access to health care in developing nations like Tanzania. With a large population living in rural areas, some of which are not reachable by road, ill patients often lack the time and resources to reach the closest clinic. In urban areas, part of the population lives where clinics are few, overcrowded, and poorly funded. One of the options to get specialist care in areas isolated from the rest of the medical world is by means of telemedicine. Purpose /need/rationale
Project Description This study will explore the potentials available within and outside Tanzania health facilities for expanding the reach of Health Care with Telemedicine. Using interviews, documentary review and experiments the project seeks to realize the Telemedicine system that will be used as the model for future Telemedicine developments and projects. Budget and Contacts Members interested in the research 1. Victor Claret 2. Lucian Ngeze
R3: e-kilimo / e-agriculture (or any other name) Proposed call COSTECH Theme Agriculture Introduction 70% of Tanzanians are considered to be involved in agriculture for their survival. Most of them lack proper farming methods to enhance their production. It is vital that they know the effort (and resources) they are going to put and what they can harvest. Purpose /need/rationale The project can be useful, as farmers or stakeholders can clearly predict what they can expect from their farms. The application can also help to address the shortages of agriculture field experts. Project Description The project is about developing an application that tracks the growth of crops (for food). It is intended to simulate the various conditions such as soil composition, amount of water, minerals and supplements that crops are / can be subjected to, and how those conditions affect the growth of plants on daily or monthly basis and eventual production from the crops. Budget and Contacts Still working it out. Members interested in the research 1. Gilbert Gilbert 2.
R4: Improving the quality of education and learning outcomes
Proposed call HDIF Theme Education Introduction
The advancement of ICTs has changed the lives of people in different ways such as, in work places, business, education, and entertainment. Moreover, many people recognize ICTs as catalysts for change; change in working conditions, handling and exchanging information, teaching methods, learning approaches, scientific research, and in accessing information. Integration of ICT in teaching and learning has a role to improve access, equity, quality and relevance education. In Tanzania, the integration of ICT in the teaching and learning process has not reached the expected level despite several efforts by the Government through the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT). Tanzania Beyond Tomorrow (TBT) Project was one such initiative which focused at introducing ICT into the classroom to help teachers in reaching more students and building new skills. The current National ICT Programme for Secondary Schools is another initiative which aims to provide training to secondary school teachers to be equipped with knowledge and skills of integrating ICT in teaching and learning, administration and management. In order to increase and improve the use of ICTs in secondary schools, there are many factors that need to be worked on. These can be classified as resource-related factors; factors associated with training, skills, knowledge and computer experience; and attitudinal and personality factors. Purpose /need/rationale
The Tanzania Development Vision 2025 speculates that Tanzania will have a well educated and learning society. Providing education and promoting ICT are keys to the achievement of the vision. The initiatives by the Government have been directed to the provision of skills and knowledge on some ICT facilities with the supply of few facilities to some schools. Effective ICT integration in teaching and learning requires teachers to acquire Technological Content Pedagogical Knowledge (TCPK) and their intersections. This project aims at complementing the efforts made by the Government in integrating ICT in education by attaining the following objectives: The project aims at achieving the following: 1. Providing training to secondary school teachers on the effective use of different ICTs in teaching and learning. 2. To establish infrastructure where the knowledge obtained in (i) will be applied to enhance quality of teaching and learning. 3. To develop digital content which can be used by teachers with the skills obtained in (i) and established infrastructure in (ii) to provide quality teaching and influence quality learning. 4. To evaluate effective use of the skills and infrastructure developed in (i) and (ii) respectively for enhancing the quality of teaching and learning. Project Description
In this project, few resource-limited secondary schools in the selected region will be identified. Science and mathematics teachers from those secondary schools will be trained on the use of different tools and technologies to ease their teaching process. Infrastructure will be put in place make sure that the knowledge obtained is put into practice. Teachers will then have to produce digital contents based on the subjects they teach and use them for quality teaching and learning. At the end of this period, evaluation will be done to make sure all the objectives were achieved and suggest better ways of utilize ICT to enhancing quality and accessibility of education. Budget and Contacts
Members interested in the research 1. Lucian Ngeze 2. Eduard Elias 3. Frederick Julius 4.Deo Shao 5.Rukia Mwifunyi
R5: Improving Teaching and Learning Mathematics in Primary Schools
