Building a WhatsApp and SMS Early Warning System for Communities

Nigeria has high mobile penetration and WhatsApp is everywhere, yet many communities still learn about floods when the water arrives. Closing that gap is a design problem, not a technology problem.

Principles of effective alerts - Specific: say where, when and what to do. - Local language: Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Pidgin and others. - Trusted sender: a consistent, verified number or channel. - Multichannel: WhatsApp, SMS for basic phones, voice calls for low literacy, and community radio. - Two-way: let people confirm receipt and report conditions.

Architecture in brief 1. Hazard engine: forecasts and satellite observations produce hazard polygons. 2. Targeting: polygons are intersected with registered subscribers by location or digital postcode. 3. Message templates: pre-approved, tested wording for each alert level. 4. Delivery: WhatsApp Business API, SMS gateway and IVR. 5. Feedback loop: replies and reports feed back into the dashboard.

Building the subscriber base Partner with community leaders, religious centres, cooperatives and schools. Register people before the season through drives and USSD sign-ups.

Measuring success Track delivery rates, response confirmations and actions taken, not just messages sent.

StrikeClimate designs and operates early-warning messaging pipelines for states, NGOs and enterprises.