Small Initiative Fund (SIF) 1 - Zambia

This programme supported three small projects: an ICT resource centre at the Ndola Resource Centre (Copperbelt Province), a business centre at the Kalomo Bwacha Women’s Group (Southern Province) and, the most successful, an ICT centre at Chawama Youth Project (Lusaka). With the project the livelihood of 400 women and children is improved, because they have access to computers and internet and are trained in basic ICT skills to use this.

The activities of the community-based organizations contribute directly, albeit on a small scale, to the Millennium Development Goals, most notably to goals relating to Poverty and Extreme Hunger, Gender Equality, and Combating HIV/AIDS (see www.developmentgoals.org)

The development criteria for participants in SIF 1 were:

• Relevance to the IICD-priorities in Zambia (education, livelihoods)
• Project’s outcomes are tangible and support practical solution(s) for development challenges.
• Initiative comes from local actors
• Clear need for project’s outputs for potential beneficiaries
• The project is related to or part of an existing initiative (not necessarily ICT) 

Read more about IICD’s Zambia Country Programme.

• The Chawama Youth project has become a full project
• The lessons learned in this project were documented in a booklet called ‘Best practices of ICT4D projects in Zambia’ This booklet was published in 2006 by Zambia’s Media and ICT Network for Development (MIND)
• The Kaloma Women group has used their digital camera to develop brochures to market the foodstuff, clothes and crafts of the members
• 20 women are trained in Basic ICT and Marketing skills

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e-Brain documentary of Kaloma women group

• Support small, practical initiatives in Zambia in the area of ICT for development
• Supports learning through knowledge sharing meetings between project partners

The 400 beneficiaries from SIF 1 are benefiting from the project in the following way:

• improved income-generation through informal education and employment; cost-savings on travelling to the town centre for simple information transactions
• enhanced skills development provided to community members by the RCS, development of ICT skills within the community

Read more about IICD’s approach towards Livelihoods

• Be very clear about expectations
• Central coordination is important to support the small projects to deal with occurring problems
• Creating awareness among community through community leaders influences the success of a project
• Launch only when the equipment is working
• Start with simple solutions, which are adapted to capacity of people. After gaining experience scale up (more complex technology)
• IICD should not be not too pro-active. Basic steps are undertaken by organisation and informs us on capacity  That really influences to a great extend the ownership
• People want marketing of products. Because of delay of website it was rather difficult to attain the hidden objective

The Ndola Resource Centre facilitates a number of livelihood programmes which include brick making, pottery, sewing, tailoring, skills training and apprenticeship in carpentry. These income generating activities together with the business centre will sustain the operational cost of the project.

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Interview with Isaac Chanda, Ndola Resource Centre

The Kalomo Bwacha Women’s group enables its group members (covering ca. 300 women in the area) to build ICT and marketing skills. The business centre will generate the funds to sustain the project.

The Chawama Youth project is a community based project located in the Chawama Compound in Lusaka. It is run and managed by the youths for their fellow youths.  The internet services at the ICT centre will generate the income to sustain the project.