Development of a peer-to-peer voucher donation management system enabled by blockchain
| dc.contributor.advisor | Bekker, James | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.author | Harraway, Tricia Margaret | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.other | Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Industrial Engineering. | en_ZA |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-02-10T16:18:36Z | en_ZA |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-05-18T06:58:19Z | en_ZA |
| dc.date.available | 2023-02-10T16:18:36Z | en_ZA |
| dc.date.available | 2023-05-18T06:58:19Z | en_ZA |
| dc.date.issued | 2023-02 | en_ZA |
| dc.description | Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2023. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In recent years charity and philanthropy sectors have experienced a surge in the availability of digital resources to aid in providing transparency in their operations and donation processing. There is no doubt that the world is transitioning into a digital space, where new solutions to existing problems could be approached with emerging technology. The Payments Association of South Africa (PASA) is aiming for a cashless society by 2030. Two frequently cited barriers to financial inclusion and bank account ownership is distrust in the system and lack of formal identification. As a result, FinTech companies are playing a larger role in providing innovative solutions for the undocumented and unbanked population, using technologies such as blockchain. Africa has a rich history of community philanthropy where horizontal giving is likely to be in the form of micro-donations such as cash, food or clothing. If fewer individuals rely on paper notes and coins, the concern is that those informal peer-to-peer donations will become less frequent and more challenging to make. Vouchers have been used in the past, in order to ensure donations are spent responsibly. In addition, e-vouchers provide higher levels of security, the possibility for different donation platforms to be digitally integrated and adapted, and as well as improved levels of engagement in the donation process. Programmable vouchers have all these benefits and also the potential to enable direct and customised donor-to-beneficiary charitable payments, without the need for trusted third party service providers. The potential for a digital, transparent peer-to-peer mechanism to donate vouchers in the form of blockchain tokens is presented. Blockchain technology enables distributed networks of trust, where instead of relying on a central entity, trust is shared among peers. Furthermore, the level of transparency presented by blockchain enables traceability of the movements of the donations. By disintermediating the process of supporting peers, providing transparency in resource allocation and increasing transaction efficiency, blockchain provides a use-case for decentralised, horizontal and direct ‘giving’. This research project explores the development of a digital voucher donation mechanism where the shortcomings of traditional voucher management systems, such as requiring a bank account or mobile device or needing formal identification on request, are challenged. To address these challenges and the need for financial inclusion, existing voucher transfer architectures and humanitarian information systems were consulted and a demonstrator was developed. A decentralised application with a front-end is designed and developed to interface with the smart contracts that hold the logic of the voucher donation management system. Vouchers are minted as tokens on the Polygon network to present scalability in the future. Traditionally the voucher transaction information was stored in a centralised database, instead they are transparently recorded on a distributed network. The blockchain acts as the back-end supporting the smart contract implementation which is deployed with predefined conditions mirroring traditional escrow services. Digital wallets are integrated, allowing beneficiaries to store and redeem their voucher tokens at participating vendors via a QR code public address. The smart contracts are verified and validated using various software tests, to ensure that their functionality fulfills the requirements of the research project. The evaluation of the demonstrator showed that blockchain technology, while still in its infancy, has the potential to empower the underserved, while providing full transparency for the stakeholders involved. