OkHi

The next generation address system that aims to increase opportunities for over four billion people worldwide.
Although it doesn’t sound like a huge problem, not having a physical address means many people don’t have a registered identity. This problem mostly affects people living in developing nations where areas are densely populated and there may not be house numbers or even street names.

For residents living in these informal settlements, this can make many every day tasks much more troublesome and even impossible. Without a formal address it’s difficult for many to receive official documents, participate in political activities and essential services – like ambulances or police – may even have trouble finding them.

Based in Nairobi, OkHi‘s mission to empower these residents with a working address by using a very simple but effective process. The system works by uploading an image of your front door/home and locating it on the GPS system after downloading the smartphone App. Users can then share their OkHi address using WhatsApp, SMS or email so that other users can locate their friends or families or even markets and physical landmarks.

This system will unlock commerce through enhanced logistics, save lives through improved emergency services and grow access to finance through better personal identification. The team have already seen more than 1,000 journeys completed using OkHi and are aiming to solve the lack of the physical address system in Kenya, before taking on the rest of the globe.