BudgIT, Nigeria’s civic startup recognizes the power of information to the citizen and how it can serve as a context for informed discussions and institutional change. With a previous website optimized for desktop access, BudgIT has taken a further step by launching a mobile version of its website accessible via multiple smart mobile devices.
With over 2.5 million web hits, BudgIT has already worked hard at communicating complex issues related to budget and public finance. BudgIT has transformed the discussion about the budget on social media and offline gatherings from a maze of thick document to an understandable financial piece.
While web usage is growing in Nigeria, outreach needs to extend to excluded citizens who need clear and simple access to budgetary resources via mobile. With a country with over 99 million connected lines, developing information services for mobile phones further strengthens the reach of providing open data to citizens. BudgIT has worked with the urban young people mostly connected to the Internet via smartphones and now seeks to expand its reach by building applications relevant for Nigeria’s 2013 budget, monthly allocations and also capital projects in their areas.
Current analytics shows that 65% of current users access to the website via mobile. Hence, it has been recognized that there is need to engage citizens via through mobile platforms. The mobile site available at yourbudgit.com immediately smartly switches to the mobile mode on detection of a smartphone. BudgIT has ensured that infographics, budget review applications are only limited to the desktop sites. Understanding the ubiquity of the mobile device, BudgIT is working on budget simulation and gaming tools to deepen access among young people. The next phase of the mobile site will include states’ budget, approved projects and allocations to local government.
BudgIT holds a creed which is of a just, transparent and fair society where every citizen within a community has equal access of information about the budgetary and fiscal position of their society, and uses technologies of any form that appeal across every literacy span to make information especially public data more accessible, transparent and understandable to Nigerians and also to the great people of the world.
