The MTF has ushered in a new era of data collection relating to service quality and reliability monitoring.  Whereas conventional approaches such as surveys still provide valuable insights, mobile phone based data collection and innovative technologies such as Electricity Supply Monitoring (ESM) devices are opening limitless opportunities to capture accurate, granular, and objective information on service delivery metrics.

Electricity Supply Monitoring Initiative (ESMI)

To help close this gap, the World Resources Institute in partnership with the Prayas Energy Group in India and EED Advisory in Nairobi, with the support of the World Bank, is implementing an initiative to collect accurate, granular and near real-time data on electricity supply quality and reliability metrics in Kenya’s Nairobi County.  The approach, called the Electricity Supply Monitoring Initiative (ESMI), was pioneered by the Prayas Energy Group and has been implemented across various locations in India.  In Kenya’s Nairobi county, plug-in devices called electricity supply monitors have been installed in a cross-section of households representing a variety of income levels to log data on voltage fluctuations and supply interruptions.  The data captured is sent to a central server, analyzed, and is publicly available at esmi-kenya.org.