Welcome to Can You Top This? from Be My Eyes. Each month we share the most unusual and inspiring stories from our community. Volunteer calls, Be My AI sessions, company support, and even calls through meta AI glasses.

Do you think your story can top the rest? Tune in, get inspired, and discover how you can win amazing prizes. I'm the brand new community manager at Be My Eyes. My name is Danielle, and obviously you're here for your first interview too, so it's great to meet you.

I'm excited, really excited to be part of this very... I know I was for one very excited to see your story because even I myself didn't use Be My Eyes for a long time, and I bet it would be for rather similar reasons. So I really related to your story, and I know a lot of other blind folks will as well. Can you tell us a little bit more about... I know you kind of wrote in a little bit of an entry about how you first used Be My Eyes, but can you give us a little bit more just telling us about what that was like? With Be My Eyes, first, in fact, I discovered the app by myself. 

No one told me about it, but when I was searching in the Play Store, I think three years ago, I typed something just like eyes. Then among other apps that came, there came Be My Eyes. I read more about it, and I found it to be very useful and directly targeting persons with visual impairments. 

I downloaded the app, explored it, but I started fearing using it until recently when we formed an association of persons with visual impairments. I shared with them the need to cope up with the technology thing. Then I shared with them more about the Be My Eye app. 

I said, this is a very compatible app, a mobile app that you can use. However, I've not explored more. When I took my time, like two days, trying to see how it works, my first trial, before I left office for a two‑week training session across districts in Uganda, I said, I must include popularizing this app to my colleagues with visual impairments in other parts of the country, but before, as a trainer, I must first get used to the app.

Then I started calling. I saw the section for volunteers and section for persons with visual impairments seeking for support. I made my first call, and one of the volunteers answered.

I requested her to read for me what was on the paper. And indeed, she did it very willingly. Then I said, okay. 

I thanked her and pack it. Immediately, I saw a prompt popping up on my screen to answer how the call went. If I was supported or not, then what would I recommend? And indeed, the call was very successful. 

I did that several times. As part of my training packages, I included this app always number one, so that many people learn of it, and many people sign up as volunteers, and also many persons with visual impairments sign up so that they are easily supported, even when they are alone. So, this experience that I wrote in this competition came from one of the districts, in fact, two of the districts, where at the beginning of my session on digital access to persons with disabilities, targeting persons with visual impairments first, I introduced what technology is, more about software and hardware, and more about application softwares.

Zeroing it to speech, screen reading softwares, and therefore, later, I brought in the apps that we can use that can make us visually impaired independent. And number one on the list is Be My Eyes. This works in a way that when you are alone, maybe reading the signposts on the road, understanding the colors you want to choose, reading things on the papers, locating lost things on the floor, you can easily get to this app and make a call. 

Therefore, before the participants, I had moved with a banner that was telling more about the training packages and the funding, the project funder. I called a volunteer, first, because that was a morning hour. When it was answered, I never wanted the volunteer to understand that I am using this for training, but also, I wanted her not to be scared to support me so that others, my participants can confirm what I'm talking about. 

So, I asked her to help me read for me what was on the banner. The person read it right on top and came to the objectives of the project and read it. Then I thanked her. 

When I switched off the call, I read it, and the participants were moved. They could not believe. They poured out hands of love, hands of claps. 

They clapped and appreciated you guys, particularly, for designing this very unique special app, and the same to me for selling the app for them to understand and adopt it. That was one of the first trials, in fact, demonstration. They could not believe and asked me to do again, make a call again. 

Then I said, no problem. This time, please, everyone be quiet. Don't clap for me until I end the call. 

And this time, I'm going to use a different method. I dropped a stamp pad right before me and moved a little bit away and made the call. Later, the volunteer answered. 

I asked him to help me locate something on the floor. The person started directing me, first of all, saying, adjust your phone, move it around you so that I can see what is on the floor. The person was not sure of what I was looking for, but he said, I am seeing something white, metallic, down on the floor. 

Maybe I will first direct you so that you locate that and you see if that is what you are looking for. I slowly, calculatedly directed me to the left, right, in front, a little bit behind, until I was moved, calculatedly, and I found it. And he asked to confirm. 

Is that what you were looking for? I said, yes, exactly. It is this thing. It fell and it moved away from me. 

So there was no way I could find it without your support. Thank you so much. The person was glad and happy for supporting me.

I ended the call, rated it, the call being very supportive and very good. And immediately, my participants, who were having smartphones, started looking for the app, installing it, others signing as volunteers and others signing as users. That is how my story throughout the two weeks training across the various districts went. 

And as I believe now, this app, first of all, it has made me so proud. Secondly, I have called on many volunteers to sign up and also the users to come on board. I always have been using a slogan that the higher the supply, the higher the demand. 