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | AFRIKAANS OPSOMMING: Die liefdadigheids- en filantropiese sektore het in die afgelope paar jare ’n oplewing in die beskikbaarheid van digitale hulpbronne ervaar, wat hulle help om deursigtigheid van hulle bedrywighede en skenkingsprosesse te verskaf. Daar is geen twyfel dat die wˆereld besig is om oor te skakel na ’n digitale ruimte waar nuwe oplossings vir bestaande probleme benader kan word met opkomende tegnologie. Die Betalingsvereniging van Suid Afrika (PVSA) mik na ’n kontantlose samelewing teen 2030. Twee struikelblokke wat gereeld aangehaal word as redes vir finansi¨ele insluiting en bankrekeningeienaarskap, is wantroue in die stelsel en gebrek aan formele identifikasie. Gevolglik speel Fintech-maatskappye ’n groter rol in die verskaffing van innoverende oplossings vir die ongedokumenteerde en ongebankde bevolking, deur tegnologie¨e soos blokketting te gebruik. Afrika het ’n ryk geskiedenis van gemeenskapsfilantropie, waar horisontale skenkings waarskynlik in die vorm van mikroskenkings soos kontant, kos of klere sal wees. As minder individue op papiernote en munte staatmaak, is die kommer dat daardie eweknie-skenkings minder gereeld gemaak sal word, en meer uitdagend sal word. Koopbewyse is al gebruik om te verseker dat die skenkings verantwoordelik bestee word, en elektroniese koopbewyse (e-koepons) verseker dat die donasies sekuriteit het, dat die verskillende skenkingplatforms digitaal ge¨ıntegreer en aangepas kan word en dat skenker-begunstige interaksie by die skenkingsproses verbeter word. Programeerbare koopbewyse het al hierdie voordele sowel as die voordeel om direkte en pasgemaakte skenker-begunstigde liefdadigheiddonasies moontlik te maak waar die begunstigde nie noodwendig toegang tot tegnologie het nie. Die potensiaal vir ’n digitale, deursigtige eweknie-meganisme om geskenkbewyse in die vorm van blokketting-ruilgeld (tokens) te skenk, word in hierdie studie aangebied. Blokketting-tegnologie maak verspreide netwerke moontlik, waar vertroue onder eweknie¨e gedeel word, in plaas daarvan om op ’n sentrale entiteit staat te maak. Verder maak die vlak van deursigtigheid wat deur blokketting aangebied word, naspeurbaarheid van die bewegings van die skenkings moontlik. Deur die eliminasie van tussengangers in die liefdadigheid-skenkingsproses, verskaffing van deursigtigheid in hulpbrontoewysing, en deur transaksie-doeltreffendheid te verhoog, bied blokketting ’n voorbeeld-geval vir gedesentraliseerde, horisontale skenking. Hierdie navorsingsprojek ondersoek die ontwikkeling van ’n digitale koopbewysstelsel waar die tekortkominge van tradisionele koopbewysbestuurstelsels, soos mobiele toestelvereistes en formele identifikasie op versoek, uitgedaag word. Om hierdie uitdagings en die behoefte aan finansi¨ele insluiting aan te spreek, is bestaande koopbewys-oordragargitektuur en humanitˆere inligtingstelsels geraadpleeg en ’n demonstreerder (hierna verwys as VDMS) ontwikkel. ’n Gedesentraliseerde toepassing met ‘n webblaaier is ontwerp en ontwikkel om aan die slim kontrakte te koppel, wat die logika van die oopbewysbestuurstelsel bevat. Koopbewyse word as tokens op die Polygon-netwerk gemunt. Waar daar voorheen die oopbewystransaksieinligting op ’n gesentraliseerde databasis gestoor is, word dit nou deursigtig op ’n verspreide netwerk aangeteken. Die blokketting dien as die agtergrondprogram, wat die slim kontrakimplimentering ondersteun waar met voorafbepaalde voorwaardes ontplooi word en wat tradisionele borgdienste weerspie¨el. Digitale beursies is ge¨ıntegreer, wat begunstigdes in staat stel om hul koopbewyse by deelnemende verskaffers te stoor en te gebruik, via ’n QR-kode met ’n publieke adres. Die slim kontrakte word geverifie¨er en bekragtig met die hulp van verskeie sagtewaretoetse om seker te maak dat hul funksionaliteit aan die vereistes van die navorsingsprojek voldoen. Die evaluering van die demonstreerder het getoon dat blokketting-tegnologie, alhoewel dit nog in ’n vroe¨e ontwikkelingsfase is, die potensiaal het om die onder-verdienende deel van die bevolking te bemagtig, en volle deursigtigheid vir al die belanghebbendes te bied. | af_ZA |
| dc.description.version | Masters | en_ZA |
| dc.format.extent | xviii, 146 pages : illustrations. | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/126974 | en_ZA |
| dc.language.iso | en_ZA | en_ZA |
| dc.language.iso | en_ZA | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Peer-to-peer architecture (Computer networks) | en_ZA |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Digital cash | en_ZA |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Blockchains (Databases) | en_ZA |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Endowments -- Technological innovations | en_ZA |
| dc.title | Development of a peer-to-peer voucher donation management system enabled by blockchain | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_ZA |
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