Mobile Activism, Mobile Disruption

Christian Kreutz explores the growing trend of mobile devices as a disruptor in developing countries…

The simplest and most powerful form of mobile activism in the future will probably still be ordinary communication. However, in all fields of activism such as advocacy, awareness, research and protest, the mobile phone can be a strategic tool for communication, collaboration, coordination and collective action. In this regard we have only started to tap upon the potential of this all-purpose tool, being it in ownership by a majority of Africans across the continent.

However if one wants to look at some likely future scenarios and potentials for advanced mobile usage, then 4 trends could be particularly promising for mobile activism.

His first observation is that of hacking to create new utility from pre-existing hardware or software. The obvious example being Ushahidi which was created in the post-2008 Kenyan election crisis to map reports of violence. Another example is Feedelix which arose when the Egyptian government began censoring SMS messages.

The second trend describes using mobile devices for documenting information. Services like mPedigree and more recently, LUCAS, which can be used to document pathogens or for imaging blood samples.

The third trend is using mobile devices for publishing or broadcasting, something NTV in Kenya has become known for after outfitting their reporters with mobile devices used for reporting from the field.

Finally, the fourth trend is mobile social networks like MXit and Nigeria’s TextIT.

He concludes…

A lot of challenges still remain, such as high costs or illiteracy. The control of mobile phone networks can become a security risk, also there is the potential that activists have to compete with private sector and the government in these new channels, and it might become an echo chamber residing with the essential challenges of activism: the lack of participation.