Current Impact Stories
Name of Project: The NGO Network Alliance Project- Zimbabwe
Contact Information: nnap@kubatana.org.zw; www.kubatana.net
Name of organization: The NGO Network Alliance Project- Zimbabwe
Focus of project: Technology as a tool for empowerment
Audience/participants: Over 130 Zimbabwean NGOs, CSOs, and social
justice organizations participate in this project. All these NGOs
have websites that are hosted in a database driven portal called
www.kubatana.net. There is also a mailing list of regional and
global organizations (including religious, gay and lesbian and
grassroots organizations involved in the environment, democracy,
gender, HIV/AIDS and rural development) and individuals.
Context for the project: The idea for the NGO Network Alliance
Project was formulated in June 2000 during the Parliamentary Elections
in Zimbabwe, when a group of people assisted the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC), a political party, with their email and Internet
strategies. They noticed that email and Internet communication
for advocacy and lobbying was under-used in Zimbabwe and it was
from here that the NGO Network Alliance Project was formed. Relationship
of the organization/project to the audience: One of the aims of
the project was to link Zimbabwean NGOs, CSOs and social justice
organizations under one online umbrella and to disseminate relevant
information via an email address list to all NGOs in the Project.
The Project then got in touch with over 150 Zimbabwean NGOs. They
developed an electronic factsheet for those organizations interested
in participating and also hosted the NGOs onto their website.
Funding source and level of funding: The project received a small
grant from two donors as start up money. They are now exploring
ways to continue funding their work either through membership fees
or other mechanisms.
Length of project: Since March 2001
Brief description: The main aim of the project is to link all
NGOs in Zimbabwe and share information between them. Aside from
creating a mailing list for this purpose, they assisted the National
Constitutional Assembly in developing a fully integrated website.
At the same time, they also developed a database driven portal
called www. Kubatana.net, which is updated regularly to profile
the kubatana.net participants on a rotational basis, drawing attention
to their work. They also started an electronic activism initiative
focusing on Peace Petitions, Rates Boycotts, amongst other campaigns,
on the kubatana website that encourages Zimbabweans to get involved
in using electronic communication to advocate for change. In 2001,
the NGO Network Alliance held workshops for their partners on using
electronic communication for advocacy and lobbying. Email newsletters
were posted on factory notice boards throughout Zimbabwe.
The project advises partners on software and
hardware procurement. By establishing an NGO portal, they have
seen the Zimbabwean community’s
confidence in electronic communication grow enormously. They are
helping to build capacity and awarness of the importance of disseminating
voter educations materials as well as emphasising the usefulness,
and cost effectiveness of this medium for MPs to lobby their constituencies.
In a period of 6 months, the NGO Network Alliance had reached out
to a significant number of NGOs, developed 4 websites for specific
partners covering the child protection, HIV/AIDS, farm workers’ rights,
democracy and good governance and women’s rights sectors.
For more projects like this, please visit this site.
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