As we continue to explore the benefits of utilizing social media to promote businesses, candidates and celebrities, I thought it was interesting to find an article in the February 19 issue of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about a very creative use for Twitter.
Francis Kariuki is the administrative chief of a remote village in western Kenya. He uses Twitter to send out alarms about thieves in the village, missing livestock and positive, hopeful messages to uplift the spirits of the people in his village. Even though many of the villagers cannot afford smartphones (he has only about 300 followers), thousands of the 28,000 residents of his village have found other ways to follow Kariuki's tweets, either via text message or third-party mobile phone apps. Kariuki states in the article that his use of Twitter has brought down the crime rate (even the criminals in the village follow his tweets!) and saved money and time because he doesn't have to send letters or print posters to distribute information.
The article goes on to explain that Twitter is experiencing huge growth across Africa, stating that "over the last three months of 2011, Kenyans produced nearly 2.5 million tweets." The thought is that with the expanded use of social media, there will be a huge movement within the country towards the use of social media in different ways.
We hear about uprisings against governments through social media, advice on the best utilization of social media to promote business and, of course, what a favorite celebrity had for breakfast via social media, but I think Kariuki's use is by far a unique and useful method to improve the lives of his constituents. Want to follow his tweets? Here's the link: https://twitter.com/Chiefkariuki
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