Beyond getting a Water User Committee established, we have the technological challenge of the Water Sellers trained to use a smartphone and the SmartTap app. In many ways, getting the Water Seller to use a smartphone is just as daunting.
We have purchased four new smartphones for the establishment of up to four Water Sellers, that is, two for each SmartTap installation. Plus, we purchased another smartphone for a Water Manager Assistant. All the new smartphones had to be purchased in the USA market because we are the users of NFC (Near Field Communication) technology up until now. We use NFC primarily in our contactless payment systems such as Google Pay. I have noticed most of us Americans are not big fans of using our smartphone to tap-to-pay-and-go. It is the younger millennials who are big Google Pay users since they are connected to and dependent upon their smartphones most often. Google Pay is available in over 40 countries worldwide BUT not a single country in Africa. As such, phones outside of the US, Canada, and EU markets probably do not have NFC hardware capability. Therefore, you can NOT use an app that requires NFC. And the NFC capability is not available on all USA market smartphones.
The lack of worldwide access to NFC capable smartphones is worrisome in Congo. Even the best mobile phone stores will not have a NFC enabled smartphone. Without the required NFC enabled smartphone, the Water Seller will NOT be able to add water credits to a customer’s SmartTap tag. And no credit means no water sales. We will have to have an emergency backup of NFC capable smartphones.
NFC is enabled under the Connections tab within Settings. Once NFC is enabled, the SmartTap app will read the SmartTap tag and display the information from the tag.
The SmartTap app is a simple but multi-function app. And it has only three screens to navigate. First, there is the start screen when you open the app. It displays five functions as follows: Sell Credits, Get Credits, Deduct Credits, Data, and Settings.
The Sell Credits screen is used when the Water Seller wants to sell water credits to a customer. The screen displays the credit available for sale and the calculator. If you can select the calculator function, it will display the total cost of water credits, the number of liters, the number of basins, and the total water credits to be added. The Water Seller will have the option to cancel or proceed. Selling credits does NOT require internet connectivity.
The Get Credits screen is used when the Water Seller has sold his allotted water credit to water customers. And she needs to request additional water credits from the Water Manager or Water Manager Assistant to sell. The Water Seller will enter the number of water credits requested. The water credits will be added to the water credit balance when the transaction is approved. We may require the Water Seller to pay an advance for additional water credits to sell. Payments can be made in person or via mobile money with the Water Manager Assistant. Getting Credits requires internet connectivity.
The Deduct Credit screen is used when the Water Seller wants to buy back water credits from the Water Customer. The customer’s SmartTap tag is read by Water Seller’s SmartTap app, the credits on the tag are displayed and then the amount of credits to be deducted is entered. Tap Transfer to complete the transaction.
The Data screen is used to display transactions conducted by the Water Seller. The following data can be displayed: Customer list, Statistics, and Transaction logs.
The Settings screen displays the selected language, English or French; Privacy Policy; and User Info.
Can the Water Seller Master the SmartTap app?
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