About Waze EAC
Welcome to Wazeopedia EAC! This guide is here for people wanting to edit the map in East African Community using Waze Map Editor (WME)
You will find in these pages information about how to edit Waze in the specific situation of the following EAC countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. It can be extended to other EAC countries (RDC, Somalia, South Soudan), but the local situation, traffic and wazers in those countries does not allow enough data to map correctly.
Before starting editing in a new country, it’s always better to first get in touch with the local community. In the EAC countries, we communicate via the following channel:
Basics
KISS Principle
What is this KISS all about? Keep It Stupid Simple: Meaning: “As simple as possible, as complex as necessary”.
In short statementsː
- Simplify the map and segments as far as possible
- Make situations only as complex as needed
- Use segments only for routing, not for something like lane assistance.
- Segments doesn’t have to have the exact meters of paved road.
There is one important thing to always keep in mind when you edit the map: Waze is not a topographic map, but a car navigation system! Over the years, the community discovered ways to edit the map in a way that maximizes navigation. Waze relies on a map’s display suitable for a small smart-phone screen. It needs a map that accurately instructs where cars can drive, is simple and clear, and uses real time traffic data bound to the parts on the map. Therefore, we follow the three basic principles “Usability, Simplicity, & Retention”; Make it useful, keep it as simple as possible.
Points, Ranks and Roles
Waze uses a point system to track use of the the Waze client application, and the Waze Map Editor. Different actions give you different numbers of points. Your point total is compared to the point totals of other Waze users to determine your Waze rank. Wazers who edit the map also have an edit count and an editor rank.
Experienced editors may also get a specific role within the community: Area Manager (AM), State Manager (SM)(Not applicable in EAC), Country Manager (CM), Local Champion (LC), Global Champion (GC). As a new editor, you might also get the help of a Mentor.
Find more information about Points, Ranks and Roles here.
Start with edition
Before starting with the edition of Waze’s map, have a look the resources for new editors
To help you understanding the basics, you should follow the WME basic training
After completing that course, you should then also follow the Essential Editing Course
Edition in EAC
Now that you have seen the tutorials for new editors, let’s talk about some particularities and norms we use for editing in EAC.
General information
Each country has its own specificities: road organization is not the same everywhere, types of places may vary, and geography and natural features differ. This is especially true if you usually edit in Europe or the US and start editing in East Africa.
That’s why, besides the general editing rules followed by all Waze editors worldwide, each local community needs to establish specific rules to ensure that map editing remains consistent with local realities.
Traffic rules vs driver road usage
In some countries, police services may be more lenient, drivers may have their own interpretation of traffic laws, and road signs may disappear quickly… This can lead to dangerous situations where traffic no longer follows the intended rules for a given road.
Our role as a map editor is to always adhere to traffic laws and guide drivers according to these rules. For example, if a road is designated as one-way, we will edit it as one-way in WME, even if, in reality, boda-bodas, taxis, and other vehicles use it in the opposite direction every day. Waze will always follow traffic laws, not the bad habits adopted by local drivers.
Road editing
The road network in East Africa is different from that in other parts of the world. For example, there are very few freeways compared to those in Europe or North America. Additionally, many minor roads, and even some major ones, are unpaved. Therefore, specific rules have been established for road classification, taking into account the unique characteristics of the EAC region.
Before editing the EAC road network, we encourage you to read the following pages:
Place editing
Places are searchable destinations on the Waze map, similar to “Points of Interest” found in other maps and GPS devices.
All Google Maps places are also available for search in Waze, but new places can be added by Wazers on the go through the app or by editors using the Waze Map Editor (WME). The main advantage of mapping places in Waze is the ability to set specific details in WME to facilitate navigation, such as entry points, opening hours, and other relevant information.
Resources for editing places in the EAC can be found here:
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