Wonderkid received a grant from the GSMA Mobile for Development (M4D) Utilities Innovation Fund in 2015. Their work under this grant, supported by the UK Department for International Development, has recently been shortlisted for one of the UK Government’s 2016 Digital Strategy and Impact Awards in the ‘Promoted and Transformed Delivery’ category. Wonderkid have also been selected as the winner for stage one of the Dreampipe prize competition.

In this interview with Halima Murunga, Director at Wonderkid, we discuss their experience of helping water utilities across Kenya adopt digital tools.

1. Tell us more about Wonderkid. How did you start working with water utilities?

Established in 2007 and with roots in Nairobi, Kenya, Wonderkid found a niche in developing bespoke Information Communication Technology (ICT) solutions for the public and private sector. We first delved into the water sector in 2012 by participating in, and eventually winning, a World Bank hackathon organised in Nairobi with MajiVoice, a complaint management solution which is now being used by nine utilities in Kenya.

With the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company, we were able to extend our engagement beyond MajiVoice by developing a Mobile Field Assistant tool. This was the starting point for our present suite of ICT tools for water utility companies.

2. You are working with several water utilities in Kenya. Please share some of your learnings.

Kenyan utilities are divided geographically to serve populations in their assigned administrative boundaries. Each utility has a unique context making blanket solutions and strategies ineffective. Wonderkid worked with each water utility individually to develop customised solutions.

We have an 80-20 rule: technology can only solve 20 per cent of the issues while the remaining 80 per cent is change management. Every service provider must take time to understand the cultural landscape and organisational structure of the utility. We have found it useful to develop relationships across various functions and levels. Everyone from the management, supervisors to meter readers need to understand that they are being heard and their suggestions are being incorporated in the solution.

Demonstrating early wins helps in cementing the relationship. For instance, Kisumu Water saw revenues increase by 10 per cent in the first quarter. The utility’s management utilised the data that informed strategies and processes that resulted in revenue and efficiency gains. Furthermore the management rallied staff support subsequently leading to success in implementing the project and delivering results. In the past year, Kisumu Water has seen its complaint resolution time decrease by half, from 15 days in June last year to 7 days in June 2016. Similarly, gains were also achieved in meter reading efficiency as the average number of meters read by a meter reader during one cycle increased from 325 to over 375 within a year.

For customer facing solutions, adoption is not guaranteed by publicity alone. It must be well supported by consistent service delivery by the utility. Therefore, adoption is not a sudden spike, but rather a gradual rise as there is a lot of behavioural change that needs to precede adoption. For example, even though consumers can pay their water utility bills using M-Pesa which is more convenient than paying in person at the utilities’ office, customers continue to use cash. A sustained marketing campaign coupled with changes to the user interface are required for a complete transition to mobile payments.

3. Is there an opportunity for Mobile Operators to partner with entrepreneurs such as yourself in the mobile enabled utility space?

Mobile operators have a big role to play in the utility sector. Mobile technology presents a scalable and cost efficient way for utilities to digitise their operations. Our own solution uses several of the mobile operator’s services such as SMS, mobile data and digital payments among others. We believe that there is an opportunity for mobile operators to provide a comprehensive business solution to utilities that brings together different telecom services into one package.

Service providers like Wonderkid can function as bridges connecting mobile operators and utilities and nurturing a closer and symbiotic relationship between them via our solutions.

4. You were the winner for World Bank hackathon, and were later selected for the M4D Utilities Innovation Grant and most recently the Dreampipe prize. How did winning these help you expand your operations?

For a start-up, working with water utilities can be challenging and sometimes almost intimidating. The various competitions provided us a route to meaningfully engage the utility companies, understand their way of working and the challenges they faced.
The World Bank hackathon was a door opener that helped us develop and pilot our products. The M4D Utilities Innovation Grant gave us the opportunity to scale our solution for adoption by four medium sized utilities in Kenya as well as demonstrate the concept to a larger audience.

Support from The World Bank and GSMA not only helped us in expanding our footprint but has also assisted in our transition from grant supported projects to commercially sustainable projects. We have been able to secure commercial contracts with six utilities. At present, our technology solutions are helping deliver an improved customer experience to close to four million water consumers, and empowering over 4,000 utility staff.

With the Dreampipe prize, we hope to continue this transition towards commercial sustainability. Dreampipe lays the foundation for a utility to not only commit towards the reduction of Non-Revenue Water (NRW) but to also lay out a clear actionable plan that is embedded into their overall strategy. Wonderkid has been able to leverage sector knowledge to implement these vital tools and to support the utility’s management team in defining an NRW reduction plan.

As its flagship utility-specific product evolves to include asset management, NRW management and Human Resources management, Wonderkid hopes that its success in Kenya will attract more utilities from across the continent and emerging markets to adopt their solution. To find out more about Wonderkid please write to Halima Murunga.