Development Talk

Social Media: Helping to Educate Mozambique

 

June 13, 2011

 

A new day is dawning in Mozambique.
After nearly many years of civil unrest, the small nation on South Eastern coast of Africa is starting to rebuild. The promise of limitless possibilities beams from the smiles of school children running to new or partially built schools. Unfortunately, these smiles often turn to tears as financial backers of many development projects are failing to meet their commitments. As the global financial crisis strikes panic in the hearts of funding institutions, money initially earmarked to help develop post war Mozambique has all but dried up. In response to the growing number of commissioned development projects losing financial backing, Celio Mondlane of Fundacao Joaquim Chissano and Minister of Education Dr. Zeferino Martins, have turned to social media to encourage wide spread investment in their county’s future as well as showcasing its success stories. Educate Mozambique is the blog platform where anybody can learn about and support education initiatives all over Mozambique. It is essentially a way of crowd sourcing new

Flag of Mozambique

 avenues of funding, empowering individuals with information about ways they can contribute. Now, instead of waiting for a massive check that may never come from a bank that no longer considers “charity” a priority, any number of concerned individuals from anywhere in the world can give a little bit of money or time to make a big difference in the lives of children in Mozambique.

Visit the site learn to more about how you can support Educate Mozambique!

Filed under: Africa,Asylum seekers,Awareness,basic human right,better life for all,blogging,Blogroll,Breaking New Ground,campaign,children,civil society,Communications,community,CREATIVE CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT WORKS,development,DEVELOPMENT WORKS,developmental state,dialogue,donors,economy,education,finance,fundraising,Hope,inspiration,inspire,internet,poverty,recession,Social media,social transformation,South Africa,sustainable,Uncategorized,youth — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — admin @ 5:33 pm

Celebrating World Book Day

 

April 29, 2011

Books are the most powerful tools that add value to one’s life. Consuming literature broadens our mind, helps us to make formed decisions, and gives us access to knowledge we would normally be unaware of.  The information they provide is then transferred from generation to generation, communities, societies and even individuals all over the globe.

In the last decade, we have seen a shift in the publishing industry with the emergence of electronic books and digital media. People are straying from hardcover literature and newspapers and turning to free content found on the web.

For that reason, United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) is celebrating the World Book and Copyright Day on Saturday 23, April. Their aim is to protect the copyright law and to encourage young people to see the importance of reading. Through this event, a 20% discount on any book bought on this day will be donated to the Equal Education Campaign (EEC) (http://www.equaleducation.org.za/).

“Books can be purchased and donated in the shop for collection by EEC the following week. Support this worthwhile cause, and help us to celebrate the Book along with the rest of the world by promoting literacy in our country,” according to UNESCO.

The staff at Creative Consulting & Development Works are book feins and love sharing insightful literature. Click here to check out some of our most recent book reviews, found on our quarterly newsletter, Development Talk.

Filed under: arts,Book,campaign,civil society,community,CREATIVE CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT WORKS,DEVELOPMENT WORKS,education,Uncategorized,youth — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — admin @ 10:51 am

Book Launch:’When a State Turns Against its Citizens’ reflects back violence in Zimbabwe

 

April 8, 2011

When a State Turns Against its Citizens: Institutionalised Violence and Political Culture, a book by Lloyd Sachikonye, made its appearance on the shelves during a launch at Lobby Books, on Thursday 31 March 2011.

Clever Bere, the MC of the event, addressed the audience. He provided an educational background of the author and other discussants that were present at the launch. He said the timing of the book’s arrival was good, as Zimbabweans are still dealing with matters of runaway violence in their country.

Lloyd Sachikonye opened his statement by depicting Zimbabwe as a “country of contradictions.” He said it is a country with a high magnitude of well educated, skilled professionals, given the impression of its great potential. That was over the course of the past 20 years, and now, the country sees a bleaker future due to the harsh realities of political violence and ethical crisis.

“Roots of violence go a long way,” he said in his speech, highlighting beatings and violent acts against those who fought for freedom.

“People were shot in the townships. Stones, sticks and petrol bombs were thrown at those who were involved in the struggle,” he said.

Consequences of political violence includes fear and stress and now Zimbabwean society is under trauma. Horst Kleinschmidt of the Amani Trust took a stand, saying that this history takes us back to 1960. “History matters, we need to study our history if we are to deal with type of society we aspired to; not to fear those elements of the past year.”

