Hamba Safe 48-hour Hack-a-thon: CT hackers needed to build new safety app for all communities
The Cape Town Hamba Safe hack-a-thon to develop a new app that aims to enable safer outdoor activity in groups is confirmed for this coming weekend at the V&A Waterfront’s Workshop 17. Kicking off with a briefing at 6pm on Friday 18th March, the exciting 48-hour hack-a-thon will run until the evening
of Sunday 20th March. We are appealing to more techies to help us make a difference by joining this social initiative. Free sign up to Quickets is encouraged by visiting https://www.quicket.co.za/events/15809-the-48hr-hambsafe-hackathon/ to enable adequate catering however techies are more than welcome to just arrive on Friday and bring their skills and knowledge – and their own devices if possible. Timing is optional and techies can come and go as they please, but we envisage some may wish to be a part of the action for most of the 2-day event. Transportation home as well as full catering is currently being arranged. A number of recent incidents of crime affecting people from all corners of the city have left citizens feeling extremely cautious of going about their daily activities outdoors. Whether it’s recreational running, cycling or a daily walk to a taxi rank from a place of work, an app is required that will enable safety in numbers by helping people easily connect and plan for any ‘on the fly’ or pre-arranged activity. The 48-hour hack-a-thon to create this app, which has been named Hamba Safe, is a fully community-led initiative – by the people for the people. Other similar apps have been reviewed – such as those that enable rapid response – but none deal specifically with prevention through strength in numbers. The request is for developers to bring ideas and skills to develop the prevention component. The usual timeframes for developing such an app can be long-winded but by pooling the very best minds in Cape Town to develop a purpose-built, open source app from scratch, this can be achieved in a fraction of the time. This initiative goes beyond just building an app. It’s about getting people from all our different communities to work together for a solution that applies to all people. Through its usage, it is hoped that the app will also enable the coming together of people who wouldn't ordinarily interact. An urgent call-to-action to Cape Town techies
People are required to volunteer their skills and knowledge in order to build this app. Specifically, we’re looking for: Android Developers, IOS Developers, SQL Developers, .Net Developers, Mobile UI designers, Testers, Analysts and Scrum Masters. Initiators Sham Moodliar and Elizabeth Senger, both fellow concerned Capetonians, “The key is that this is a social initiative. People care and this way they can work together to actually make a difference for the future. This is at the heart of the shift towards connected value creation.”
Anyone keen to participate – whether from a technology perspective or from a different sponsorship perspective – please get in touch via email [email protected] or visit the page https://www.facebook.com/hambasafe/
Notes about the proposed app
The idea is to have an application you sign up to, and similar to Airbnb©, you have to go through validation processes such as a login and validating ID. These are security measures to help ensure that access and participation is limited to authentic members. A user can then create an event such as: “I am going for a 10km run leaving from X, my pace is 6km per hour, anyone want to join me?”
Minimum numbers for an event can be set, other users will then be able to subscribe to the event (the organiser can approve or reject application), and all participants can see who is joining the run. If someone can no longer make the event, they remove themselves and the application notifies the rest of the participants so that you are not waiting for a participant. Other key safety measures include the ability to provide positive reviews per runner (think the Uber© rating system) plus participants can view each other’s social media profiles.
