We stumbled upon this interesting app it’s called UP NEPA. The idea is simple, to indicate power availability and unavailability, probably show it up on a map, collate the information, and then maybe see what kind of useful information can be gotten off it.
The app is available for download on the Google Playstore, the summary reads:
UP NEPA promotes a joint effort by Nigerians and for Nigerians to monitor the performance of their local power companies. UP NEPA uses your smartphone's Internet connection and GPS location services to pinpoint areas around you that could be supplied with electricity from the local power company (who used to be NEPA).
A pretty simple and easy to use app.
It's a community of people lending one other an eye by keeping up with and updating the community on the power supply statuses in areas of interest to them, especially areas they have visited recently. This way we are able to get daily up-to-date information on these areas, and hence troubleshooting power problems in these areas get easier.
The key benefits of the app listed are:
- Know when your area has power problems
- Verify power status of an area
- Work where there is electricity
- Plan your life
This effort reminds me of a startup, SOP Notify. SOP Notify installs smart sensors in different parts of Nigerian cities to monitor power outages and restorations. The information from the sensors are sent to the servers and distributed to users through the mobile app, SMS, email and social media
Unlike UP NEPA, theirs is a combination of hardware and software rather than UP NEPA’s crowdsourcing. As at the time of writing this article we couldn’t verify if SOP Notify was still in operation but their Twitter feed remains active with energy related publications.