Field Level Operations Watch (FLOW)
What is it?
Field Level Operations Watch, otherwise known as FLOW, is a tool developed by Water for People (WFP) with Gallatin Systems for monitoring water and sanitation services.
FLOW technology focuses on key indicators:
- Is the water point or sanitation solution being used and functioning?
- How many people have access to water and sanitation in the area?
- Is the quantity of water meeting the needs of the community?
- Are sufficient tariffs being collected to ensure ongoing operation, maintenance, repair and eventual replacement?
How can you use it?
Bringing together Android mobile technology and Google Earth software, FLOW lets field workers record data from water points or sanitation facilities. It helps the user assess whether or not facilities are functioning or are on the verge of disrepair.
At the district level, FLOW users can instantly check on the status of water and sanitation projects. By clicking on a community, you can see in-depth data on WASH systems that are either working or need fixing. FLOW’s Dashboard shows changes in projects over time along with community solutions. FLOW can help service providers become more flexible and responsive to immediate community problems and it can help monitor sustainability of services. Available data can also be used to conduct historical community-to-community comparisons.
Because FLOW is open-source, features will expand over time as FLOW users continue to select and add areas into the system.
This exciting new technology is freely available to the nonprofit sector.
Read WaterHackathon's blog post on the pros and cons of FLOW.
More information is available at Water for People.
