• Automatic Standpipe (BFA, for Borne-Fontaine Automatique, in French): the cashless drinking water management solution, available 24/7 and 100% secure

UDUMA integrates, if the context allows it, an autonomous and automatic community water point caretaker: the BFA. The BFA has been installed for more than 15 years in Sub-Saharan Africa. Equipped with a solar panel, the BFA is entirely autonomous, with no need for any radio or telecom link.

The user simply enters their RFID key to draw water. The water cuts off when the key is removed.

• e-pumps : the “smart” pumps

The UDUMA model relies on precise monitoring of the volumes of water consumed at each pump. It therefore requires the pumps to be equipped with a measuring device (meter) and a recording and data transmission instrument (datalogger). A real challenge, since “conventional” water meters, designed for continuous water flows, are not adapted to manual pumps, characterized by intermittent flows.

The development of a system to communicate with the meter was the second major challenge. In the end, an innovative solution was chosen based on radio connectivity.

• An electronic payment system

The proper functioning of the UDUMA model also means putting in place a system that collects the revenue in a secure and efficient way. In sub-Saharan rural areas, the banking network is underdeveloped and the risks of theft between the collection point and the bank deposit are not to be neglected.

Based on payment terminals and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, UDUMA offers the users the opportunity to pay for their water consumption at a water point by debiting her/his personal “WATER” card.

The card is credited by an UDUMA agent, either in cash or by using her/his Mobile Money account. The “WATER” card allows a flexible and precise pricing of the service, at the cent or even the tenth of a cent.