So my question to you is where, so you kind of mentioned that you had had Be My Eyes installed for quite some time, that you explored it, and then you kind of put it down because you were afraid, you had some fear around using it. What was your turning point? What kind of made you feel like you could use it? What changed for you? First, I installed the app years back, and I had some fear of using it. Because the first call I made, it was unsafe. 

And I think I had a problem with my phone camera. So when the person was telling me to push a little bit, set my camera and do work, I tried with the phone and I failed to fix the real problem. And I was wondering, is this app really going to help me? Again, I need to set the camera, yet I rarely use a camera. 

I think I need somebody to support. However, that was my first call for a very urgent help. I wanted the person to read for me what was on the medical form of my girlfriend. 

We had come up from a blood test. And I wanted her not to read it for me. But I wanted somebody who is not known to any of us to read for the fear that since I am not seeing the person would read for me something which is not true. 

However, it did not work out because of the technology thing, the technology challenge on my phone. Two months ago, when a colleague of mine called me that, are you very busy these days? I said not really. I have been called to deliver a training, a two-week training on digital access and effectiveness to persons with disabilities. 

And my organization cannot allow me to do so. And I have recommended you to the people who invited me because I have been with you for some time. And I know you can make it. 

We have been training our visually impaired people on ICT skills together with you. So now that I cannot make it, I'm going to forward your name and your details so that you step in. And whenever you get challenged, don't hesitate to reach out to me.

I took the offer, and I was very happy. However, I was internally wondering what digital skills will I go and teach apart from the computer hardware and the software. Then I started getting back to this app. 

I said this might be a very powerful tool in package in my delivery. Let me explore it more and be able to explain how it works to my people very well so that they can learn. And indeed, I took a two-day exploration on the different apps designed for persons with visual impairment and others for hearing impaired, but majorly visual. 

And this, out of the many, stood out and stood out very well. I started trying it, as I explained before, individually before I got to the – before I started the training. And when – by the time I could get to the field in the different districts, I was already well-versed. 

I understood the need – the need for volunteers, the need for many visually impaired to sign up, the need for having smartphones, the need for having mobile internet connection. And therefore, this was very key to me during the training to explain and to practically demonstrate. Thank you. 

So, what was that training like? So, did you – did you go from district to district, or was it a big two-week-long thing, or how did you do it? Yeah, it was – it was a district to district. In Uganda, we have different – we have a decentralized system of governments, where a cell – the lowest administration is a cell, or a village. Above that, we have parishes and wards. 

Then above the wards or parishes, we have sub-counties or town councils. Then in a district, we would have like 10 or 20 or more town councils. It would cover a square kilometer of approximately 1,000.

That would be one district, a very wide area. And in this training, I was located to support five districts. Out of the five, two in Western Park of Uganda, and three in Northern Park of Uganda. 

And these were also not together very, very far, over 300 kilometers from one to the last district. So, I started my training sessions from Western – from Northern Uganda, where I come from. And each – in each district, the training took two days. 

And the whole two weeks, including the weekends, I was traveling after every two days from one to another, one to another. The training included persons with visual impairment and the local government authorities, like the chief administrative officer, who is the head of all the technical staff in a district, and other employees for the government. So, this was a very good opportunity to let them know that persons with visual impairment, with the technology, who have knowledge and skills of using technology, they are able to use and live independently through applications of different apps. 

That's very, very cool. So, now I'm wondering about what it's like. So, what is it like to be blind in Uganda? What technologies do you find the most useful? What's kind of your general experience? I know that's a very broad question.

With technology, there's no problem of being – there's no problem with being blind. It is very hard and very challenging to be blind when you don't have the knowledge and skills of technology. I started being introduced in technology, in the technology world, in 2011, when I was in my lower high school, second year. 

I could not believe anything that a visually impaired or blind can use anything like a computer or a phone. However, my belief was completely shattered, and I appreciate it so much. The first day when I was introduced to a computer laptop, where they started showing me one-to-one teaching, one-to-one teaching, that this is escape, this is tab, this is control, and all other buttons on the computers. 

The next day, to a smartphone, I would wonder, how can a visually impaired use something which has no buttons? Yes, indeed, I realize it is very possible with technology, because all of these are possible when we have screen-reading softwares. So, the widely used applications to visually impaired here in Uganda, and to the one I was introduced to the first time is JAWS. Then later, we discovered we have narrators, although it is not very compatible. 

Then later, recently, I got to learn about NVDA, non-visual desktop access app. However, as it stands, JAWS is widely used and very compatible. What I have seen now, we just need to create more awareness across the nation, across the continent, more about because I have used it, I have now learnt of it, and I'm very willing to sell it to anybody to adopt it and use it, and sign up as volunteers, including my sisters, by the way. 

