A Review on Challenges in Implementing Mobile Phone Based Data Collection in Developing Countries

Abstract

As mobile phones are impregnating developing countries, there has also been a surge on the research of using mobile phone as a tool in solving development problems in the areas such as livelihoods, poverty alleviation, health, education, the environment and disasters. The mobile phone research is being mainly focused on developing a suitable and viable technology for rural development. Collecting and reporting field based statistics using mobile phone is aimed at reducing time latencies between the reporting to and accessing from the database. The present review was mainly focused on socio-technological challenges of mobile phone based data collection in developing countries particularly in rural areas. Mobile phone based data collection can be successfully used by zeroing the challenges by employing the solutions suggested especially for developing countries.