This African Innovator's e-lockers are saving Kenyan commuters from robbery, improving deliveries
From a horrific robbery experience, a genius idea, the first of its kind on the African continent was birthed; smart lockers that provide secure storage solutions for commuters.
The product was designed by Kenyan entrepreneur Charles Oduk after he lost his laptop during a rush-hour commute in 2013.
Determined to enhance safety for people facing similar threats, the CEO of Beba-Beggie developed an IoT automated technology solution to safeguard valuables in urban areas within Kenya’s capital.
“'Beba' means carry, 'Beggie' means bag,” he told GSW’s Wonder Hagan. From these Kiswahili words, he derived the name of his company, Beba-Beggie which means to “carry your bag”.
Storage and delivery made easy
The smart storage e-lockers have smart features that operate like the ATM, allowing users to drop off their valuables safely and retrieve them conveniently, using their mobile phones.
“For the user, it will only be required to put in their phone number and create a password. It's as simple as that. We do not necessarily require anybody to sign in with email. Depending on the size of your luggage, you get to choose a locker. You'll put in your phone number. The next thing it will check is if there are available lockers. If there is an available locker, it will tell you the sizes. You will select the available sizes that you know suit your needs, and then you'll create a pin and the locker will be allocated. Put in the items you lock, no padlocks, nothing. When you come back, you will enter the same phone number. You'll enter the pin again, and then a payment prompt will now be pushed towards your phone. You will make the payments and the locker will open. It's an easy user journey.,” Oduk said.
These e-lockers are strategically placed in secure locations throughout Nairobi, making them useful for deliveries as well.
Who can use these lockers?
Beba-Beggie’s lockers provide enhanced security not only for commuters with valuables including laptops, but businesses and event organisers as well as online business owners.
“Our target market are usually the young people. So these are people moving in, probably going through campus. So these are developers, software developers who work with very heavy, machinery and laptops. There's also the event factor. We have these mobile lockers that we move to events for storage during events or other events, as well as charging ports for the phones,” Oduk stated.
“We do have different packages. We have B to B. That is business to business. We have B to C. That is business to customer. What we do is we partner with the existing businesses, so it's probably a salon, a cyber cafe, a coffee shop, or something like that. They give us a space for the lockers, they give us also access to electricity, and then, we list them as our agents,” he added.
Safety and Security for customers
“One of the things that we do and this is a non-negotiable for our agents is we do have to conduct a security protocol,” Oduk said while addressing concerns about the use of the lockers for illicit activities, including the sale or trade of drugs and terrorism weapons. “That is a measure just to make sure that these lockers are situated in secure locations. So one of the things that we do is we deploy these lockers only in buildings where there is proper, free screen at the entrance,” he continued.
Crime in Nairobi
The product is vital to addressing Nairobi’s pressing crime problems. Nairobi ranked the ninth most unsafe city in Africa, sees a high incidence of reported robberies and muggings, with commuters frequently losing their belongings.
The Crime Research Centre data shows that the highest number of crimes reported in Kenya are burglary and housebreaking followed by stealing and muggings.
Additionally, car theft in Nairobi was reportedly the third-highest crime with a rating of 50.08 based on the index.
International recognition
Charles Oduk's innovation has won him several international awards including the 30 under 30 Techpreneur Year Award in 2020 and the 40 under 40 Africa Awards. He has also been invited by international firms including Enpact to demonstrate his work. He has also been at programs including the Africa Prize for Engineering innovation by the Royal Academy of Engineering 10th cohort
