RUMIS

SAFE WATER FOREVER

SCALING RUMIS FOR NATIONWIDE IMPACT

PROBLEM

For the past 20 years, Uganda has tried to manage all of the water systems and sources in the country using an archaic paper-based system collecting data that is manually entered into spreadsheets. It is woefully broken and it is impossible to know what water source is functional or broken, or even how many Ugandans have water and how many are still waiting. Ultimately, all 45 million people living in Uganda are affected by blind decision-making for a critical service they need daily. Uganda needs a viable plan for collecting, managing and analyzing data–including true functionality data–to end its water crisis. Interventions: UWP has piloted a new national data platform for the entire nation called the Rural and Urban Management Information System (RUMIS).

RUMIS eliminates tedious methods for data management while providing accountability for data quality. RUMIS allows government staff to collect and enter data simultaneously from the field (data is collected on smartphones and immediately accessible through the cloud).

After successfully onboarding eight districts (home to 2.5 million people) into the RUMIS pilot, the Ugandan Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) invited UWP to expand RUMIS nation-wide.

To carry out this effort, UWP is seeking partnerships to broaden our impact. Since the invitation from the MWE, UWP has enrolled two additional districts and is scheduled to enroll an additional five districts. Each of the remaining 126 districts need to have staff trained, all water sources mapped and updated, and the district staff need to be supported with ongoing training as they begin using these new tools.

Impact

The goal is better water service for Ugandans. It is unlikely that Uganda’s government will ever provide sufficient water service without an accurate, up-to-date view of what’s happening on the ground. The best results will follow when all stakeholders involved in solving Uganda’s water crisis can access the same accurate, up-to-date information. RUMIS makes this possible.

RUMIS allows the government, charities, and businesses working in water to have a single, centralized database to accurately collect and share data, view advanced analytics and data visualizations, manage daily operations, address problems, make informed decisions, allocate resources strategically, and plan for the future. RUMIS facilitates enhanced coordination and collaboration among sector stakeholders which will ultimately lead to improved water service for Ugandans.

Cost: $25,000 per district ($5,000 for indirect costs, $20,000 for direct costs)

Once districts are onboarded, Uganda’s existing government budgets are sufficient to cover the ongoing operation of the system. Once RUMIS software development is complete, there will be no ongoing cost to use the RUMIS platform—no annual subscription, no per-survey cost, and no data storage fees. All software updates and improvements made to the underlying mWater platform by other users will automatically be rolled into RUMIS.

Ultimately, RUMIS will be free for the Ugandan government to use. By increasing efficiency and improving sector-wide visibility, RUMIS is expected to deliver cost savings for the Ugandan government, further justifying its use and spurring nationwide adoption.

Partnership: To support this initiative, we welcome contributions via various channels, including DAF, ACH, credit/debit card, stock, cryptocurrency, cash, or check. Your generous donations, earmarked for “RUMIS,” will play a vital role in advancing water accessibility and management.

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