Sauti East Africa is proud to have been working with the BORESHA project to develop and launch a mobile information service to support small businesses with relevant information in the border regions of Kenya-Somalia-Ethiopia. BORESHA stands for  Building Opportunities for Resilience in the Horn of Africa, and the main aims of the project are to promote economic and private sector development and greater resilience among vulnerable groups such as youth, women, internally displaced persons, and transitional communities in the targeted cross-border region.

Sauti has been working closely with the BORESHA teams throughout 2020 to conduct research with target users and key stakeholders across the three countries, in order to inform the design of BORESHA’s information service. Despite challenges of COVID-19, Sauti was able to conduct remote data collection with more than 300 respondents utilising a combination of telephone interviews and Sauti’s custom built mobile survey tool.

The BORESHA information platform was launched on 23rd July in Mandera, Kenya. Information available on the platform includes Market prices, Weather, and Finance Opportunities among others. The launch was attended by government representatives and key stakeholders, as well as coverage from press, which can be accessed here.

In addition to designing the mobile information platform, Sauti has provided additional support in the form of training materials, information pamphlets and a report showcasing the research findings from the project. We look forward to sharing these reports with you soon.