Madzi Alipo means "Water is available" in Chichewa, the national language of Malawi.

Fisherman’s Rest has been working in Malawi for the past 25 years. Based just outside the southern city of Blantyre, we have strong connections with the local communities and carry out projects that aim to lift people out of poverty through increasing standards of education and developing business in the area.

The database has the potential to be used in any country across the globe. It is currently programmed to collect data in, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, the UK and Zimbabwe. If you wish to use the app in another country, please contact the Madzi Alipo office and the country will be added.

The app was released in June 2016 (android) and March 2017 (iOS).

The Madzi Alipo system has the potential to be used in a wide range of applications. The call centre will provide accurate data capture and live updates as to the water situation on the ground which in conjunction with other data sets can be used for emergency relief planning (i.e. cholera outbreaks etc).

There are a number of ways in which you can set up a Madzi Alipo account. One is to contact the Madzi Alipo Office directly at madzialipoapps@gmail.com. Alternatively, selected agency admin accounts have the capability to add users.

There are a number of account types, from agency admin, staff, operators, suppliers etc. It is up to the discretion of the agency admin within an organization to assign each user the appropriate user level. Details of these will appear on the Madzi Alipo website shortly.

There is no limit but we encourage agency admins to keep on top of the employees with accounts and retire any users no longer employed or collecting water point data.

If the app crashes or refuses to open, an option to report a problem will appear. If you notice any issues on the app or the database then please contact the Madzi Alipo office at http://www.madzialipoapp.org/report-a-problem. We are in the process of creating a ticketing system for emails to resolve issues.

The Madzi Alipo Database is owned and run by Fisherman’s Rest, Malawi.

Through the Madzi Alipo database it is possible to view, import, export and examine water point data closely for planning, logistical and research purposes. The database through the app maps the spread and status of water points and presents an accurate record of the situation on the ground.

The app currently collects data surrounding four aspects of a visit: Survey Visit (current status, committee set up, yield etc.). Repair Visit (Parts used, community contribution, new yield) Additional Data (Year Installed, Who Installed, families served, depth, water level, distance and time to nearest water point etc.). Waste Water Management (Health Risks, Run off etc.). We are currently in the process of adding questions regarding water quality testing.

We have workshops with agencies using the database to discuss developments or additions to the database and brainstorm which fields and questions are needed. We don’t want to overload and complicate the system however we wish to maximize the usefulness of the tool for each agency.

The app was designed so that the forms can be filled in at the water points where no signal is present. Internet or mobile signal is needed at the beginning and end of a trip into the field to synchronize the data collected onto the online database.

Edits are limited by user account and to the specific agency adding the data. No one can edit data that you or your organization add to the database. NO EDITS can be made to water point status’, unless a subsequent visit is performed and the status has changed. This keeps integrity and transparency of data.

Whilst stored in a central database, the data is also individually attributed to both the organization and user adding the information. Our unique identification system assigns each water point and visit to an organization, person, time and date. In this manner multiple visits to a water point coordinated by different organizations stack up clearly so that the full history of the water point can be viewed and individual organizations identified.

Anyone with an account on the Madzi Alipo database can view your data. The filtering system allows you to view the data from different agencies, zones etc.

Our privacy policy can be found at http://www.madzialipoapp.org/privacy-policy. All data is stored on a secure server based in Ireland.

Through the Madzi Alipo database there is the option to mass export data from the database using the reporting system. The Madzi Alipo data is regularly shared with Water Point Data, a platform designed to bring the data of all agencies together for research purposes.

One of the key aims of the Madzi Alipo Database is to promote data transparency and data sharing to aid in the planning and preparation for maintaining water points. Sensitive information such as user details are kept private and all the information regarding this is outlined in our privacy policy. The need to keep restricted access to particularly sensitive information might arise and such a situation can be discussed and reviewed at agency workshops. In any event agencies decide what/ if not all the information they are prepared to enter/ download.

Yes. Agency admin is able to mass import data from csv files. Information on this import can be obtained by emailing madzialipoapps@gmail.com. All past data can then be viewed on the map within minutes of upload.