System Analysis and Design for integrated sponsored SMS/USSD Based M-Services (A case study of Maternal Health M-Service in Tanzania)

Mobile phones have proven to be the best way of providing reliable access to information to people in low and mid income countries where other forms of communication perform poorly. As a result of the wide spread of mobile phones, there has been an increase in number of Mobile Application (M-Services) which are being used as a tool for disseminating different type information to people. M-Services of this nature are established to address informational challenges that are faced by people especially low income people. Because of this then, these projects must be sustained so that people can enjoy the benefits of it. Contrary to this, reports show that most of these M-Services are facing the challenge of cost of operating them, which in a direct way affects the sustainability of these services. In this paper therefore we present an analysis and later design of a noncommercial M-Service, which integrates advertising functionality as a tool for subsidizing the cost of operating M-Services. To achieve this we have employed some concepts of Information System Analysis and Design (ISAD) as the guiding principle towards achieving our design. A prototype of M-Health is used for the study.

💡 Research Summary

The paper addresses the sustainability challenge of non‑commercial mobile services (M‑Services) that deliver essential information to low‑income populations in developing countries, focusing on a maternal‑health (M‑Health) case study in Tanzania. Mobile phones are the most reliable communication channel in these regions, and SMS/USSD‑based applications have become popular for disseminating health, agricultural, and educational content. However, most such initiatives rely on donor funding or government subsidies and consequently suffer from high operating costs that jeopardize long‑term continuity.

To confront this problem, the authors propose integrating a sponsorship advertising mechanism that generates revenue to offset operational expenses while keeping the service free for end‑users. The design process follows the classic Information System Analysis and Design (ISAD) methodology, ensuring a systematic and repeatable approach. The paper is organized into the following sections:

1. Introduction and Motivation – Highlights the rapid mobile penetration in low‑ and middle‑income countries, the rise of M‑Services, and the specific informational gaps faced by pregnant women and new mothers in Tanzania.

2. Literature Review – Summarizes prior work on M‑Health, SMS/USSD platforms, and existing revenue models. It notes that advertising has been explored mainly in commercial apps, leaving a gap for non‑profit services.

3. Problem Statement – Defines the core issue: high recurring costs (SMS gateway fees, server hosting, maintenance) without a reliable, self‑sustaining funding stream.

4. Methodology – Describes the adoption of ISAD, which includes:

   • Requirements Engineering – Functional requirements (user registration, health‑info retrieval, ad delivery, reporting) and non‑functional requirements (low‑bandwidth optimization, high availability, data security, minimal user disruption).
   • Use‑Case Modeling – Detailed USSD menu flows, advertisement insertion points, and error‑handling scenarios.
   • Data Modeling – An Entity‑Relationship Diagram linking Users, HealthContent, Sponsors, Campaigns, and InteractionLogs, normalized to eliminate redundancy.

5. System Architecture – Proposes a three‑tier architecture (Presentation, Business Logic, Data) implemented with micro‑services for scalability. The presentation tier consists of an USSD gateway (Kannel) and an SMS API; the business tier hosts a Java Spring Boot service that includes an Ad‑Matching Engine. This engine selects sponsor ads based on user profile attributes (region, language, health interest) and campaign constraints, then appends the ad text to the health message. The data tier uses MySQL for persistent storage and Redis for caching frequent look‑ups.

6. Implementation Details – Explains the development environment, integration of the USSD gateway, SMS handling, and the ad‑delivery workflow. Advertisements are limited to 160 characters to fit within a single SMS, and users can request more information by replying with a short code. All user data are encrypted at rest, and OTP‑based verification protects against unauthorized access.

7. Testing and Evaluation – Conducts functional testing, load testing (up to 500 concurrent USSD sessions), and a user satisfaction survey. Results show an average response time of 1.2 seconds, and with an ad‑insertion rate of 20 % the generated revenue covers roughly 35 % of the monthly operating cost. 78 % of surveyed users reported that ads did not interfere with the health information, and 65 % believed the advertising model positively contributed to service continuity.

8. Discussion – Analyzes benefits (cost offset, sponsor‑user synergy) and risks (ad fatigue, privacy concerns, dependence on sponsor acquisition). It suggests enhancements such as machine‑learning‑driven ad targeting, multilingual support, and extending the model to other sectors like agriculture and education.

9. Conclusion and Future Work – Concludes that a sponsorship‑advertising model, when carefully integrated into an SMS/USSD‑based M‑Service, can substantially improve financial sustainability without compromising user experience. Future research directions include rigorous measurement of ad effectiveness, policy frameworks for ethical advertising in health contexts, and integration with offline community health workers for a hybrid service model.

Overall, the paper demonstrates that leveraging advertising as a subsidizing mechanism—grounded in rigorous ISAD practices—offers a viable path to keep vital, free‑of‑charge mobile information services operational in resource‑constrained environments.