Domestic insecurity remains a pressing concern in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, where limited policing leaves households vulnerable. While smart cameras could potentially reduce burglary, they risk exacerbating household surveillance and patriarchal norms. In this paper, we present MlondaCam, a context-aware camera whose design was shaped by participants’ recommendations from prior studies in Malawi. Unlike conventional smart cameras, MlondaCam disables itself when placed indoors, mitigating risks of patriarchal misuse while remaining active outdoors. We deployed the system in 15 households in Lilongwe, Malawi, over four weeks. We used semi-structured interviews, diaries, and observations to collect data from participants. Our findings suggest that participants appropriated cameras in situated ways—from deterring theft to protecting food crops—while negotiating household hierarchies, gender-powered relations, and infrastructural limitations. We contribute empirical insights into how families in marginalized contexts navigate domestic security–privacy tensions and introduce design considerations for context-aware camera technologies.

​​HCI4D largely relies on interviews and focus groups to understand people’s needs and concerns for new technology. These approaches struggle with limited reliability in collected data due to perceived status differences between researchers and subjects that can lead to misrepresentations, such as participants providing socially desirable answers to show politeness. Popular qualitative methods developed to understand users in industrialized areas have proven less effective when applied in the Global South. I provide my experience using the diary study method and technology probes to overcome face-saving misrepresentations in HCI4D. My experience draws from three studies I conducted in Kenya and Malawi to explore the role of sensor-based technologies in supporting domestic activities. Over the course of data analysis, I learned that a combination of diary entries and probes’ data logs can be used to address face-saving misinterpretations. I discuss the merits and shortfalls of using this combination and argue that it can be used as a data verification tool in HCI4D.

According to the World Bank, 33% of women in Sub-Saharan Africa experience domestic violence due to men's social status over them. Prior research suggests that smart home security systems can perpetuate patriarchal attitudes at the expense of women's rights. However, women's perspectives on smart home security systems are not well understood. This paper presents a study with 33 Malawian women to understand how these technologies might be used in their homes. Based on interviews and focus group discussions, we present women's perspectives on using smart home security systems and how they might exacerbate patriarchy. We found that while these technologies provide opportunities for supporting domestic security, they may affect women's privacy as they complete everyday activities, like cooking. We use design sessions to explore opportunities for designing these technologies in patriarchal societies. This study expands existing discussion about smart home security systems by considering how patriarchal norms shape their utilization.

Poultry farming is a significant income-generating activity in sub-Saharan African (SSA) households. Poultry farmers frequently have to overcome extreme environmental conditions to maintain their chickens’ wellbeing. Prior research has proposed automating poultry farming activities to control environmental conditions (e.g., temperature and humidity). However, these interventions have never been implemented, in this context, to understand how they would work and participants’ perceptions. Further, chicken coops in SSA have different configurations that would make technology automation difficult. To explore how technology can be used to address this problem, we worked with local collaborators to design and deploy “NkhukuProbe”—a low-cost sensor-based technology that poultry farmers can interact with via USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) to monitor and adjust chicken coop conditions. First, we conducted a review of related work on poultry farming in SSA and a pilot study with poultry farming experts. Findings from this work guided the design of NkhukuProbe. Then, we deployed NkhukuProbe in 15 Malawian households for one month. The goals of our deployment were to understand participants’ experiences using NkhukuProbe and to learn about other ways of using sensors in this context. To achieve these goals, we used interview, diary, observation and data logging to collect data throughout the deployment. Our findings suggest that a technology probe's approach unveiled different opportunities for using sensors to support poultry farming in SSA. Further, NkhukuProbe motivated participants to think of other ways of using sensors. We present design implications based on these findings and offer new perspectives on the role of technology in supporting poultry farming activities.

Power blackouts (outages) are a common occurrence in Kenyan households. They affect people's livelihoods, and damage their property (household electrical items). We explore the role of GridAlert-a sensor-based technology we designed-in monitoring power blackouts. We worked with local technicians to design GridAlert's housing and integrate GridAlert with Kenya's electricity infrastructure. Then, we used interview, observation, diary, and data logging methods to understand 18 households' experiences using the system. Our findings provide insights for using sensor-based technology to monitor power usage and blackouts in Kenyan households. We also present participants' thoughts about GridAlert's housing, and about how it influenced their actions when using the system. We use these findings to discuss design insights for power monitoring systems, and to offer new perspectives on the role of technology in monitoring blackouts in Kenyan households.

In Kenya there are over 300,000 "chamas". These groups provide social and financial support for their members and have around $3.4 billion in assets. Despite widespread mobile phone use in Kenya, there are few efforts to develop digital services for chamas. We describe the design, and formative evaluation of 'SmartChama'---a prototype mobile app developed to understand activities in chamas and how to digitize them. We used contextual inquiry to understand how seven chama groups (n=48 participants) used our prototype to manage and track their finances. Based on our findings, we iterated SmartChama's design and then evaluated it with seven groups. Findings from this evaluation suggest different chama activities that should be considered when designing digital financial systems for these groups. We discuss these design implications and offer new perspectives on designing financial systems in Kenya.

In rural Kenyan households, property theft is a persistent problem. To explore how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) may be used to address this problem we designed and deployed "M-Kulinda"-a sensor-based technology probe. We used interview, observation, diary, and data logging methods to understand 20 households' experiences using the system. Our findings suggest that a probe's approach is useful in this context, more specifically we found that participants used our system in different ways to address their specific needs (e.g., monitoring poultry, electronics, and their family members). We also observed changes in our participants' understanding of sensors; M-Kulinda prompted them to reflect on other areas where sensors could be used in their households. We present design implications based on these findings, and offer new perspectives on the role of technology in deterring crime.

Domestic environments remain a topic of interest in HCI/Ubicomp, including how Information and Communication Technology (ICTs) can be designed to support sustainable practices in them. In this paper, we broaden the community's knowledge of these topics by studying them in rural Kenya. Specifically, we explore users' experiences with 'M-Kopa Solar', a commercially-available solar-powered lighting system for homes. We draw from our fieldwork, which primarily involved conducting interviews and observations at 21 households. In the process of learning about people's experiences with M-Kopa, we also learned about other sustainable practices that were central to their everyday lives. Our findings suggest that M-Kopa is a "green" solution to limited access to electricity in rural Kenya; in particular, we find that the system's design contributes to its success. These findings also raise questions about the long-term implications of such systems---especially in terms of how M-Kopa's marketing practices introduce people to consumption practices. We discuss this and other findings; in particular, the continued significance of "defamiliarization" as design strategy within HCI/ubicomp.