Ericsson has joined forces with Scandinavian company, Grundfos, to offer an integrated solution that improves access and payments for drinking water. The solution is deployed this week in Kenya powering selected water kiosks operated in Makueni county implemented by World Vision UK and World Vision Kenya.
The solution involves the Ericsson M-Commerce Interconnect that provides a global payments hub for mobile payment services, and the Grundfos AQtap, an automated and connected water kiosks, also known as water ATMs, that offer an integrated solution for dispensing and remotely managing water supply points in both rural and urban areas.
According to Ericsson, the solution is expected to drive more efficient revenue collection with reduced cash management risks and overhead costs. The Ericsson M-Commerce Interconnect enables mobile wallet service providers globally to add the connected water kiosks as a new consumer utility service in their payments acceptance portfolio thereby helping to drive cashless transactions and usage of the mobile wallet.
Peter Todbjerg Hansen, Managing Director of Grundfos Lifelink
This is a perfect example of two global corporations integrating their technologies to offer a complete water ATM solution previously unknown to the world. It is now possible to pay for water with mobile money, and water revenue collection is safe and automated.
Peter Heuman, Head of M-Commerce at Ericsson
The work that Ericsson is doing with Grundfos is crucial to reducing the cost and deployment times of these innovative ATMs that will deliver a more reliable water supply. It simplifies the payment process by taking cash out of the equation and our solution removes the need for water service providers to integrate with every mobile wallet provider used by people in the country.
