1. The Makerere Mobile Mission
We, the participants of the M4D 2010 Conference held in Kampala, Uganda on 10-
11 November 2010, call on all stakeholders to make greater efforts at seizing the
development opportunities on the back of more widely spread use of mobile phones.
In this context, services and applications that can involve and help serve the needs of
the poor, are of particular importance.
The M4D 2010 Conference provided a unique platform to engage experts from
academia, the private sector, civil society, donors and international organizations to
examine available evidence and to explore possible needs for future action. Whilst
there are clear indications of the potential positive effects of mobile phone use on the
livelihoods of poor people, more systematic analysis is needed to convert anecdotes
and isolated examples into generalizable and actionable evidence.
The Makerere Mobile Mission encourages all stakeholders to consider fully the
potential for mobile phones, including in combination with other means, to support
development through, inter alia, the following areas:
• Good governance and increased transparency
• Government services
• Health care
• Environment management
• Rural development
• Private sector development
• Finance and insurance
• Improved livelihoods
• Citizen empowerment
The potential is evident. It is our common responsibility to turn this into reality, and
we need to work in partnership.
• Academia needs to scale up efforts to analyze the impact of current uses of
mobile phones and understand the needs of users.
• The private sector can fund research and has a crucial role to play in terms of
providing equipment, services and applications that can meet the needs of the
intended users.
• Civil society can serve a critical function in monitoring developments on the
ground and helping citizens to gain a stronger voice.
• Governments must attach adequate attention to the scope for mobile solutions
in their development strategies. They need to provide an enabling environment
to this end. They should also harness mobiles when designing and discharging
their public services.
• Development partners need to ratchet up their interest and activities in the
M4D area. Their active involvement and support are needed to fund
independent research and to accelerate the expansion of our knowledge base.
Participants of the M4D 2010 Conference
Kampala, 11 November 2010