Social change is in the air thanks to the mobile

A new GSMA study ‘The Mobile Economy: India 2015’ declares that India will have more than half a billion mobile subscribers by the end of 2015. It also forecasts the country could soon become the second-largest mobile market after China.

Even as the winners of the 2015 Mobile For Good Awards are revealed this week, if innovative solutions for social change can be guided to profitable growth, India will be able to serve most of its citizens, rather than a privileged few.

While rapid adoption of technology is enabling the Centre’s ‘Digital India’ plan, initiatives like Mobile For Good Awards can help enterprises reach and serve unconnected citizens.

Anchored by a partnership between Vodafone Foundation and Nasscom Social Innovation Forum, this year’s grant of ₹60 lakh, along with mentorship to five winning NGOs or Not-for-Profits will be a step up.

Since 2011, Vodafone Foundation has focused on identifying and recognising innovative solutions aimed at mobilising change in India. The initiative gains sharper definition in its fifth year, as it seeks to support chosen enterprises by going beyond the offer of a grant.

“We believe technology, and specifically mobile, can drive social change. In four years, we were able to support 22 social organisations. It’s not enough to only recognise the organisations. We also want to recognise what innovations are taking place across domains,” shares P Balaji, Regulatory and External Affairs, Vodafone India.

With community empowerment and inclusive growth as key priorities, enterprises that come up with innovative solutions across four critical areas – health, education, agriculture and environment – will find mentorship under the Mobile For Good programme.

Vodafone Foundation’s partnership with Nasscom Social Innovation Forum, a part of Nasscom Foundation, is a first. Balaji underlines that the right partner adds value in such initiatives.

According to Shrikant Sinha, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation, the idea behind joining forces was to combine the strengths of both stakeholders in mentoring enterprises with a few different considerations in mind.

“Something that changes the social landscape is what we’ll be looking for, but we’ll definitely identify what can be scaled up; also if apps can be affordable to people while delivering to them,” Sinha outlines.

“India is a unique mobile market and one where the mobile ecosystem is playing a huge role in transforming lives of its citizens, and driving economic growth,” said Alex Sinclair, acting Director-General and Chief Technology Officer, GSMA, said.

Initiatives like Mobile For Good have the potential to shape how effectively the world wide web and technology will work for all citizens.

Surat Municipal Corporation makes for a worthy showcase, after it became the first in India to launch a mobile application, in 2013. The app received a Special Mention Award as part of last year’s Mobile For Good programme.

The Citizens Connect SMC Mobile App is free on the Google Play Store and allows citizens to access a range of information and services, like registration details of shops and establishments, elected and administrative wings, active tender information, recruitment advertisements and rainfall information. Transactional services empower the public to pay different types of outstanding or advance taxes and utility bills. The app reportedly has over 50,000 downloads from India and 15 other countries.

Meanwhile, along with forecasts of growth, the GSMA report also identified network coverage and digital literacy as prevailing barriers to connecting rural or remote areas of India and achieving success of Digital India.