In Johannesburg South Africa Dialdirect Insurance in partnership with Namola announced the nationwide launch of Namola, a mobile app that is aimed at bridging the communication gap between the South African public and emergency services. The app which was previously only available in Tshwane and Gauteng will now be available across South Africa.
According to Statistics South Africa’s Victims of Crime Survey, 1.2 million South African households experienced 1.5 million crime incidents in 2016/17. Most of these victims of crime probably contacted the national police emergency line, 10111, for help in their time of need. Some got the assistance they needed, some, unfortunately, didn’t.
The app is South Africa’s fastest growing safety app. The SABC through its TV channel, SABC3, has come on board as Namola’s official media partner.
Namola is a free crime response app that allows users to share their GPS coordinates, name and nature of the emergency with a 24/7 response call center. For genuine alerts, police, other emergency response and citizen responders are then dispatched and monitored.
According to Yusuf Abramjee, crime activist and Namola Chief ambassador: “Namola was initially launched as an ‘Uber for police’ in the City of Tshwane and later, Gauteng. It was introduced to give victims of crime access to a new innovative way of contacting the police and now has over 80 000 registered users.”
Namola improves efficiencies and alleviates pressures placed on 10111 centres by pre-screening alerts. It also pinpoints the user’s exact location, making it easy for emergency services to find them.
According to Warwick Scott-Rodger, Executive Head of Dialdirect Insurance: “Namola is a smart complement to 10111. Your call will always be answered and the information will be passed on to the nearest police station. Namola doesn’t guarantee that the police will be on time, but it improves your chances to get help greatly.”
During his maiden State of the Province address, Gauteng Premier David Makhura, alluded to the use of technology in the fight against crime.
In response to the Premier’s call, Gauteng’s MEC for Community Safety, Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane said that she’s excited about the national rollout of Namola. “We piloted the technology in some of the Gauteng Traffic Police high-performance vehicles and the technology has proved to be effective in improving turnaround time when responding to crime incidents and emergency alerts.”
Scott-Rodger continues: “With future plans of highlighting crime hotspots and sharing proactive safety tips and information from community members, Namola is more than an app. It’s a platform for South Africans to come together. For Dialdirect, it’s just another way we’re using technology to make life easier, better and safer.”
Scott-Rodger concludes, “As the numbers of registered users on Namola grows, the more power South Africa has to drive change within our police and emergency services.”
Namola is available at no cost. To turn your phone into a panic button, search for Namola in the Apple App Store or Google Play.
Edited by Dean Workman
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