I have already shared it with my home people. I say, if you have a smartphone, please sign up and support visually impaired across the world. Apart from this, we also have cash readers to visually impaired more particularly.

This app is able to detect and speak out different denominations. However, it is still limited because it requires annual subscription, which may not be very effective to everyone. So, this one sets Be My Eye on its own stage because we don't have any, I've not seen anywhere about annual subscription, and it makes it very user-friendly by anybody who may not have money or have a steady source of income.

Have you tried Be My Eye with reading out the denominations of bills to see if it will do that for you? Well, I have not tried that. Generally, I am new to AI in general. Even last week, I said, I think I need to get more time and first learn how this AI works and see if I can also sell it out to my colleagues. 

At the bottom of your screen, and every single part of the app, there's the bottom of your screen has tabs that run across the bottom. That's what TalkBack and VoiceOver call them, is tabs. And so, as soon as you hit the Be My Eye tab, there's a Take Picture button. 

You just aim the phone at whatever you want to take a picture of, and you hit that button, and that's it. And then if you have any questions, you can hit the Ask More button when it returns with a description, and you can ask it more questions. So, if I had taken a picture of my dog, I could ask it more about the dog or more about what it could see in the background. 

It mentioned the plant. I could have asked it what plant was behind me, and it would have given its best idea about that. This is interesting. 

I think, in fact, it is 70% a learned thing now. I just need to get to it and explore how it works. I think it will be a very nice thing also to learn and use it in my day-to-day life.

Absolutely, and it's really quick. I love how quickly it goes, because I can just get what I need in about 10 to 15 seconds, depending on how my internet is going. And it just tells you so much, and you can dig in as much as you want into more details, and it's just lovely. 

And of course, there's always a place for volunteers, because there's much more of a community aspect there, right? But in the case you just need something quick, that's an option too. What is it like being an inclusion facilitator? What else do you do in your job when you're not doing training? We reach out to organizations and help support them in designing inclusive programmings. Yes, like when they're writing new projects, we guide them how it should include persons with disabilities. 

We also guide them on how to set up their physical environment inclusive of persons with disabilities, and also link them to the higher authorities to get more support when required in their line of programming. So you'll test out designs and tell folks what to change to make things a bit better sometimes as well? Yes, yes, exactly. That's what we do. 

That's very cool. And there are several of you who are blind or visually impaired, you do this? Yes, not very many, but within the organization, we are approximately around 10. Okay, okay. 

Yes. And you test for blind folks who are deaf as well? Is that right? Yes, we do. We have. 

Very cool. Yeah. So what would you say as a blind person to other blind people in Uganda and generally continental Africa about just using the app and getting into it? I know you've talked about supply and demand, but is there more that if you could just share one thing with blind folks who haven't used the app yet and haven't heard of it, what would you say? First, let's believe that we can make it.

I don't always encourage my people to remain very dependent, where you are not believing in yourself to do something without external support. With this app, I and you who is visually impaired are able to leave and do most of our things without relying on the others. However, when need be, it is okay. 

But not everything, because other things are so private. At least you need a support, and that support can come along with your technology knowledge and in the Be My Eye app. Now with the Be My Eye, it is even more safer. 

You don't need even to reach to a volunteer when the tab section can help you and do your things. This is very, very inclusive, and it makes us also to be, to do our things in the way we want it. It comes along with privacy, comes along with confidentiality, comes along with independence in general. 

So I call on many to appreciate it, sell it, and use it. Thank you. Thank you. 

I really appreciate you coming and sharing your story. It's been really, really interesting to hear that some of the same things that you were a little bit afraid of at first are what I remember being afraid of when I started to use Be My Eyes, and a lot of other people too. That's a really common experience for a lot of blind folks.

I'm really, really excited to see more of how you, how your work goes in spreading more of Be My Eyes to Uganda. It'll be really exciting to see more stories. I'll be excited. 

I'll be excited. In fact, during my trip, even the driver whom I was using, he was moving with me across all this district. He is a very passionate gentleman, very, very supportive. 

He was the first to download the app and said, I'm just a driver. I have a lot of ample time to support people around the globe. So let me be the first to sign up and wait for whoever.

Christopher, the day you will call and you will find me, I'll be able to support you very well. I said, yes, I'll be interested. It will be very nice.

So I'm glad for that. And thank you for this very unique initiative. Thank you. 

Thank you for sharing your story with us. It's been really lovely to meet you and hear what's gotten you into Be My Eyes and that you're doing even more to show folks around Uganda how Be My Eyes works and how that can help with their independence as well.