Lwati May 2008, Number 47

* LWATI *

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

May 2008, Number 47

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
<> MEDIA COVERAGE
<> NETWORKING AND OUTREACH
<> CONTACT DETAILS

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<> EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S COMMENTS

Welcome to the 47th edition of SANGONeT´s monthly e-newsletter!

Planning and preparations for MobileActive08 are now in full swing.

Jointly organised by SANGONeT and MobileActive.org, the event will be held from 13-15 October 2008 at the Wanderers Club in Johannesburg. The theme of the event is “Unlocking the Potential of Mobile Technology for Social Impact”.

This international three-day summit will convene more than 300 civil society, development and technology practitioners interested in the use and application of mobile technology in support of social impact.

At MobileActive08 participants will explore how mobile phones are used to advance civil society and development 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.

We invite practitioners, researchers and technologists to submit proposals for workshops and short talks on the topic of mobile technology for social impact, as well as to showcase products and services in the interactive SIMplace and SIMlabs - interactive marketplaces for applications and products.

For information on how to submit applications for sessions and exhibitions, please refer to http://www.mobileactive08.org/call-for-expertise.

MobileActive08 will not be a typical conference. While it will feature workshops and panel discussions, the event is organised to maximize interaction amongst participants and accelerate and document learnings. We welcome the creativity and ideas of this community to explore how to best utilise mobile technology for social development.

We are currently only calling for workshop and exhibition submissions, with general registration for the event opening at the end of June 2008.

This will be the largest international civil society event to date focusing on this topic.

For more information about the event, please refer to http://www.mobileactive08.org.

Together with many other civil society organisations, we at SANGONeT would also like to add our voice in condemning the xenophobic violence that has spread through South Africa in recent weeks.

For information on how you can assist victims of the violence through the work of various NGOs and other organisations, please refer to http://www.sangonet.org.za/portal/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9454.

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

During the month of April articles carried in the SANGONeT Portal and NGO Pulse continued the discussion on accountability and measuring impact, extending the debates to that of participation. We featured articles on the electricity crisis as well corporate citizenship. April also witnessed the launch of an exciting new partnership with BackaBuddy, an online fundraising initiative.

Using the Internet and Sport to Raise Money for NGOs in South Africa

Effective People Management in a Non-Profit Organisation

Continuing the conversation: Why and how do we measure, learn and share what we learn?

What Do We Need to Know? A Response to David Bonbright

Is Corporate Citizenship Making a Difference? Why the Question is Important

Electricity Crisis in South Africa

Power Crisis: A reality Facing South Africa

Other key articles produced by the CSI team during April 2008 include the following:

Refugee Rights in the Spotlight

Am I my Brother’s Keeper

Farm dwellers’ Access to Legal Services

New Tactics Needed to End Violence Against Women

Africans Giving for Africa

Community Participation in Tourism

The April 2008 poll asked whether the Internet is transforming giving and philanthropy in South Africa. The results of the poll, which was taken by 134 voters, are as follow:

• 76% (102 voters) Yes, to a significant degree
• 19.4% (26 voters) Not at all
• 4.5% (6 Voters) To some extent

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

# Prodder Online Directory

The new beta version of Prodder is available at - http://beta.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. Any feedback about the new platform in general, including additional features and information to be added, would also be appreciated.

The final switchover to the new system will be completed in May 2008.

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

# Prodder - NGOs and Development in South Africa 2008

The 2008 Prodder directory 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).

# BackaBuddy

SANGONeT supports BackaBuddy, an online fundraising website which combines the power of sport and the reach of the Internet in support of NGOs in South Africa. We provide potential donors with detailed information, through the Prodder NGO Directory, about the NGOs profiled for support on BackaBuddy.

For more information about this initiative, please contact Matthew de Gale at SANGONeT on Tel: (011) 403-4935 or matthew@sangonet.org.za, or visit http://www.backabuddy.co.za.

# SN-Announce

SN-Announce is an e-mail advertising service that provides an invaluable service to the NGO sector in Southern Africa. With a potential readership of more than 15 000 people, it remains one of the most cost-effective and efficient ways to reach non-profit organisations, development practitioners, funders and others working in the development sector.

All members of the development sector can advertise on SN-Announce. The type of information distributed includes alerts for vacancies, events, campaign launches, conferences, meetings and services for the development sector. Subscription to the SN-Announce service is free.

Refer to http://www.sangonet.org.za for copies of past announcements.

For more information about how to subscribe to SN-Announce or post an announcement, please contact Neila Pillay at SANGONeT on (011) 403-4935 or neila@sangonet.org.za

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<> ICT SERVICES

# SANGOTeCH Online Technology Donations Portal

SANGOTeCH assisted South African NGOs in saving over R1.5 million on Microsoft software, as well as R80 000 on Cisco networking equipment during April 2008. Nearly 20 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 Botswana

SANGOTeCH registered two organisations in Botswana in April 2008, namely Women in Action and the Kalahari Conservation Society. Botswana is the second country in Africa after South Africa to benefit from donations of Microsoft software to local non-profit organisations.

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.

In April 2008 the project team travelled to Dar es Salaam to train 12 NGO staff members from organisations from Tanzania, Zambia and Uganda on using new media tools to highlight the work of their organisations, and the issues that affect them and their communities. Working with a range of software and hardware tools, the participants received training in how to create blogs and podcasts, as well as how to use equipment such as digital cameras and digital voice recorders.

For more information about the project, please refer to http://www.citizenjournalismafrica.org

# 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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<> MEDIA COVERAGE

SANGONeT received the following media coverage in recent weeks:

Leaving a Lotto to be desired

Fundraising portal debuts

Mobile Technology Helping Drive Social Change

Online millions for greater good

<> NETWORKING AND OUTREACH

SANGONeT’s Executive Director, David Barnard, attended a Meraka e-Skills Institute Reference Group meeting on 9 April 2008 in Pretoria.

SANGONeT’s Information Coordinator, Butjwana Seokoma, attended the Farm Dwellers Legal Access Crisis Workshop hosted by the Foundation for Human Rights on 18 April 2008 in Pretoria.

SANGONeT’s Executive Director, David Barnard, attended a MobileActive08 planning meeting on 28 April 2008 in Ottawa, Canada.

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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.

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and modify this document. Please provide an acknowledgment to SANGONeT.

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