this article was taken from the SOPUDEP website which quotes Kevin Site's "expose" on Yahoo.--------------------------------- For several months now, a variety of characters have appeared at the school to demand they vacate the premises. Some falsely stated they were descendants of the original owner but mostly it was an attempt to pressure the school by disrupting its normal operation. On Monday July 28, 2008, the Mayor of Petion-Ville, Lydie Clark Parent, delivered an eight (8) day eviction notice to SOPUDEP to vacate their school premises. This action is NOT legal as SOPUDEP has a 12-year lease on the property that expires in 2012. The school's rights under this contract were ultimately respected by the Mayor's office and the government of Latortue in 2004-2006 and has subsequently...
This article is reproduced entirely from the AfroAmerica XXI Newsletter #2------------------------------------------- In response to the continued lack of investment, economic marginalization and human rights violations, leaders of African descendant communities from Latin America have created AFROAMERICA XXI (AAXXI). This is a coalition with chapters in thirteen (13) countries in the Americas and partnerships in Africa, the Caribbean, the United States and Europe. Of the approximately 540 million people in the Latin America, 150 million are Afro Latinos. Similar to others of African descent, Afro Latinos have suffered the ravages and devastation of slavery and continue to suffer from persistent acts of racism. Politically and economically isolated, most Afro-descendants throughout...
The following statements were taken from the IPC web site and quoted without editing. There is much more informaion on the IPC web site, and I have only quoted it in part to illustrate some of the points that I consider to be significant.What is Food Sovereignty ? "Food Sovereignty is the RIGHT of peoples, communities, and countries to define their own agricultural, labour, fishing, food and land policies which are ecologically, socially, economically and culturally appropriate to their unique circumstances. It includes the true right to food and to produce food, which means that all people have the right to safe, nutritious and culturally appropriate food and to food-producing resources and the ability to sustain themselves and their societies."What is IPC ? "The IPC is a global...
While the contents of this post was lifted in its entirety from the web site of Songhai Centere it was taken from different pages in the web site to give the reader a broad scope of the organization's activities in a very short space.In the early 1980's, a small group of people led by Father Godfrey Nzamujo determined that the level of development in Africa was grossly insufficient and sought to restore dignity to the African people. The result was the creation of the Songhai Center. Named after the famed 15th-century Malian empire, Songhai is a center for training, for production, research and development of sustainable agricultural practices. The movement seeks to augment the standard of living of Africa's populations using the following methods for the creation of viable agricultural...
This article by Dan Bashaw & Mike Gifford Jan 7, 2004 is a bit dated, but the information is still valuable. Open source software is a valuable tool for the aware NGO manager. This article was found at the “Designing for Civil Society Blog” which reported the article from : “Steven Clift's excellent “Democracies Online Newswire”.” People have been trying to use the web to create change from its conception. Along with the rest of the Internet community, activist focus has moved away from producing static content to building on- line communities. There are a number of Application Service Providers (ASPs) providing external eActivist applications that can be integrated with the look and feel of an organization's existing web site, but we will not be evaluating ASPs in this...
The organization featured here, Africa Media Online, is a commercial enterprise, but their website points out many aspects that are important to having a presence in the digital age. Even though NGOs may think that they do not have a “product” for sale; nonetheless, they have the task of selling themselves as a responsible organization with valid and important goals. Because of this, they need to have access to images and they should be able to ensure that the images that they produce get the widest possible dissimination.Too many NGOs are languishing in the “backwaters” of cyberspace, getting too few “hits” or no hits at all. Professional assistance, such as that provided by a company such as African Media Online can help to get an NGO’s message out to the broader world...
Most of the readers of this blog are probably familiar with AfricaFiles . And for those of you who are not, “AfricaFiles” as it states on its own website, “is a network of volunteers committed to promoting African perspectives and alternative analyses for human rights and economic justice in Africa.” One of AfricaFiles’s projects is the “At Issue Ezine .” The purpose of At Issue it “to publish well-researched, provocative and insightful original articles on important current themes in sub-Saharan Africa.” While At Issue was launched in February 2005 it has “roots” that go back through other publications for several years. The At Issue Editorial Committee of AfricaFiles, was the core group that got the ball rolling in 2005. The Toronto Committee for the...
