Big Ideas Team Wins at USAID ’ s TechCon
By Sarah Bernardo
Grace Nakibaala , Isah Ssevume , and Molly Mbaziira Nannyonjo from Makerere University formed the PedalTap team to prevent the spread of infection at communal handwashing facilities in Uganda . The PedalTap is a freestanding , universally-fitting connection that can be attached to any water tap . Rather than turning the tap on and off using their hands , users can control water flow by stepping on a foot pedal that is made from a bicycle brake handle and a spring-loaded water cut-off mechanism .
$ 5000 prize that we secured from the Big Ideas competition was the first award we ever got . It went a long way in showing us that someone believed in PedalTap and in facilitating the piloting phase of implementing our project . We also received mentorship from engineer Cosmos Mwikiriza , who we were matched with through the Big Ideas competition and who has continued to guide us individually in our different career paths
PedalTap maintains a blog online , and their work in Uganda has garnered media attention . The PedalTap was spotlighted in local newspapers and on several television programs . Most prominently , the project was featured in a segment on BBC World News . “ The media coverage has helped increase PedalTap ’ s visibility and has drawn in a large clientele that is anxiously waiting for PedalTap to hit the market . But more importantly , the media coverage has helped share our vision and our story , and I believe this is what people have fallen in love with- the potential impact of PedalTap in communities ,” says Nakibaala .
Transforming the PedalTap from an idea into a usable product was a challenging process for the team . Grace Nakibaala , team lead for PedalTap explains , “ We were stretched in ways we never imagined , way beyond our comfort zones .” She continues , “ One of the challenges we faced quite early on , as a multidisciplinary team of students , was in making time for our project . Our schedules never seemed to align , but we quickly learned that if this was important to us , which it was , we had to make time for it .”
Besides finding the time to work collaboratively on the process , the PedalTap team was also challenged in the piloting stage . Nakibaala elaborates , “ We did not have the resources to pilot the product in the community and turn our idea into a viable product on the market . We knew it was important to iteratively engage the end-user in the design , development , and testing stages before taking our product to the market but did not have the means to do so .”
PedalTap submitted their product to the Big Ideas Contest in November 2015 , and ultimately won 3rd place in the highly competitive Global Health category which received 66 submissions that year . According to Nakibaala , “ The
Grace Nakibaala , co-founder of PedalTap , with Dr . Ticora V . Jones at the 2016 USAID Technical Convening in Boston , MA . ( Photo Credit : Casey Atkins )
and as a group in turning our idea into a viable business .”
Since winning the Big Ideas prize , PedalTap has piloted their product at Mulago Hospital , Kampala Capital City Authority ( KCCA ), Makerere University , and the Infectious Disease Institute ( IDI ). PedalTap focuses on three types of usage for their product : humanitarian emergencies , general health care , and the private sector . Based on the needs of each case , the team has developed three different products . Through the initial pilot , PedalTap received valuable feedback from users which allowed them to make improvements to their design . PedalTap is now producing ten new taps which they will install at the test sites . The taps are free and will be piloted for an additional month with continuous monitoring and feedback from users .
Looking to the future , PedalTap is focusing on branding , marketing , and scaling up their product . Nakibaala says that their next goal is threefold : “ One , to further refine our product using the feedback from our initial pilot . Two , to increase our reach and impact through partnering with organizations like the Ministry of Health in Uganda that align with our vision as PedalTap . Three , to increase our capacity as a team . We have registered PedalTap as a business and currently outsource some of the work in developing the PedalTap , but we want to be able to produce the entire product in a workshop we own . We believe this will lower production costs and will therefore contribute towards a more affordable product .”
PedalTap also hopes to develop more partnerships to help their project grow . The team ’ s current partnerships with Big Ideas and USAID have provided funding as well as support through mentorship and training . Big Ideas and USAID have also connected PedalTap to the ResilentAfrica Network which has given the team a physical space to work as well as access to a reliable internet connection – two resources that are essential to entrepreneurs but are often difficult to acquire in African countries such as Uganda . Nakibaala explains
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