Brastorne, a Company in Botswana, is Transforming Simple Feature Phones into Tools for Digital Access

A Botswana-based startup, Brastorne, has been turning simple feature phones into tools into the digital world. It’s connecting millions of Africans who lack internet access to essential services. Started in 2013, Brastorne’s team uses basic technologies including SMS, USSD and IVR (voice technology) to bring these basic feature phones together in order to make them a way out for access to basic social services and information.

Brastorne’s argument to do so rests on a simple fact: millions of people in African villages still lack access to the digital world, partly because the costs of smartphones and mobile data are prohibitively high. The Brazilian team has turned feature phones into tools for economic and social change, providing information on agricultural resources, market price data, job ads, health information, chat rooms, all from the convenience of their pockets without the need for internet connection.

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“We found out about a very big digital divide in Africa where 80% of people in rural areas lack access to affordable internet services, ” said Stimela. “The price of smartphones and data services means millions are never connected to the digital world. This is particularly true for farming communities. ”One way Brastorne solves this gap is by offering offline internet-like experiences via SMS and USSD technology. These online tools allow farmers to receive advice on crop cultivation right now, jobseekers to find work opportunities and families to remain connected.

The Botswana-based startup Brastorne has already reached more than five million households in Botswana, Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Zambia and Cameroon. Its innovative approach has also received great responses in rural areas where mobile telephony penetration is high but smartphones and data still remain prohibitively costly, for example its mAgri platform for farmers, which connects them to markets and provides them with vital farming information.

Brastorne’s success lies in the fact that it can offer cheap access to digital services through strong partnerships with mobile network operators (MNO). In such partnerships, telecom companies get a share of revenue from USSD and SMS services, and their customers pay a small subscription fee for access to content. The business model means that while Brastorne raises its revenue through USSD and SMS, it also spends that same amount on expansion of its network and other improvements.

“There are other competing solutions, like agri-tech companies, other social impact start-ups, but Brastorne is different because it offers offline solutions on feature phones for even the most basic ones, ” Stimela said. “With our multi-channel approach, you can see if people who don’t want smartphones, have no data plans or simply can’t afford it.

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With its ambitious expansion plans, Brastorne (in the French, Brastorne) hopes to bring its services to Madagascar, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast soon. Totalising 19 countries in Africa, Brastorne has already become a social impact leader.

Brastorne’s turning simple feature phones into tools is not about fixing the hardware, it’s about creating economic, educational and social opportunities for underprivileged people in the communities. By creating offline tools, such as SMS and USSD services, Botswana-based start-up Brastorne has shown that innovation doesn’t have to be made with new technology. It can come from reinventing the things that are already there, in the hopes of empowering millions of people across Africa.

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