Proposed call HDIF Theme Education Introduction Mathematics is a language of numbers which enables us to solve simple to complex life problems. It is not only used as a computational tool but as a tool of science and technology enabling scientists to explore concepts which idealize models before applying them in reality. Mathematics is a subject that is taught at primary and secondary levels for eleven years in Tanzania. Teaching and delivery of Mathematics content at these levels have been challenging in some areas. The performance of Mathematics has however, been decreasing from year to year. The government through Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) has been working hard to reduce the challenges facing the education sector. One of the major steps taken by MoEVT is the induction of a transformation campaign coined as Big Result Now (BRN) which intends to catalyze the performance of the sector. The specific objectives of BRN in educational sector are to improve pass rate to at least 80% in primary and secondary school levels, and to improve students abilities in the mastery of the 3Rs (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic) at Standard I and II by implementing skills assessment and training to teachers (URT, 2013). In order to realize the said BRN objectives, a lot need to be done. Technology is the corner stone in accomplishing the BRN objectives. BRN campaign has intentionally concentrated at the root level of Tanzanian education system to ensure the higher levels get qualified candidates. This project will be devoted to scale up attainment of the BRN objectives by developing a mathematics learning kits for primary school pupils. Tanzania Development Vision 2025 clearly shows in one of its visions that Tanzania will have an educated and learning society by 2025 (URT, 2011). This project will fuel the attainment of this vision by building a strong foundation of Mathematics at lower level. Purpose /need/rationale
Mathematics is one of the most important subjects covered in different levels from primary schools to university level where it is taught as a paramount subject in studies involved in technical engineering. Scholars are suggesting Mathematics as a central part of the science applied in engineering and theoretical foundations of the world. A recent statistics from National Examination Council (NECTA) has shown a decline in students' performance in national examinations which according to this study has happened because of the low performance of mathematical learning styles at primary and secondary school levels. There are many factors that have attributed the mass failure of students in mathematics. These factors include less or no textbook ownership by students, less technical assistance in solving mathematics problems (TWAWEZA, 2013). This project aims at designing and developing a low cost embedded computer for improving the delivery of mathematics in primary schools. Then mathematical digital content based on the primary schools Syllabus will be developed. The developed content will be integrated in the mathematical learning kit. Finally, the impact of the developed product will be tested and accessed on the performance of primary school mathematics in Tanzania.
Project Description
The artifact from this project will be used in primary schools to promote learning of mathematics. The artifact will be a Mathematics Learning Kit (MLK) developed from Raspberrypi microcomputer and other components. The MLK will be a portable solar powered computing device embedded with digital learning content which will be used by pupils in Tanzania. Currently the coverage of national electricity supply grid is only 14%. More than 70% of schools in Tanzania do not have electricity. The use of solar power could be effective in ensuring access to the digital contents by many pupils. MLK will help in building strong foundation in mathematical skills from the grassroots of educational career of students. Moreover, MLK will increase mathematics learning hours to pupils.
Budget and Contacts $ 890,000 Members interested in the research 1. Lucian Ngeze 2. Anthony Faustine 3. Hassan Seif 4. Steven Edward 5. Deo Shao
R6: Leveraging on Hybrid ICTs to Combat Wildlife Poaching in Tanzania
Proposed call HDIF & DANIDA Theme Natural Resources Management Introduction In recent years, Tanzania has been battling over elephant poaching. It is reported that; about 50 elephants are killed every day. It is further estimated that 30,000 to 38,000 elephants are poached every year for their ivory. With statistics like this, the African elephant is doomed for extinction in 15 to 20 years (SOS, 2014). The governments have tried to save the lives of elephants through different campaigns under its security agencies. The significant development of technology developing around the world could be an important tool to combat this crime. Technologies such as wireless sensors, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and scanners could be leveraged to add fuel to the battle against poaching. These technologies could be used to design a drone surveillance system to enhance the tracing of wildlife while in their living areas Purpose/need/rationale The use of emerging technologies (hybrid ICTs) can significantly, strengthen activities against poachers and the illegal ivory trade by enhancing the capacity of local wildlife authorities to conserve and manage elephants Project Description The impetus of this research project is to analyze and apply various ICTs for example tagging wildlife using RFID technology to enhance wildlife surveillance. Data analytics techniques and prediction models could significantly help the drone rangers in monitoring wildlife effectively. Budget and Contacts $ 1,000,000 Members interested in the research 1:Deo Shao 2:Leyla Liana 3: Steven Edward 4: Anthony Faustine 5: Hassan Seif
R7: Development of a Smart Integrated Radio Frequency and Bicycle Pedal Energy Harvesting Kit for Lighting Rural Areas.