I apologize for any errors in translating a portion of the text below from Spanish to English and I welcome and corrections that might be suggested.The words below were taken from the web site of "Red Afro-Venezuela" and state the nature of the organization and its objectives. The link for Red Afro-Venezuela is posted at the end of this article.The Bolivarian constitution of Venezuela has sought to introduce a process of restructuring the Republic through deep social transformations that will establish a democratic, sovereign, responsible, multi-ethnic and pluricultural society, comprised of men and women who have a strong interest of their national community while maintaining humanistic values as well as national identity ". It is indeed in this framework of institutional...
Many NGOs are constantly looking for assistance to help them carry out the numerous and varied tasks necessary to accomplish their charitable goals. Quite often skilled volunteer help can not be found nearby – particularly in rural areas. One answer to this dilemma is to enlist the aid of Online Volunteers. I have written about online volunteering in the past and now I would like to pass along some tips from the United Nations Online Volunteering service that can help NGO decide if the United Nations Online Volunteering service is for them. The United Nations Online Volunteering service can be found at the end of this post.----------------------- O nline Volunteers undertake a variety of assignments for development organizations through this Online Volunteering service:...
Here is another of my favorite stories. I like this type of story because it concerns young people taking the lead and taking charge in making the world a better place.FORGE Founder & Executive Director Kjerstin Erickson grew up working in community service. She has worked as a peer educator, a mentor for troubled youth, a liaison for the deaf, a representative of the California Youth Council, a Chair of her County’s Youth Volunteer Corps, and a program participant of Tomorrow’s Leaders Today.As a junior in high school, Kjerstin traveled with her family to Kenya for a photo safari. The glaring lack of basic resources inspired Kjerstin to focus her humanitarian efforts on Africa. In 2001, Kjerstin entered Stanford and began pursuit of a degree in Public Policy and African...
This article is taken from the a press release dated April 27, 2007 issued by Sockets Works Global and can be found at: this link . The Digital Bridge Project is a wonderful example of how Africans can utilize each other and their resources to benefit one another.---------------- “The Digital Bridge Project, which aims to close the digital divide in Liberian universities, made its public debut on Friday, April 27th at the main campus of the University of Liberia when President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf inaugurated the state-of-the-art SocketWorks Limited (SocketWorks) computer laboratory.Said President Johnson Sirleaf, ‘The digital center is as a result of hard work, partnership and dedication on the part of a lot of people. It is my belief that ICT can help Liberia leap frog in its...
It is a shame that even in this day and age many people, including members of the African Diaspora, are unaware of the Afro-Latinos that have lived in Mexico, Central and South America for centuries. AfroAmerica XXI is trying to change that.According to its web site: “Afroamerica XXI has increased the visibility of the African Diaspora from Latin America when there were only a few organizations who worked in favor of this population. Never the less, we continue to generate great changes in our communities. “With more that 180 Afro-Latin American organizations and politician members, and with its partners in North America and Europe. Afroamerica XXI, recognize itself as a Black Nation, with an important roll to Africa and its Diaspora regardless of one’s religion, language origin...
On December 3, 2007 AfricaFiles circulated an article that Africa News had published on November 30, 2007. The article is about the wide distribution of the music album "Nous sommes les Tam-tams (We are the Drums)" [which is also the name of the lead song.According to Africa News: "Thirty-seven musicians from across Africa have partnered with the UN to produce an 11-title musical album to sensitise Africans on HIV/AIDS, poverty, gender inequalities, illiteracy and conflicts. According to a statement from the UNDP office in Bamako, Mali, Thursday, the tracks sung in 18 African languages carry very clear messages on the issues. Five of the songs were on the prevention against the HIV infection, the need to break the silence on AIDS, to fight stigmatisation and discrimination around it as...
