Husika TTS — Mobile App

The mobile app of the Husika early-warning platform — preview and play multilingual text-to-speech voices for the languages of the Greater Horn of Africa.

Developed by Speedykom GmbH for the Husika early-warning platform operated by ICPAC (IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre). Produced under the Peaceful and Resilient Borderlands Programme (PRBP), implemented by GIZ within the SCIDA III framework in support of IGAD, and co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

             

             

_{Co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)  ·  Implemented by GIZ  ·  In partnership with IGAD & ICPAC  ·  Developed by Speedykom}

husika_app_demo.mp4

About

Husika TTS lets you preview TTS voices across 11 languages using two synthesis engines: Speedykom Cloud for high-quality, fine-tuned models and eSpeak NG for lightweight offline fallback. The app adapts its UI based on network connectivity, hiding cloud-only voices when the device is offline.

This project is part of the Husika TTS platform, maintained by Speedykom Group -- a Germany-based software company focused on digital public infrastructure and language technology.

Features

• 11 languages: English, French, Arabic, Swahili, Amharic, Somali, Oromo, Tigrinya, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Luganda
• Two TTS engines: Speedykom Cloud (requires network) and eSpeak NG (offline)
• Network-aware UI -- cloud voices are hidden when offline, with status banners and retry
• Search and filter languages by name or engine type (All, Cloud, Offline)
• Per-language detail screen with sample phrases and custom text input
• Material Design 3 theming

Tech Stack

Category	Technology
Framework	React Native 0.81, Expo 54
Navigation	Expo Router 6 (file-based routing)
UI	React Native Paper (Material Design 3)
State	TanStack React Query 5
Networking	@react-native-community/netinfo
Language	TypeScript 5.9
Linting	ESLint with eslint-config-expo

React Compiler and the New Architecture are enabled.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js (LTS recommended)
• npm

Installation

git clone <repository-url>
cd husika-tts-mobile
npm install

Running the app

npx expo start

From the dev server, press:

• a to open on Android (emulator or device)
• i to open on iOS (simulator or device)
• w to open in a web browser

You can also run on a physical device using Expo Go or a development build.

Project Structure

.
├── app/                       # Screens (file-based routing)
│   ├── _layout.tsx            # Root layout with providers
│   ├── index.tsx              # Welcome screen
│   ├── languages.tsx          # Language list with search and filters
│   └── language/
│       └── [code].tsx         # Language detail (samples, custom input)
├── components/                # Reusable UI components
│   └── ui/                    # Low-level UI primitives
├── constants/
│   └── theme.ts               # Color and font constants
├── data/
│   └── languages.ts           # Language definitions and voice mappings
├── hooks/
│   └── use-network-status.ts  # Network connectivity hook
├── theme/
│   └── paper-theme.ts         # Material Design 3 theme config
├── assets/images/             # App icon, logos
├── app.json                   # Expo configuration
├── eas.json                   # EAS Build configuration
├── tsconfig.json              # TypeScript config (uses @/* path alias)
└── package.json

Available Scripts

Command	Description
npm start	Start the Expo dev server
npm run android	Start on Android
npm run ios	Start on iOS
npm run web	Start on Web
npm run lint	Run ESLint
npm run reset-project	Reset to a blank app directory

Credits & License

Developed by Speedykom GmbH for the Husika early-warning platform operated by ICPAC (IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre). Produced under the Peaceful and Resilient Borderlands Programme (PRBP), implemented by GIZ within the SCIDA III framework in support of IGAD, and co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Copyright (c) 2026 Speedykom GmbH and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. Licensed under the Apache License 2.0 — see LICENSE. Attribution that must be preserved in derivative works is listed in NOTICE.

Disclaimer. Views and opinions expressed are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union, BMZ, GIZ, IGAD or ICPAC. Neither the European Union nor any other funding or implementing party can be held responsible for them.