Proposed call undecided Theme ICT4D Introduction Access to electricity is very important for the economic development of a nation. According to the World Bank only 14.35% of the Tanzanians have access to electricity, the situation is very critical in rural areas. The lack of energy for basic human activity such as agriculture, transport, medical care, communication, education, and enterprise marginalizes poor people and limits their ability to increase their incomes. Several World Bank group projects are now underway exploring means to provide modern energy service to more than 2 billion people in the developing countries. Renewable energy technologies are becoming progressive popular in providing reliable services to rural areas where there is no electrical power supply. Tanzania through Rural Energy Agency (REA) promotes and facilitates improved access to modern energy services in rural areas. Different projects have been developed to provide access to electricity in rural areas, however the problem is still far from over. To address this problem different energy harvesting techniques can be used. This project will be devoted to scale up attainment of the REA objectives by developing a smart integrated renewable energy harvesting solution.
Purpose/need/rationale The lack of energy for basic human activity such as agriculture, transport, medical care, communication, education and enterprise marginalizes poor people and limits their ability to increase their incomes. About 80% of the population in Tanzania lives in rural areas where most of the agricultural products are cultivated. To large percent, the Tanzanian GDP depends on the agriculture. However, the livelihood of the community in rural areas is still experiencing socio- economic challenges such as the lack of infrastructure and electric power supply. Improving rural livelihoods could escalate economic growth and increase employment opportunities in rural areas. With the advancement of technology worldwide, there is a serious need for innovative and smart approaches in improving the rural wellbeing. Sustainable electric power supply could be one of the first attempts in improving the rural livelihoods. Innovative approaches to increase electric power supply in rural areas are needed to provide sustainable power solution in rural areas. Renewable energy sources like solar, wind and biomass are currently one of the most technologies in place. However these technologies have high initial installation cost and their reliability is limited. In most rural areas the means of transport used are bicycles and motorcycles (bodaboda) which can be utilized to produce electricity through conversion of kinetic energy. Furthermore, the increase of information and communication technologies adoption such as TV, cellular phones (61%) and radio in the rural areas lead to increase of Radio frequencies signals in these areas. These Radio Frequency (RF) signals can be significantly leveraged to produce electricity for rural lighting. Most of the current initiatives of harvesting renewable energies do not offer a smart way for managing the harvested energy. For example, it is hard to balance the production and consumption of energy generated. The consumers do not have a mechanism of optimizing the consumption of energy at their homes.
The overall significance from this project is contribution to efforts of the government in lighting rural community through innovative approaches of energy harvesting technology. It is quite evident that an increased coverage of electric power in rural areas would improve the livelihood. It is expected the solution that will be delivered in this project will be able not only lighting the community but also power the ICT tools such as radios, and mobile phones and therefore increase access to information. Eventually, the digital divide will be reduced in rural areas through access to information. The project aims at achieving the following 1. Design an integrated Radio Frequency (RF) and bicycle pedal energy harvesting system. 2. Develop smart integrated Radio Frequency (RF) and bicycle pedal energy harvesting system for lighting rural areas. 3. Design and development of a power efficient LED lamp for rural areas. 4. Assessment and evaluation of the impacts of the developed solution on reduction of usage of fossil fuel based lighting product in rural Tanzania. Project Description
Budget and Contacts
Members interested in the research 1: Anthony Faustine 2. Deo Shao 3. Nyaura 4. 5.
