Abayima

Abayima is a non-profit organization that was founded to support citizens when their voices are threatened in the form of attacks on communications infrastructure.

Abayima, Inc.
Founded2011
FounderJon Gosier
Type501(c)(3)
461802654
FocusActivism, Human rights
Location
OriginsMobile, Surveillance
Area served
World
MethodSIM cards
OwnerAbayima, Inc.
Key people
Jon Gosier
Employees
3
Websiteabayima.com

Abayima (the Luganda word for "Guardian") was inspired by the plight of activists in countries like Uganda, Libya, Syria, and Egypt where authorities have been known to sever (or monitor) citizen access to the internet and mobile communication.[1] During these 'internet black-outs', Abayima provides solutions that allow citizens and journalists to communicate in spite of such measures. In 2011 the project was piloted by Jon Gosier and his colleagues when government authorities in Uganda began intercepting SMS messages, a popular means for communicating in developing countries during times of crisis.[2]

Products

Open SIM Kit (OSK) is an open source software for editing the content of SIM cards. There are many different mobile phones and many different SIM cards on the market; the project attempts to solve this problem by offering an intuitive tool for modifying the contents of SIM cards.[3]

Awards

Abayima was awarded $150,000 from the Knight Foundation in the 2013 Knight News Challenge.[4][5] Previously, in 2011, the project received a £15,000 grant from Indigo Trust.[6][7]

References
  1. Robertson, Jordan. "The day part of the Internet died: Egypt goes dark". The Washington Times.
  2. "A Brief History of the Abayima Project". Appfrica.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-24.
  3. "TED Fellow Jon Gosier Wins Knight News Challenge Mobile Grant". TED.com.
  4. "This App Lets Activists Pass Around Information When the Government is Watching". FastCompany.
  5. "Winners of the Knight News Challenge: Media Focus on Education, Human Rights". Slate.com.
  6. "Indigo Trust Grants Awarded". Indigo Trust.
  7. Sutter, John (31 January 2013). "The cell phone revolutionary". CNN. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
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