”Militia and armed groups' activities in the Niger “Delta have assumed a worrisome dimension since mid 2003, due to a variety of factors which include patronage of these groups by the political class who are desperate to intimidate political opponents and electorates. The situation has been compounded by the lack of alternative incentives and initiatives designed to positively re-integrate and mainstream these youths into normal society. The Demobilisation component of the Niger Delta Peace and Security Strategy, (PaS) is a unique intervention model designed to drive the process for the disarmament, resettlement and mainstreaming of ex-combatant armed youth group members in the region into gainful economic opportunities rather than engaging in violence. The component is one of the...
Some years ago when Michael 'Femi Sodipo fell victim to violence in northern Nigeria that was sparked by mistrust and misunderstanding between people of different backgrounds, he did not then fall victim to a hatred towards those who had wronged him. Instead, trough an act of love, he decided to do something to help bring peace to the world. As a result, he founded the Peace Initiative Network. Below, in the organization's own words is a brief overview of what was created out of one man's desire to bring harmony and understanding between neighbors. =========================== Peace building is one of the greatest challenges face today in the global system. No region of the world is immune from violent, conflict. Which has inflicted immense damage, caused untold grief and...
The following Report was received from an AfricaFiles email and AfricaFiles found it in "Africa Focus" the Africa Focus article is reproduced in part here.------------------------------------------------- Sending Money Home: Worldwide Remittance Flows to Developing Countries International Fund for Agricultural Development This report has been elaborated based on a study commissioned by IFAD to the Inter-American Dialogue in collaboration with the Multilateral Investment Fund of the IDB and contributions from the European Union, Government of Spain, Government of Luxembourg, CGAP and UNCDF. For full report, including summary data for 51 African countries, see: http://www.ifad.org/events/remittances/maps . For more information, please contact: Pedro de Vasconcelos, Remittances Programme...
This article by Francisco J. Proenza is reprinted in part here, due to the interest of so many NGOs in telecenters. This posting carries the first part of the article: "Myths" and the second part "Opportunities" will be posted at a later time. If you do not wish to wait for the second posting of this series, you will find the link to the entire article [including footnotes, which are omitted here] at the end of this posting.MythsA Cybercafé is not a telecenterIt is an unfortunate but common mistake to disregard cybercafés, because they are "not development oriented". These small businesses have been expanding very rapidly worldwide, are sustainable as a system, and there is much to learn from their experience.When we discard cybercafés we are ignoring the most replicable and...
I don't normally feature works by religious organizations on the Blog, but this is a story of cooperation and innovation that I would like to pass along. I received it from AfricaFiles , and I believe that they got it from the London Conference of the United Church of Canada. Below is an excerpt from a letter sent from Mozambique by Karen and Bill Butt.At the bottom of a mountain in the village of Molumbo, 49 teen-age school-girls are living in a lar, or residence. They're girls from isolated areas who've passed the last grade of their rural schools and want to continue their education. The lar began and is run by a group of local women who call themselves AMER (Portuguese acronym for Women's Association for Rural Education), each contributing whatever small amount each personally...
Many people have asked me about choosing an online volunteer project. Here are some notes from the UN's Online Volunteering web site that may help you choose a project if you are looking for one. These guidelines are specific to the U.N.'s program, but they hold true for online volunteering in general. There is more at the U.N.'s site than I have prented here, and to find out more, use the link found at the end of this article. A key to success in Online Volunteering is in choosing the assignments that are appropriate to your skills, interests and availability.Use your answers to these questions to guide you in choosing organizations and assignments:Why do you want to volunteer, in general? What do you hope to gain and give by volunteering? What kind of organization(s) or programs do...
Building civil society is a priority for many non-profit organizations seeking to improve the quality of life for the people of Africa.This organization may have its home base in Washington, D.C. but because of it’s presence on the internet its reach is global. And it’s working to give other civil cociety organizations that same global reach.The name of the organization means “Complete” in Kiswahili and this ties in with its belief that information and communication technologies (ICTs) can be a revolutionary force in civil society. And they want to empower African civil society organizations to use ICTs effectively for the benefit of their communities.According to their web site they are attempting to do this by:1. ENABLING organizations to access the power of the Internet2....