Twitter, a nice story from Kenya

Chief Francis Kariuki

Chief Francis Kariuki very recently said: “Twitter has helped save time and money. I no longer have to write letters or print posters which take time to distribute and are expensive. 
Thanks to social media, crime rate in Kariuki’s area has dropped significantly to nearly zero, compared to prior periods where break-ins were reported on a daily basis.”

Francis is a Chief Officer who lives in Lanet Umoja, Kenya, and started to use Twitter in June 2011 to help his Kenyan village maintain peace and order. 
Where he lives the majority of residents doesn't have access to computers and Internet, apart from a few cyber cafes, however almost every household has a mobile phone and SMS are a major form of communication in the nation.

Kariuki's official Twitter page currently has a little more than 1,000 followers (apparently even the thieves in his village follow him!) but he manages to reach some of the 28,000 residents in his area with the help of his followers who forward his tweets via text messages.

Twitter has been associated with bolstering uprisings and anti-government protests in Africa several times, this time it’s all good news as Chief Francis’ tweets have helped to fight crime, organize logistic matters, and locate missing children and farm animals. Well done Chief :)

If you want to see how the Indian Police is using Twitter click here.