NGO Pulse 13-Aug-08 #137

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 Issue No 137         ^-^-^  NGO Pulse  ^-^-^    13 August 2008 
                                                                                          
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New on the Home Page: www.sangonet.org.za

A vibrant and effective civil society movement is an essential part of any democracy. Beyond the role of ‘watchdog’ and ‘guard dog’, civil society organisations have an important role to play in ensuring a healthy and functioning democracy. Whether it is through providing services and information, undertaking research or building the capacity of communities to be active agents in their own development; civil society organisations are critical in producing an informed citizenry who participate in democratic processes.

South Africa has a proud history of civil society organising and action for social change. The anti-apartheid movement, women’s movement and more recently, social and economic justice movements are merely some examples. But what happens when the spaces for civil society activism are closed down? How do we ensure that civil society as an agent of democracy is also accountable? Who are our watchdogs?

We hope that this week’s edition of NGO Pulse will stimulate discussion about these questions. The three articles we feature, point to the role of civil society in building and protecting democracy.

Cornelias Ncube, from the National Association of Non-governmental Organisations in Zimbabwe (NANGO), writes about the context in which civil society organisations are operating in Zimbabwe. “The crackdown on civil society and the opposition reflects the state’s continued aversion to participatory governance and multi-party politics in Zimbabwe”, he writes. Ncube argues for the “need to slow down the discourse extremisms held by both ZANU-PF (and its supporters) and the opposition forces (political parties and some civil society groups) and to find common ground to facilitate a stable democratic transition.” Click here to read the full article.

The announcement over the imminent closure of the Centre for Civil Society (CCS) based at the University of KwaZulu-Natal came as a shock to many. This is evidenced by the outpouring of support in traditional and online media over the past week. Since inception, the CCS has gained local and international recognition for its research output and contribution to critical debates about development policy. It occupies a critical space in the social movement landscape in South Africa and beyond. David Barnard, SANGONeT’s Executive Director, gives an update on the status of the Centre. Click here to read the full article.

Nicole Senderayi, an International Human Rights Exchange Intern at SANGONeT, recently attended the annual general meeting of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) - South Africa. She reports on a panel discussion on the media’s role in supporting democracy and writes that media, as the fourth estate have a responsibility to report fairly and produce content that is not discriminatory. Click here to read the full article.

Building vibrant social movements 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. Responding to this, the upcoming International Forum on Women’s Rights and Development (AWID) Forum is focusing on “The Power of Movements”. It is being held in Cape Town, South Africa in November and there are 200 free registrations available for South African women to participate. Click here to find out more.

We hope that this edition of NGO Pulse stimulates a discussion about the kind of civil society movement we want, and are working towards.

We invite you to send us your thoughts, ideas and suggestions.

- Janine Moolman, editor@sangonet.org.za

Jobs, Proposals & Events

Vacancies

• Triangle Project, a NGO whose mission is to contribute towards eradicating discrimination against and within the LGBT community, seeks to employ a Media and Communications Coordinator to be based in Cape Town. The application deadline is 18 August 2008. For more information, click here.
• The Khusela Project invites applications from suitably qualified candidates for the position of Project Manager to be based in East London. The application deadline is 20 August 2008. For more information, click here.
• The Social Change Assistance Trust, an independent fundraising and grant-making development agency, seeks to employ a Rural Fieldworker to be based in Cape Town. The application deadline is 20 August 2008. For more information, click here.

RFPs and other Opportunities

• The Mvula Trust is calling for proposals from NGOs for the development of case studies on service delivery challenges in the context of Integrated Water Resource Management and Sustainable Water and Sanitation Services. The submission deadline is 22 August 2008. For more information, click here.
• The International Forum on Women's Rights and Development is offering 200 free registrations for South African women’s rights advocates for the 2008 AWID Forum, which takes place from 14-17 November 2008 in Cape Town. The registration deadline is 30 August 2008. For more information, click here. 
• Entries are invited from individuals, multi-disciplinary teams or community groups from anywhere in the world for the 2009 St Andrews Prize for the Environment. The winner will receive US$75 000 and two runners-up will each receive US$25 000. The submission deadline is 31 October 2008. For more information, click here.

