Dutch NGOs Discuss Innovation and Development
Jun 18 2012
- Source:
- Woutine van Beek [wbeek@iicd.org]
- Country:
- Sector:
A group of Dutch NGOs led by IICD came together in Amsterdam last week to discuss social and technical innovation for development and to share their experiences of the past year of working in the Connect4Change consortium.
This “Connect4Change learning event” was a unique opportunity for all the members of the consortium to come together, learn from each other and to share knowledge, experiences and stories of success in the Connect4Change programme.
Strong need for gender equity guidelines in ICT4D
A conclusion that can be drawn from the event is that there is a strong need to build guidelines for gender equity in Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D). There is also a strong need to formulate tools to enhance (financial) sustainability in the education sector.
The topics that were on the agenda were based on the input received from the partners in Africa and Latin America. The topics were collected through ICT4D Learning Workshops, regular field visits, online questionnaires and the recent Cross Country Learning Events in Uganda and Bolivia. Consortium members were challenged to critically explore the issues that were raised. In addition to gender and sustainability, discussed topics were:
- The ICT-led innovation process
- Lobby and Advocacy
- Integration of ICT in Development
Deepening collaboration between NGOs
The learning event resulted in a deepened collaboration between the consortium members. Lively discussions took place and after the event, many participants expressed that they felt very inspired by the stories and experiences of their counterparts.
IICD’s Theresa Stanton and Ousseni Zongo were among the participants of the event and shared stories of successful and inspirational ICT for development projects such as the Chawama Youth Project that used computers to enhance the skills of vocational students in Zambia.
The learning event will be followed up in small working groups and through joint collaboration in the creation of tools and guidelines for the Connect4Change projects.
The Connect for Change consortium consists of 5 Dutch NGOs who are collaborating to support ICT for development projects in Africa and Latin-America. These NGOs are: IICD, Akvo, Cordaid, Edukans, ICCO and preferred partner Text to Change. Connect4Change works in the sectors economic development, education and health.
