In today's challenging environment, NGOs and humanitarian organizations need reliable, cost-effective communication solutions more than ever. As uncertainty ripples across the sector, finding affordable ways to maintain critical communication channels with beneficiaries and field teams is essential.
In this article, we'll cover:
Before diving into the technical details, it's important to understand what makes Telerivet's approach unique. We believe in Connectivity Completeness – providing a universal communications layer that works anywhere, with any provider, at a cost that makes sense for your organization.
Many organizations operate in challenging environments where traditional communication solutions fall short. They face the limitations of walled gardens, paying premiums due to geography or bundled features they don't need. Market consolidation has driven up prices in certain regions and left others underserved.
Telerivet's approach is different. We've created a flexible platform that separates channels from providers, allowing you to plug in different options based on performance and price. This is particularly valuable for organizations working in developing economies or remote areas with unstable communications infrastructure.
Telerivet enables organizations to plug into the best connectivity options for their specific needs – whether that's WhatsApp for richer communication, local carriers and aggregators for affordable regional coverage, or global SMS providers for international reach. You can seamlessly integrate and manage all these channels from a single platform.
The Telerivet Android Gateway unlocks two-way SMS anywhere – it's a universal SMS gateway that works anywhere with cellular coverage, requires minimal investment, and delivers maximum flexibility as part of Telerivet's comprehensive connectivity toolkit.
The Telerivet Gateway App transforms an Android phone into a powerful SMS gateway for your organization. When installed on an Android phone with a local SIM card, it creates a bridge between mobile networks and Telerivet's cloud platform.
This approach provides several unique advantages:
It's worth noting that the Telerivet Gateway app can typically send up to 1,000 messages per hour and receive up to 6,000 messages per hour, depending on your mobile network. For organizations requiring higher capacity, connecting multiple Android phones to Telerivet can further increase these limits.
A health program in rural Kenya deployed the Android Gateway to:
The solution cost less than $200 to implement and maintained reliable communication in areas without reliable internet.
An agricultural development program in Tanzania used the Android Gateway to:
The system replaced paper-based reporting, improving response times and data quality while reducing costs.
Charity Science Health (CSH), a GiveWell-incubated non-profit, demonstrates how SMS technology can dramatically improve public health outcomes. Despite wide vaccine availability in India, 9 million infants annually don't complete their immunization schedule. CSH uses Telerivet to send scheduled SMS vaccination reminders to parents.
Their implementation includes:
The results have been impressive:
Farm Radio International (FRI) found an innovative way to connect with rural African farmers across 38 countries. They needed an affordable method to conduct polls and gather feedback from radio listeners in remote areas.
FRI implemented Telerivet's platform to:
The impact has been substantial:
As FRI's Radio & ICT notes: "With Telerivet, we're able to impact a greater number of communities at a fraction of the cost and complexity."
The Norwegian Refugee Council's Digital Community Hubs (DCH) initiative demonstrates how mobile technology can transform humanitarian aid delivery. When COVID-19 struck in 2020, NRC needed to rapidly change how they delivered services. They implemented a comprehensive digital transformation powered by Telerivet's mobile communication technology.
Using Telerivet's platform, NRC was able to:
The impact was remarkable: NRC reached over 465,000 people in less than a month with a small team – a task that traditionally would have required hundreds or thousands of staff members. The platform has now been deployed in more than 20 countries, serving over 750,000 families.
The Telerivet Android Gateway offers NGOs and humanitarian organizations a powerful tool to maintain critical communications while optimizing costs. Its flexibility, affordability, and universal coverage make it particularly valuable for organizations operating in challenging environments or with limited technical resources.
Remember that the Android Gateway is just one piece of Telerivet's comprehensive connectivity platform. Depending on your needs, you can easily integrate other communication channels – including WhatsApp, Viber, virtual numbers, or shortcodes – all managed through the same intuitive interface. This flexibility allows you to choose the best channel for each communication need while maintaining a unified platform for message management, automation, and reporting.
By following the best practices outlined in this guide, you can implement a reliable, secure communication system that supports your mission-critical work – anywhere in the world.
As part of our response to the current funding challenges facing humanitarian organizations, Telerivet is offering special assistance to NGOs affected by the USAID funding crisis. Contact us to learn more about our NGO Relief Program.
Setting up your Android Gateway is straightforward. Here's a step-by-step guide to get you operational quickly:
While the Telerivet Gateway app works on 99% of Android phones (any device with Android 4.0 or higher), choosing the right hardware can improve reliability:
Recommended phones:
Not recommended:
Most inexpensive Android phones ($100 or less) work perfectly fine for this purpose. You don't need high-end specs – reliability is more important than processing power.
For maximum reliability, configure your phone with both Wi-Fi and mobile data:
This dual-connectivity approach ensures your gateway remains online even during power outages or network disruptions.
To improve reliability, adjust these settings on your Android phone:
By default, Android limits apps to sending only 30 SMS messages per 30 minutes. To increase this capacity:
With all expansion packs installed, your phone can send up to 1,800 messages per hour (subject to mobile network limitations).
The Telerivet Gateway app also supports additional messaging channels beyond basic SMS:
For organizations deploying Android Gateways in remote locations, follow these best practices to ensure reliability:
Telerivet makes it easy to remotely monitor your Android phone's status from your web browser. On the Routes page, you can see if your Android phone is currently connected to Telerivet's servers, as well as if it is having any errors sending messages. Telerivet also shows suggestions for how to improve the reliability of your Android phone.
Ensure your team understands:
If you have any problems when setting up your gateway, check out our troubleshooting guide here. For additional support or questions about implementing the Telerivet Android Gateway in your organization, contact our support team at support@telerivet.com.
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“Our lives are a million times easier because of Telerivet. We're growing exponentially, doubling our reach every year... and it's Telerivet's technology that makes this all possible.” - MyAgro
"The user interface is very intuitive and detailed, making it easy to set up. The few times we have required technical support, or had a query about a needed feature, the response has always been quick" - Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders)
"One of the most important aspects of a tool like Telerivet is the user interface. We have hundreds of people across the region relying on Telerivet for their daily tasks, and we need to provide them with the most efficient way of accomplishing that." - Grab
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