Smarter Water, a Frontier Tech Hub film
A film about using frontier tech to enable sustainable access to safe water in Tanzania, building on our in-depth evidence on using IoT Sensors for Impact across our portfolio.
We live in a world where more people in Africa have access to mobile phones than have access to clean drinking water. Water infrastructure across Africa can be fragmented and unreliable. 10 years ago it was estimated that one in three hand pumps in rural areas were broken globally, and one reason for this is a lack of maintenance and repair.
In 2016 the Frontier Tech Hub worked with eWATER Services to pilot the use of IoT sensors within solar-powered water systems in rural Tanzania. Through monitoring patterns in water flow and volume, engineers were able to identify issues and breakages in the WASH system and respond. Water tap access increased from 66% to 99%, and in one village, the average time spent collecting water per household was reduced from three hours a day to just 10 minutes, with children able to attend school as a result.
This short film tells the story of the humans in Singida and Endanachan whose lives have been drastically improved by 24/7 access to safe water.
How the tech works
Like many pilots in our portfolio, the smart taps are made up of multiple technologies which work together. Solar power pumps the water, RFID tags enable customers to buy the water, and they can top up their tags via mobile money. Sensors within the water system measure pressure, flow and other elements, and the internet of things transmits the data to a dashboard visible to engineers, government and eWater themselves.
When a tap needs fixing, local engineers are alerted to visit and get the taps up and running again.
Many thanks to our partners and collaborators at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, eWater Services and Picnic Films for bringing this story to life.
If you’d like to dig in further…
📚 Read our in-depth evidence on IoT Sensors for Impact (long read)
⛴️ Explore eWater’s real time dashboard on their website
