New Partner: Toro Development Network (ToroDev)

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The ICT4Democracy in East Africa network is pleased to announce that a new organisation has joined efforts with us in leveraging on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to promote good governance and democratic processes.

Toro Development Network (ToroDev) is spearheading a project to promote public accountability for improved service delivery in Rwenzori region, western Uganda. The project will see the use of a local FM radio broadcasting station as a “hub” for the convergence of information and knowledge provided by internet and mobile technology tools.

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Transparency International Uganda Acquires a Toll Free Line

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Transparency International (TI) Uganda has completed the installation of a toll free call centre at its Lira field office. By calling 0800 200 188 toll free from any local mobile phone service provider, citizens can report on corruption and poor service delivery in the health sector in Northern Uganda.

Through the call centre and as part of its ICT4Health Service Delivery project, TI Uganda aims to reduce the rates of health worker absenteeism, increase community participation in monitoring the functionality of health centres and advocate for polices to improve health service delivery in the post conflict region. 

 

Kenyan Human Rights Networks Deploy ICT Platforms in their ICT4Democracy Work

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Two Human Rights Networks (HURINETS) working with the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) to improve grass roots based organisations’ and their memberships’ understanding of the commitment to building a human rights society have deployed a crowd map, blogs and social media tools to promote their work.

Laikipia HURINET located in Laikipia in the South Rift Region of Kenya works to empower the Laikipia County Community through promotion of human rights, free information dissemination, training, and networking. The HURINET, also known as the Vision Facilitators Network (VIFANET) in June launched https://laikipiacivicaction.crowdmap.com/.

Meanwhile, Kwale HURINET is documenting its work on child rights at www.genesisforhumanrights.wordpress.com. Kwale HURINET is located in Kwale on South Coast of Kenya. Their work focuses on civic education on the implementation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 with special emphasis on the Bill of Rights, devolution, leadership and integrity among other constitutional provisions; para-legal services on child rights and labour; security, equality and justice.

Read the full report here.

East African Region New Media and Human Rights Institute workshop

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In collaboration with the African Human Rights Consortium, the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) conducted a four-day new media, research and advocacy workshop aimed at scaling-up the use of ICTs in human rights and democracy within East Africa. The workshop attracted 14 participants drawn from civil society and media in Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Burundi. During the workshop, KHRC took the opportunity to share information on the activities of the ICT4Democracy in East Africa network attracting a lot of interest from participants. Emphasis was placed on the importance of involvement of civil society actors in various ICT forums and projects.

Civil society organisations in East Africa were urged to embrace ICTs in their advocacy interventions.

mGovernance Workshop: Potential of Technology on Water Governance in Kenya

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On July 5, 2012, iHub Research hosted a workshop aimed at engaging different stakeholders in Kenya’s water sector to identify and discuss current interactions between the stakeholders, understand how transparency, service delivery and citizen participation are currently being applied in the sector and identify the potential of mobile applications/platforms in promoting sustainable urban and rural water development.

Workshop participants were drawn from the government, the tech community, civil society, residents of various areas including the Kibera slums, media, academia and NGOs.

Water governance is the thematic focus of the mGovernance in Kenya Project.

Full insights from the workshop are available here. In addition, the report on technology use in Kenya’s water sector is also available for download here.

 



 

 

 

 

 

Kasese equipped with the use of ICT tools to share and disseminate information

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As ICT becomes a necessity in our daily activities and operations, it has been approved that it’s quite easy to managed access and share information in our communities simply using ICT tools. Kasese district officials, the members from the civil society and Community members have been fully equipped with ICT skills.

This training which took place on 21st and 22nd June 2012 at the E-Society Resource Centre located at Kasese District Head Quarters was done by officials from The Collaboration for ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA).

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ICT for Democracy in East Africa: May 2012 News

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The Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) in May undertook a small survey on the knowledge, attitudes, and needs of citizens regarding the utility, effectiveness, and security of using ICT for democracy in Uganda’s northern region. The survey involved individually administered questionnaires in Gulu town.

In addition, at the Gulu-based Northern Uganda Media Club (NUMEC), journalists, CSOs, local government officials and students participated in a CIPESA-organised discussion on how best ICT could be used to foster citizen participation given the economic, literacy, and other challenges faced by the region.

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ICT4Democracy in East Africa: April 2012 News

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ICT for Service Delivery in Northern Uganda

Monthly Voluntary Social Accountability Committee (VSAC) meetings continued in April, with prevailing bad governance and poor service delivery issues reported in the districts of Gulu, Amuru, Apac, Kore and Oyam and uploaded on the Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) Ushahidi platform.

Among the reports and follow up action:

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IST Conference 2012 – Tanzania

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Members of the ICT4Democracy East Africa Network, CHRAGG and iHub Research attended the IST Africa 2012 conference last week. The conference started with an opening plenary where the Guest of Honor, Tanzania’s Professor Makame Mbarawa (Minister of Communications, Science, and Technology) kicked off the conference. A round table on the Implementation of the Information Society Track of the 8th Africa-EU Strategic Partnership followed. For more information on the project, check out their website.

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New Report Shows How ICT is Aiding Citizen Participation in Uganda

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A new report by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) illustrates how Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are aiding citizen participation in Uganda, but also points to the challenges that need to be overcome for these technologies to have a wider impact on governance.
The report reviews various ICT tools being used to promote transparency, accountability, and citizen participation in Uganda. It examines the utility and shortcomings of these tools, the challenges they face, and the factors contributing to their success. Furthermore, it offers suggestions for improving the utility, reach, and, hopefully, the success of initiatives that utilise ICT to improve citizen participation.

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