By Yero S. Bah
As the battle to conquer the deadly coronavirus intensifies around the globe but also in the Gambia, a young Gambian techpreneur, Mr. Joseph Gomez has created the ‘ COVID-19 Chatbot’, an online platform that users could utilize to learn or understand pertinent issues about the highly contagious disease causing flu-like syndrome.
Experts say the new coronavirus (Covid-19) is a respiratory virus which spreads primarily through droplets generated when an infected person coughs or sneezes,or through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose.
The innovative platform was actually started way back in 2014 as a web hosting, web design, web development as well as other web-related services. However, Gomez has shifted his innovation more into Interactive Voice Repost and Artificial Intelligence products and services with fitted Chatbot and telephony applications in the platform of recent, meant to help fight the Covid pandemic, as he indicated to Mansa Banko Online via telephone interview.
The tech enthusiast took part in the Hackathon ‘HackCovid Challenge’ organized by ITAG and Hackweakend with the support of the YEP Tech to tackle challenges arising from the current coronavirus pandemic in the Gambia.
His ‘COVID-19 Chatbot’ was crowned the winner of the competition since the platform has an inbuilt voice prompt and knowledge based Chatbot and Alert System addressing Covid19 “frequently asked questions” and a uniquely developed Automated Telephony Survey System.
Gomez assured that users could easily access the platform to ask questions on any doubted thing about the coronavirus and automatic automated answer will pop-up to educate users about Covid19, and that could be done by asking questions in all the major local languages, including English language.
“We are working earnestly to install in the system some local GSM numbers so that Gambians can access the Sessions Initiation Protocol platform anytime,” he disclosed.
The HND holder in Management Information System and a current BSc candidate at UNICAP University, reasoned that he diverted to such technologies because numerous Gambians are into web management and development and therefore it would be hard to beat the already well-established entrepreneurs in those areas. But he believes products of his new adventure like Artificial Intelligence and Chatbot are totally rare in the Gambia at the moment.
The ‘COVID-19 Chatbot’ creator added that Youth Empowerment Project has awarded him 3000 dollars as the winner of the challenge competition on Covid-19 held in the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) and the money would be to launch his platform pretty soon. He revealed also that discussions were at an advanced stage for the inclusion of the local telephone operators for the unveiling of his product and services to the public.
Gomez explained: “To know anything about coronavirus on the platform, you just need to place a virtual call, ask your question in English or any of the major native languages an automated prompt answer will response to you about the coronavirus.” He claimed the process towards the launching of this rare technological ‘baby’ in the country had been delayed by red tapes of the authorities in the Gambia. While saying “there is too much bureaucracy” in the system, Gomez was quick to point out that hopes are high that it would soon be released to the masses.
The young Gambian tech savvy is positive that his system could even support multiple calling systems whereby one could send or share multiple messages to multiple groups at the same time, noting that he would even recommend it for state institutions such as the security agents for easy communications as the purpose of the platform is not only to fight coronavirus with it. But even beyond the pandemic, the ICT Company chief maintained it could be useful for other purposes, adding he awaits his sponsors-the YEP-for the launching of the product as it is readily available.
The ‘Web Way’ is a Gambian ICT company founded by Joseph Gomez in 2014, and is operating in the Web Application Development area with a focus on Chatbot and Telephony Applications.
