NGOs Need More Information; Better Planning

Interview: Toni Eliasz

Toni Eliasz

Toni Eliasz is Executive Director and Co-Founder of Ungana-Afrika. Based in South Africa, Ungana-Africa empowers development organizations to better integrate ICTs into their work. Below, Toni shares his experiences in helping NGOs plan and implement mobile technology related projects.

What is your professional background?

I‘ve been working in the IT field for ten years, initially for companies in Finland and then in South Africa, where I moved in 2003, and set up Ungana-Afrika as a pilot project. At the time, we focused on providing capacity building services, IT consulting, and training to NGOs throughout Southern Africa. To effectively meet local needs, we eventually adopted a train-the-trainers model. The combined approach has allowed us to reach ten countries. Today we’re working at two levels – supporting NGOs on the ground that want to utilize new technologies in their work, and working with service providers by helping them to initiate and implement similar support programs. A year ago, we started focusing on the mobile sector.

What specific needs does Ungana-Afrika address?

We primarily help with strategy development and technology planning. NGOs have hundreds of questions. We advise them, assess their environment, their skills, the technologies they are currently using, and how they can use them better and maximize limited budgets. We also help them write proposals to develop their ideas and generate resources. The main areas we’ve been focusing on are community radio and media-related projects, assisting health NGOs, and strengthening the work of paralegals in rural areas, who provide legal advice and help people access government services.

What challenges have you encountered?

The sheer distance you have to travel in rural areas can be a big obstacle. This is why we’ve adopted a train the trainers approach. Another challenge has been building the kinds of partnerships you need to take projects to scale.

What is involved in Ungana-Afrika’s mobile capacity-building initiative?

We’ve been working in the area of mobile technology for just over a year with support from the Open Society Foundation for South Africa. Much of the same lessons that apply to adopting other technologies apply to using mobile technology. We advise people of the importance of pursuing a phased approach. First, you need to develop a basic understanding of the technology – what it is and what it can do. Small organizations can be very intimidated when it comes to new technologies. It’s important to assess existing skill levels and the available technology infrastructure in order to plan a project properly. You need to look at the resources available and prioritize accordingly.

What factors should NGOs consider in pursuing a mobile technology approach?

Mobile technology presents its own set of challenges. First, you need to look at your goals and overall sustainability plans. Are you looking to cut down costs, or reach your beneficiaries in new ways? If you’re looking to achieve greater impact, it may be worth an added cost. To find out more about budgeting, you can read an article I wrote for Tactical Tech.

Another big issue is privacy, surveillance, and security. People trust mobiles much more than they should. While security is generally not a problem, it can be when you are communicating sensitive topics. Governments are increasingly monitoring the work of human rights NGOs and this extends to the mobile arena.

It’s also important for NGOs to research the policy and regulatory environment in their countries. In South Africa, for example, I can’t use my mobile connectivity to access Skype as the costs are prohibitive.

You also need to be clear on the ethical dimensions of your work and establish a code of conduct. For example, is it acceptable for NGOs to take photos of human rights violations and widely disseminate them? On one hand you’re exposing acts of injustice. On the other, you may be revealing people’s identities. NGOs have come under scrutiny for sending SMS alerts to random numbers to raise awareness of human rights abuses. You need to be careful around ethics.

There are cultural and social factors that also come into play. Developing trust plays an important role in whether a mobile technology approach will be accepted. This is especially true in sensitive situations such as addressing the needs of HIV/AIDS patients who want to maintain their anonymity. It’s important to pilot test projects in order to generate awareness and build trust. Yet you have to be careful in piloting a program that you don’t simply abandon those you’ve been working with. Some pilot projects give free hardware and airtime and afterward charge for their services. You need to assess whether people are willing to contribute to long-term success.

What needs to happen for NGOs to be able to fully embrace the benefits of mobile technology?

First is building awareness. NGOs, especially the smaller ones, can be intimidated by technology. We need people to transform technological know-how into forms that NGOs can readily understand. We also need to develop learning communities like ShareIdeas. As a community, you can create materials and access case studies in one place. Once you get someone excited, they want to know more. You also need to develop appropriate software and share content. IT professionals and consultants are very skilled at helping NGOs use mobile technology, but their services are very expensive. In a country like South Africa, those who have the skills are working in the private sector. For an NGO to get someone to really help them is going to cost a lot. If there’s material they can read on their own, or organizations like Ungana-Afrika that are focused on making services more available and affordable, more NGOs would gain access to the information and technical assistance they need.