Lwati August 2008, Number 50

* LWATI *

The monthly e-newsletter of the Southern African NGO Network (SANGONeT)

August 2008, Number 50

http://www.sangonet.org.za

"Lwati" is an isiSwati word meaning knowledge.

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<> EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S COMMENTS
<> CIVIL SOCIETY INFORMATION
<> ICT SERVICES
<> ICT ADVOCACY
<> NETWORKING AND OUTREACH
<> STAFF
<> CONTACT DETAILS

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<> EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S COMMENTS

Welcome to the 50th edition of SANGONeT’s monthly e-newsletter!

NGOs have a proud history as agents of social change in responding to the development and poverty challenges facing South Africa. However, the NGO environment in South Africa continues to experience various strategic changes and challenges that impact on the state and well-being of the NGO sector.

The closure and collapse of key NGOs as a result of increased competition for funding and changing donor priorities, increased pressure for accountability and transparency, the need for more collaborative approaches to project funding and implementation, high turnover of senior staff, and the positioning of the sector in response to the political changes that South Africa will experience over the next year, are just a few of the key challenges facing the sector.

Recent comments by ANC member of Parliament, Mtikeni Sibande, accusing so-called "white-run" NGOs of posing a threat to national security while pretending to help victims of xenophobia, as well as the announcement by the University of KwaZulu-Natal of its plans to close the Centre for Civil Society at the end of the year, are further examples of increasing pressure on the NGO sector and civil society initiatives.

These issues raise significant questions about leadership in the sector, and our ability to respond to these challenges in a coordinated and unified manner.

This situation also highlights the role of the South African NGO Coalition (SANGOCO). From an organisation which in the 1990s was at forefront of providing leadership to the NGO sector, in recent years it has become a dysfunctional entity which has failed in its leadership task and has shown very little if any capacity or intent in adjusting to new challenges and a changing political and NGO environment.

Responding to this, members of the NGO sector in the Western Cape will gather in Cape Town from 1-5 September 2008 to find ways to address the challenges and opportunities facing the sector. Titled ‘Towards Rebuilding a Platform for Civil Society Engagement: Challenges and Prospects’, the conference aims to contribute to building a vibrant civil society in South Africa. One of the key issues to be discussed is the future role of SANGOCO.

Ultimately, the question to be answered is: what is the role of a national NGO membership organisation in the 21st century? This question is particularly relevant in a developing country like South Africa which faces significant development challenges. That the NGO sector comprises thousands of organisations faced with their own unique challenges, makes the situation even more complex.

In a recent editorial, the Editor of the SANGONeT NGO Portal, Janine Moolman, commented that “building a vibrant civil society requires energy, the ability to work beyond narrow ‘sector based’ politics, resources of many forms and a deep commitment to social justice. In a global landscape where resources are often hard to come by, competition and tensions amongst different interest groups can lead to divisions and ultimately the weakening of social movements.”

Clearly, it can’t be business as usual for SANGOCO.

If participants at the meeting in Cape Town argue that we still need a national membership body, this institution should, at a minimum, be one characterised by a streamlined structure and infrastructure, staffed by skilled people with a clear understanding of the issues facing society and the NGO sector at large, and with the ability to utilise new tools and strategies to respond to these issues on behalf of and/or in conjunction with its members.

The meeting in Cape Town is held at an important time in rethinking the role of SANGOCO and positioning the NGO sector to respond to new national challenges. NGOs in the rest of the country will await the outcomes of the meeting with much interest.

Turning to specific SANGONeT issues, I would like to encourage people to register for the MobileActive08 Summit. This event will be held from 13-15 October 2008 in Johannesburg and will be largest international event to date focused on mobile technology for social development.

To register, refer to http://www.mobileactive08.org/register-for-mobileactive08.

As always, we are very interested in how you think we could best serve the NGO sector with relevant ICT products and services. Please send us your views, comments and suggestions.

Best wishes

David Barnard (dbarnard@sangonet.org.za)

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<> CIVIL SOCIETY INFORMATION (CSI) PROGRAMME

# SANGONeT NGO Portal

A number of very interesting articles were published on the SANGONeT NGO Portal during July 2008. We published a series of articles on NGO leadership which, judging from the response from readers, stimulated a great deal of discussion. We also published three articles which explored how organisations are using web 2.0 tools in their advocacy campaigns.

Some of the key articles published during July 2008 include:

• Founder’s Syndrome: Leadership Lost and Found
• What Makes A Good Leader
• NGO Leadership Challenges: Creating a Space for Reflection
• Advocacy and Web2.0
• The Power of Peers
• Changing the Interface of Education

Other articles published in July 2008 include:

• South African No Torture Consortium Launched
• Failure to Protect
• New Website Fights Child Pornography
• The Sexual Offences Amendment Act: Implications for Children
• Gauteng Declares War on High Food Prices
• G8 Summit 2008: All Talk, Zero Walk

Keep an eye on the SANGONeT NGO Portal over the next few months as we will be inviting your input on the new look of the Portal.

# Portal Poll

The July 2008 portal poll sought readers’ views on whether they thought rising food prices impact on efforts to reduce poverty. The results of the poll, taken by 231 people, are as follow:

• 77.1% believed this was happening;
• 19.5% thought that there was a significant impact
• 3.5% believe it had no impact

For more information about the SANGONeT NGO Portal, please contact Janine Moolman at SANGONeT on Tel: (011) 403-4935 or jan@sangonet.org.za.

# SANGONeT NGO Web Awards 2008

SANGONeT invites South African NGOs to enter the South African NGO Web Awards 2008.

Now in its third year, this competition aims to raise awareness amongst South African NGOs about the benefits of having a web presence, stimulate interest in the application of web solutions and applications, and showcase best practices in website creation and maintenance.