There is hope among Zimbabweans to resolve struggle in non-violent way. Horst pointed to high rates of violence in 27 June 2008, where hospitals had to accommodate 200 people a day with cracked arms, legs and small bones. Though it was a deafening sight, people joined together as a community, offering basic services and encourage people to vote to protect democracy.

It was a powerful event as the author and several audience members shared stories of the injustice in Zimbabwe. As our neighbouring country, we must continue to look for ways to advocate on their behalf and put pressure on their government to support innocent civilians.

Photo by Jacana Media

Filed under: civil society,CREATIVE CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT WORKS,democracy,DEVELOPMENT WORKS,education,Government,politics,Zimbabwe — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , — admin @ 3:35 pm

TIMES: Apartheid-style neglect of kids continues

 

March 25, 2011

Check out this interesting article from The Times following a report made by the UN and the SA Human Rights Commission. The article discusses South Africa continues to neglect its most vulnerable, in particular, children, as they are negatively impacted by a lack of a proper home, health care and schooling.

Some of the report’s troubling findings include:

• 64%, or 11.9million, of the country’s 18.6million children live in poverty. Many of them are Aids orphans – about 5.5million people have HIV/Aids in South Africa, more than in any other country

• Only 54% of the HIV-positive children who should be on antiretroviral treatment are receiving it;

• More than 270 babies and their mothers die after birth on average a day, mainly due to HIV/Aids, and the maternal mortality rate has increased by 80% since 1990;

• 582000 children who should be attending high school are not – 28% don’t have the money for fees and 15% because “education is useless”;

• Of 56500 children who were victims of violent crime in 2009-2010, 27417 were raped or molested. Of those, 29% were aged between 0 and 10.

Read the full article below:

***
The Times: Young,hungry,helpless

http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/article986417.ece/Young-hungry-helpless

UN,USA

Filed under: access to health care,Awareness,basic human right,children,civil society,CREATIVE CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT WORKS,DEVELOPMENT WORKS,education,Employment,Government,healthcare,HIV/AIDS,Homeless,Hope,poverty,South Africa,youth — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , — admin @ 4:47 pm

Cape Town Celebrates Human Rights Day

 

March 23, 2011

March 21st marked Human Rights Day on the South African calendar — a day where people commemorate the struggles suffered by those fighting for equality and justice. It also marks the anniversary of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) in 1996, an organisation dedicated to continuously fighting for human rights.

We rejoice this day by appreciating the rights we have, which include the right to dignity, equality, education, and expression.

This year’s Human Rights Day brought a large number of people to participate in events hosted by the Equal Education (EE). The event’s main intention was to hand over a memorandum to the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, requesting her to ensure the Minimum Norms and Standards for School Infrastructure is signed into law, as promised in last year’s policy gazette. The memorandum is also similar to the National Policy for the Equitable Provision of an Enabling School Teaching and Learning Environment (NPEP).

Unfortunately, Motshekga wasn’t present to take the memorandum, but Dingani Ngobeni, the Chief of Staff in the Basic Education Ministry, accepted it on her behalf. There was a great turn-out at the event, including a number of youth who were also advocating for advancing their education.

According to the Cape Times, Yoliswa Dwane, Equal Education spokeswoman, was quoted as saying, “Young people in the province showed today that they have an interest in their education. They came in numbers and wanted their voices to be heard.”

(Note: A similar march is planned for March 31, to the Union Buildings in Pretoria)

Aside from Parliament, other areas in Cape Town were also celebrating Human Rights Day, but this time in the form of arts and performance. Gugulethu residents and surrounding areas enjoyed the rhythm of the Cape, as the Amy Biehl Foundation, in association with the City of Cape Town, Western Cape Musicians Association and the Department Cultural Affairs and Sports presented the Cape Township Jazz Festival.

The likes of Amy Biehl Youth Bands, Yolanda Yawa, Mtika, The Tribe of Benjamin and the Milton Academy Jazz Band played at the event. The admission was only R5, giving an opportunity for people of all areas to attend the event.

Through political lobbying, speeches, and performances, it was clear that Cape Town made a statement in the on-going fight for human rights. Though we celebrate our achievements, it’s equally important to focus on the future and continue paving the way for justice and fairness.

Human Rights Day is incredibly important in reminding us that despite our differences, we are at the end of the day, all human.

Filed under: basic human right,campaign,children,CREATIVE CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT WORKS,DEVELOPMENT WORKS,education,Government,Parliament,rights,South Africa,youth — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — admin @ 10:59 am
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