(A column highlighting scientific, technological, engineering and design innovation in Africa)
IT specialist Ahlem Bouchahda ben-Tekaya developed a Web and mobile application that serves as a platform for parents, especially working mothers like herself, to share and receive information relevant to family life.
Named Famissima, the platform allows users to share experiences, obtain advice, post advertisements, save and share memories, organize events, find entertainment ideas and home-service professionals, create and share gift lists, learn about special offers and shop online.
It comprises three main sections: an organizer, with tools such as a to-do list, budget manager, pregnancy diary and a meal planner; a classified section, which offers a directory of local services and where parents can buy second-hand products; and an e-commerce section, where retailers can create their own online boutique that shoppers can browse and patronize. Using social elements in this section, users can like a product, add products to a wish list that is open to friends, indicate that they own a specific product, recommend products, or ask and reply to questions about products.
A children’s space offers an online journal that helps to track a child’s growth and development and record the child’s stories and milestones.
Famissima is the first platform of its kind in Tunisia, and in all of Africa. It is a radical departure from the more traditional online family magazines, conveniently addressing a variety of family needs and concerns in a single place—an e-commerce and social network platform rolled into one.
A university professor of computer science, Bouchahda began working on her idea in 2010, when she returned to Tunisia after several years in France. In February 2013, she placed first in the National Microsoft Innovation Center Competition, which earned her an office, technical and business training and mentoring, and membership in BizSpark, the startup network that gave her access to various Microsoft tools and software.
Famissima also was a semi-finalist for the 2013 MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab Region Startup Competition, and was one of 40 finalists in the 2013 Demo Africa startup competition.
Bouchahda officially launched her company in Tunisia in November 2013. The next step, she says, is to expand Famissima into the Middle East-North Africa (MENA) region, followed by expansion into the rest of Africa.