For more information about the competition, please refer to http://www.sangonet.org.za/portal/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9999&Itemid=116.

# Prodder Online Directory

Prodder is the most comprehensive directory about NGOs and development organisations in South Africa. To search this online directory, please visit - http://www.prodder.org.za.

We encourage NGOs and development organisations to review their entries and forward us information about changes and corrections that need to be made.

Please forward your comments to - prodder@sangonet.org.za.

# Prodder - NGOs and Development in South Africa 2008

The 2008 Prodder directory in book format is available from SANGONeT’s office in Braamfontein.

To order your copy, please refer to the information about the book on http://www.prodder.org.za or send an e-mail to prodder@sangonet.org.za, specifying your interest to order the book (R350 VAT inclusive plus R35 postage).

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<> ICT SERVICES

# SANGOTeCH Online Technology Donations Portal

SANGOTeCH assisted South African NGOs in saving over R750 000 on Microsoft software and Cisco networking equipment during June 2008. A total of 17 donation requests were fulfilled during this period.

The SANGOTeCH product catalogue can be viewed at http://store.sangotech.org/directory.

For more information about SANGOTeCH, as well as to receive regular updates about new products and services, please refer to http://www.sangotech.org or contact us on 086 110 6443 or support@sangotech.org.

# SANGOTecH in Southern Africa

SANGOTeCH operates in South Africa and Botswana. We are currently planning the expansion of the programme into Lesotho, Zambia and Malawi.

SANGONeT’s Executive Director, David Barnard and SANGOTeCH Manager, Matthew de Gale, visited Zambia in July to meet with various NGOs and NGO Networks in Zambia with the aim of rolling out SANGOTech in that country. Watch this space for an announcement about our future plans for Lesotho, Zambia and Malawi!

For more information about SANGOTeCH Botswana, and to sign up for the programme, refer to http://www.sangotech.org/botswana.

# Citizen Journalism in Africa Project

SANGONeT and Hivos are collaborating on a project aimed at developing citizen journalism in Africa, with a specific focus on South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda and Mozambique.

The overall objective of the project is to increase local media coverage of balanced, objective and informative reporting on the situation of targeted marginalized groups (women, children and youth, people living with HIV and AIDS and living in rural communities) which contributes to increased involvement and participation of these groups in democratic processes on the national level.

Refer to the CJA Portal - http://www.citizenjournalismafrica.org - a space where participants post news, audio, blog and even comment on other people’s input.

The CJA team conducted the 6th training workshop on issues around new media and civil society from 14-18 July 2008 in Lusaka, Zambia. The workshop involved 25 participants from a mixture of organisations involved in gender, land and agriculture, health and human rights issues.

For more information about the project, please contact Phumeza Bangani at SANGONeT on Tel: (011) 403-4935 or phumeza@sangonet.org.za.

# Technology Consulting

SANGONeT offers a range of customised online applications that include social networking portals, online directories, and constituent relationship management solutions. We also offer a linked technical support desk service.

For more information on how we can assist you, please contact Matthew de Gale at SANGONeT on Tel: (011) 403-4935 or matthew@sangonet.org.za.

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<> ICT ADVOCACY

# MobileActive08 Summit

SANGONeT and MobileActive.org are pleased to announce the programme for the MobileActive08 Summit. The event will be held from 13-15 October 2008 at the Wanderers Club in Illovo, Johannesburg.

Please refer to http://www.mobileactive08.confabb.com for the full programme.

MobileActive08 is the only global gathering that is connecting leaders who are working at the convergence of civil society, mobile technology and social change.

The three-day event convenes key stakeholders that will explore mobile technology in support of social action - how mobile phones are used to advance civil society work, assess the current state of knowledge in the use and effectiveness of mobile technology to advance social action, and investigate trends, needs and investment opportunities.

Please register now at http://www.mobileactive08.org.

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<> NETWORKING AND OUTREACH

SANGONeT’s Information Coordinator, Butjwana Seokoma, attended the launch of the Films and Publications Board’s Anti-Pornography Website on 1 July 2008 at Constitution Hill in Braamfontein.

He also attended the Movement for Good Stakeholder Meeting on 4 July 2008 at the SABC in Auckland Park and participated in the Food Summit from 10-11 July 2008 in Midrand.

SANGONeT’s CSI Programme Manager, Janine Moolman, attended the International Human Rights Exchange Internship lunch on 10 July 2008 at the University of the Witwatersrand in Braamfontein.

She also attended the APC CICEWA Research Workshop from 14-16 July 2008 in Johannesburg.

SANGONeT’s Executive Director, David Barnard, attended a Meraka e-Skills Institute Reference Group meeting from 24-25 July 2008 in Kempton Park.

SANGONeT’s Information Coordinator, Butjwana Seokoma, attended the Media Institute of Southern Africa’s discussion on the role of media to enhance citizen participation on 25 July 2008 in Braamfontein.

SANGONeT’s Executive Director, David Barnard, attended the Synergos Institute (Southern Africa) Networking Dinner and Dialogue as part of the 2008 All-Africa Synergos Senior Fellows Meeting on 31 July 2008 in Johannesburg.

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<> STAFF

We welcome Dora Moche to SANGONeT. Dora is SANGONeT’s new Civil Society Information Programme Assistant.

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<> CONTACT DETAILS

SANGONeT
P O Box 31392
2017 Braamfontein
SOUTH AFRICA

29th Floor, UCS Building
209 Smit Street
Braamfontein

Tel: (+27) (11) 403-4935
Fax: (+27) (11) 403-0130
E-mail: newsletter@sangonet.org.za
WWW: http://www.sangonet.org.za

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CopyLeft. 2008. SANGONeT.

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