New Events

• The Southern African Development Community Secretariat, the Southern Africa Trust and MTN are hosting a Free To Be concert at the University of Witwatersrand on 15 August 2008 in Johannesburg. For more information, click here. 
• Action for Safe South Africa is hosting a discussion forum on the creation of a Safe South Africa from 25-28 August 2008 in Johannesburg.   For more information and to participate, click here.
• The South African National NGO Coalition in the Western Cape is hosting a discussion forum entitled “Towards Rebuilding a Platform for Civil Society Engagement” from 1-5 September 2008 in Cape Town. For more information and to participate, click here.

Training

• Tshikululu Social Investments invites corporate social investment practitioners and those interested in hearing different opinions within the industry to its free Winter Public Lecture Series on 14 and 21 August 2008 in Johannesburg. For more information, click here. 
• The Community Development Resource Association, a NGO that works with people who are engaged in social transformation with marginalised communities, is conducting a five-day non-residential course on Advanced Facilitation from 10-14 November 2008 in Cape Town. For more information, click here. 
• The EC-FAO Food Security Programme invites you to participate in a free online course on Livelihoods Assessment and Analysis. The course is also available on CD-Rom. For more information, click here. 

Quote of the Week

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Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better.
   
 - Albert Camus.

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Top Local and International News Flashes

Recent LOCAL news items

• Feast of the Clowns Gets Underway in Pretoria 
• AICC Seminar to Focus on Standardising Social Responsibility
• Tshikululu Social Investments Appoints a New CEO
• Helen Suzman Foundation Criticises the Disbanding of Scorpions
• Free State Health Department to Strengthen Nonprofit Organisation
• National Lotteries Board Deprives the Poor of Essential Services – TVEP
• Health Department Withdraws Two TB Drugs 

Recent INTERNATIONAL news items

• Red Cross Appeals for Funds for Food Aid in Zimbabwe
• Tanzanian NGOs Accused of Engaging in Local Politics
• New HIV Guide Released for Developing Countries
• Social Networks are Playgrounds for Hackers – Experts
• NGO Wants 50 Percent Derivation on Crude for Niger Delta

Nonprofit Analysis, Tools and Opinions

• Paper: Community Based Technology Solutions
• Resource: Gender in Local Government
• Paper: Financial Literacy
• Resource: Transforming Cape Town
• Portal: Citizen Journalism in Africa Project
• Guide: SANGONeT Development Calendar 2008

Prodder Directory
Prodder is the most comprehensive directory of NGOs and development organisations in South Africa. To view the directory, please click here http://beta.prodder.org.za/.

We encourage NGOs 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. Please forward your comments to prodder@sangonet.org.za.

Order your copy of Prodder - NGOs and Development in South Africa 2008, here.

SANGOTeCH

SANGOTeCH aims to assist NGOs by providing software and hardware for very low or discounted fees in conjunction with ICT donor partners, as well as by supporting NGOs to make the most of their ICT purchases and infrastructure. This SANGONeT programme is open to South African non- profit organisations that have either Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) status or Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) status. For more information about SANGOTeCH, please refer to <www.sangotech.org.za>

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 contact David Barnard or Matthew de Gale on 011 403-4935 or e-mail: info@sangonet.org.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 10 000 people, it remains one of the most cost-effective and efficient ways to reach the NGO and development community in South Africa. The type of information distributed includes alerts for vacancies, campaign launches, conferences, training courses and development services. Subscription to the SN-Announce service is free. For more information about how to subscribe to SN-Announce or post an announcement on it, please contact Dora Moche at SANGONeT on (011) 403-4935 or dora@sangonet.org.za.

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