Text Your Government: Participatory Cell Phone Technology in Ghana
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.
By Emily DiMatteo
July 1, 2021
Direct citizen engagement can be transformed with innovative technological tools. As communities search for new ways to connect citizens to democratic processes, using existing technological devices such as cell phones can reach a number of citizens—including those typically excluded from policy processes. This occurred in Ghana when a technology startup and social enterprise called VOTO Mobile (now Viamo) created polling and information sharing software that uses mobile phone SMS texts and voice calls. Since its founding in 2010, the Ghana-based company has worked to use mobile technology to advance democratic engagement and good governance through new communication channels between citizens and their government.
Previous methods to overcome public participation challenges in Ghana include using public radio. However, when VOTO Mobile evaluated technological capabilities in several districts, cell phones offered a new way to engage. The option to contact citizens via text or voice call also helped remove certain barriers to participation in political processes, including distance, language and literacy. In 2012-2013, VOTO Mobile facilitated a project called the, “Mobile for Social Inclusive Government,” to increase citizen engagement and participation. The project used the company’s software to disseminate local information and conduct citizen surveys in four Ghanaian districts: Tamale, Savelugu, Wa and Yendi. VOTO Mobile partnered with civil society organizations including Savana Signatures, GINKS and Amplify Governance, as well as District Assemblies in local district governments.
Participant selection for the project utilized pre-existing District Assembly membership data across the four districts to contact citizens to participate. This outreach also was supplemented by the project’s partner organizations and ultimately involved more than 2,000 participants. In using VOTO Mobile’s technological platform of interactive text and voice call surveys, the project gathered feedback from citizens as they shared concerns with their local government. There was a large focus on input from marginalized populations across the districts including women, young people and people with disabilities. In addition to the cell phone surveys, the platform enabled online consultations between citizens and local district officials in place of face-to-face visits.
As a result, local district governments were able to crowdsource information directly from citizens, leading to increased citizen input in subsequent policy formulation and planning processes. Several district governments actively shared information with community members through voice and text channels, including health service reminders. Additionally, local officials in Wa and Tamale used VOTO Mobile’s platform to share updates on public projects including improving water wells and new road services. In general, participants became more informed about local public services and ways to share feedback with their local government. For continued success, VOTO Mobile’s efforts must be supported on the national level to ensure sustained policy action and responses to citizen input. Additionally, there are still several barriers to using VOTO Mobile’s platform; the success of these unique technological methods depends on telecommunications infrastructure and access to cell phones, in addition to the support of local institutions. As such, the project is an important starting point for the innovative use of technology and not a complete solution for complex issues like public participation and citizen engagement.
Overall, the, “Mobile for Social Inclusive Governance,” project offers a creative method to increase democratic accountability and citizen participation through the use of cell phone technologies. Since this project took place in 2012-2013, more than 250 organizations have used VOTO Mobile’s software, engaging more than 500,000 people across 72 countries. Examples include the World Bank and UNICEF, which implemented the technology in various participatory projects including polling citizens about development priorities. As issues of citizen engagement increase across international and local policy levels, it will become increasingly important to consider using innovative technologies. VOTO Mobile’s approach offers a model for creating new feedback loops between citizens and government, thus working toward increased democratic participation and good governance.
To learn more about this case visit https://participedia.net/case/4642. To read about other innovative applications of public participation, visit www.participedia.net.
Author: Emily DiMatteo is pursuing a Master of Arts in International Relations and a Certificate of Advanced Study in the European Union and Contemporary Europe at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. She is passionate about empowering and inclusing people with disabilities, with a focus on international disability policy. Prior to her graduate studies, she completed a Fulbright U.S. Student Scholarship in the Czech Republic from 2019-2020. She received her BA from Villanova University in December 2018.
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Text Your Government: Participatory Cell Phone Technology in Ghana
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.
By Emily DiMatteo
July 1, 2021
Direct citizen engagement can be transformed with innovative technological tools. As communities search for new ways to connect citizens to democratic processes, using existing technological devices such as cell phones can reach a number of citizens—including those typically excluded from policy processes. This occurred in Ghana when a technology startup and social enterprise called VOTO Mobile (now Viamo) created polling and information sharing software that uses mobile phone SMS texts and voice calls. Since its founding in 2010, the Ghana-based company has worked to use mobile technology to advance democratic engagement and good governance through new communication channels between citizens and their government.
Previous methods to overcome public participation challenges in Ghana include using public radio. However, when VOTO Mobile evaluated technological capabilities in several districts, cell phones offered a new way to engage. The option to contact citizens via text or voice call also helped remove certain barriers to participation in political processes, including distance, language and literacy. In 2012-2013, VOTO Mobile facilitated a project called the, “Mobile for Social Inclusive Government,” to increase citizen engagement and participation. The project used the company’s software to disseminate local information and conduct citizen surveys in four Ghanaian districts: Tamale, Savelugu, Wa and Yendi. VOTO Mobile partnered with civil society organizations including Savana Signatures, GINKS and Amplify Governance, as well as District Assemblies in local district governments.
Participant selection for the project utilized pre-existing District Assembly membership data across the four districts to contact citizens to participate. This outreach also was supplemented by the project’s partner organizations and ultimately involved more than 2,000 participants. In using VOTO Mobile’s technological platform of interactive text and voice call surveys, the project gathered feedback from citizens as they shared concerns with their local government. There was a large focus on input from marginalized populations across the districts including women, young people and people with disabilities. In addition to the cell phone surveys, the platform enabled online consultations between citizens and local district officials in place of face-to-face visits.
As a result, local district governments were able to crowdsource information directly from citizens, leading to increased citizen input in subsequent policy formulation and planning processes. Several district governments actively shared information with community members through voice and text channels, including health service reminders. Additionally, local officials in Wa and Tamale used VOTO Mobile’s platform to share updates on public projects including improving water wells and new road services. In general, participants became more informed about local public services and ways to share feedback with their local government. For continued success, VOTO Mobile’s efforts must be supported on the national level to ensure sustained policy action and responses to citizen input. Additionally, there are still several barriers to using VOTO Mobile’s platform; the success of these unique technological methods depends on telecommunications infrastructure and access to cell phones, in addition to the support of local institutions. As such, the project is an important starting point for the innovative use of technology and not a complete solution for complex issues like public participation and citizen engagement.
Overall, the, “Mobile for Social Inclusive Governance,” project offers a creative method to increase democratic accountability and citizen participation through the use of cell phone technologies. Since this project took place in 2012-2013, more than 250 organizations have used VOTO Mobile’s software, engaging more than 500,000 people across 72 countries. Examples include the World Bank and UNICEF, which implemented the technology in various participatory projects including polling citizens about development priorities. As issues of citizen engagement increase across international and local policy levels, it will become increasingly important to consider using innovative technologies. VOTO Mobile’s approach offers a model for creating new feedback loops between citizens and government, thus working toward increased democratic participation and good governance.
To learn more about this case visit https://participedia.net/case/4642. To read about other innovative applications of public participation, visit www.participedia.net.
Author: Emily DiMatteo is pursuing a Master of Arts in International Relations and a Certificate of Advanced Study in the European Union and Contemporary Europe at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. She is passionate about empowering and inclusing people with disabilities, with a focus on international disability policy. Prior to her graduate studies, she completed a Fulbright U.S. Student Scholarship in the Czech Republic from 2019-2020. She received her BA from Villanova University in December 2018.
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