R8: UjamaaCom: A Low Cost Cellular Network For Rural Communities in Developing Countries
Proposed call Undecided Theme ICT4D Introduction Cellular coverage is often lacking in low population density and low income rural areas of the developing world like Tanzania, this is because big telecommunication companies hesitate to deploy their expensive infrastructure in these areas fearing unprofitability. It is proposed that the use of cellular open source technologies as the basis for a new rural cellular network can go a long way in meeting this challenge by providing coverage in rural areas whilst simultaneously bringing down the cost of communication. In the previous study, we have studied and compared existing cellular open source technologies and identifed the one which is most suitable for rural environments. A prototype based on the identified open-source technology was designed and implemented. Testing the performance of the prototype network to confirm the viability of such a solution was undertaken in a labaratory setting and the results confirmed the feasibility of deploying such a network in rural areas as a credible alternative to conventional mobile operator network in a bid to solve the challenge. Therefore, this project seek to extends the previous study by setting up (installing) the proposed prototype in a typical rural setting, evaluating its real time performace and consequently designing a stable, low power and cost-effective off-the shelf cellular network for rural communications in developing countries.
Purpose/need/rationale The lack of transportation infrastructure, high illiteracy levels, and migrant labor are some characteristics of rural areas that emphasize the need for real-time voice communication. In addition, even more than in the developed world, voice communication in the developing world is a strong enabler of political freedom, economic growth and efficient health care. However while residents of developed countries spend on average 2% of their monthly income on cellular service, the cost in developing countries is closer to 12%. In addition, the ability of residents in developing regions to access cellphone technology is limited by poor cellular coverage. Low population density without grid power and low income in rural areas makes them unprofitable for telecommunication companies to invest in these areas. This is because operators are unwilling to make the large infrastructure investments (or pay the large operating costs) required to operate in areas without enough users to cover expenses. Surveys have showed that in Tanzania, 75% of the population live in these low population density and low income rural areas (Thomas, 2007). The highest levels of technology penetration in these areas are enjoyed by cellular networks, but even they cover only 25% of the population (World Bank, 2006). As a result the problem of cellular coverage in rural areas cannot be solved by traditional cellular technologies and conventional telecommunication companies which are driven by the need to make a profit. To address this challenge, recently, the Tanzanian government has taken the initiative to set up the Universal Communication Access Fund (UCAF) aiming to provide low cost telecommunication services in rural and undeserved areas. The fund was established in 2006 with an initial amount of 48 billion to provide low cost telecommunication connections in rural and underserved areas across the country, 1.6 million people were targeted in the first phase of the programme (UCAF, 2012). Despite this government initiative, the challenge of coverage in rural areas has not been solved. And recent statistics show that over 5 million people have no access to communications (TCRA, 2012). In our view, cellular open source technologies which emphasize software based implementation of the communication processes instead of costly hardware equipment can be the foundation for a new alternative cellular network that is ideally suited for rural conditions in developing countries like Tanzania. In (John et al, 2013), we made an attempt to study the various existing cellular open source technologies, the appropriate technology that is most suited to rural Tanzania was identified. An implementation of a prototype based on the technology in a laboratory setting followed whereby the viability of the network has been confirmed. Therefore, this project seek to extends the previous study by setting up (installing) the proposed prototype in a typical rural setting, evaluating its real time performace and consequently designing a stable, low power and cost-effective off-the shelf cellular network for rural communications in developing countries.
Project Description The project will begin by studying the requirements of a low cost cellular network that is suited for rural areas in developing Tanzania and conclude by running a prototype network in a chosen rural environment for further requirement collection and analysis, thereafter a stable and complete low cost cellular infrastructure based on the prior prototype with the main aim of serving all rural needs will be developed, finally, a fully functional network that has integrated billing and value added services and a front end gateway to other operators will be developed. The project aims at achieving the following 1. Perform in-situ evaluation of the proposed prototype in a typical village setting in Tanzania with the aim of identifying requirements for developing stable open cellular infrastructure for rural communications. 2. Design and implement complete and stable cellular infrastructure with the following design goals: minimum power consumption, reduced infrastructure cost, easy to implement and that continues to utilize existing GSM handsets. 3. Integrate other useful modules such as billing system, value added services which will address rural communities challenges in areas such as education and health. Design and integrate a gateway to interface and interconnect with other cellular operators
Budget and Contacts
Members interested in the research 1. Anthony Faustine 2. Nyaura Kibinda 3. Deo