Unleashing the potential of social networks and the Internet in West Africa: A study into collaboration and communication among civil society organizations

On Tue, Mar 8, 2011 at 9:54 AM, Tobias Eigen <***@***.***> wrote:

> For civil society organizations across Africa, the expanded use of
> Information & Communications Technology (ICT) has launched a new era marked
> by easier, more frequent, and more widespread communication directed to a
> variety of key audiences. The advent of social networks has resulted in
> greater awareness for many important causes and collaboration among
> different groups on crucial social initiatives, and as civil society
> organizations continue to maximize the potential of social platforms, their
> influence will continue to grow over time.
>
> Today, Kabissa and WiserEarth released a study that sheds light on the
> habits, concerns, and needs of activists in West African civil society with
> respect to social networks and ICT at large (Download PDF: English/
> French).
> Polling an indicative sample of civil society representatives across 15
> different West African countries in October and November 2010, the survey
> provides a preliminary glimpse into the nature of daily interaction with
> social networks and communication technologies in the region.
>
> *Among the study’s most prominent conclusions was that funding and
> infrastructure problems are limiting the use of online collaboration and
> communication tools.*
>
> **
>
> *Respondents cited lack of funding and infrastructure issues as critical
> factors limiting their use of the internet for their organization’s work.*
>
> While 76% of respondents go online every day, one-third of those polled
> indicated that inadequate training and skills are limiting their usage of
> Web tools. This is reflected in respondents’ reliance on email – 87% use
> email every day or several times per week, a significantly higher percentage
> than those who utilize tools such as social networks, instant messaging, or
> blogs for example.
>
> *Social networks, email discussions and SMS are also becoming important
> communication and collaboration tools within West African civil society
> organizations. *
>
> In addition to email, SMS technology, used frequently by 61% of
> respondents, is a preferred method of communication for those involved with
> civil society organizations, underscoring its importance in keeping
> organizations abreast of the latest information and news.
>
> Sizable investment in the development of the local telecommunications
> infrastructure is considered essential to maximizing the potential of the
> Internet, as is improvement in the ways that individuals are trained about
> Internet technologies. A high number of respondents, 39%, have been
> self-taught in usage of the Internet, while nearly the same percentage, 41%,
> learned how to use Web technologies through the help of work colleagues or
> friends. Few, 16%, have been trained through professional programs. This
> indicates the need to direct resources toward self-learning materials and
> programs, and user-friendly interfaces to facilitate self-learning.
>
> On the topic of social networks, Facebook was found to be the most popular
> platform, with nearly half of those surveyed using it for purposes ranging
> from dissemination of information, to collaboration on projects, to sharing
> best practices, and beyond. One respondent summarized the benefits of social
> networks to civil society organizations by noting:
> *"You can reach a wide network of people not only within your organization
> and NGO circles, but also Africans fortunate enough to have Internet access.
> It has great potential to share ideas across cultural and political
> boundaries."*
>
> Amidst the promise of social networks, there is also concern regarding
> security and privacy. Many respondents believe that information shared
> online can be easily misused, while others see the potential for social
> networks to become a waste of time. In order to allay these concerns, there
> is a need for those who support ICT initiatives to address the areas of
> privacy and security; spammers and scammers; information overload and time
> management; and cost effective use of technology.
>
> “This survey illustrates the hunger among African civil society activists
> to utilize emerging Information and Communications Technologies to help
> advance the missions of their organizations,” said Camilla Burg,
> WiserEarth Communications & Outreach Director.
>
> “The next step is to supply the resources needed to make a truly wired
> future a reality. The availability of online communication and
> collaboration tools and the ability to use them properly profoundly impacts
> the way that civil society functions,” added Tobias Eigen, Kabissa Executive
> Director. “This survey helps us understand how far we have come in that
> respect, guiding our priorities as we nurture and support our membership and
> evolve the functionality of our online community platform.”
>
> The survey results are available below in PDF format, in Frenchand in
> English.
> Researchers are also invited to download the aggregated data in Excel
> format that we used to produce our
> report.
>
> For more information about this survey, or to give feedback, please contact
> Camilla Burg of WiserEarth or Tobias
> Eigen of Kabissa.
>
> To join WiserWestAfrica Group on WiserEarth visit:
> http://fr.wiserearth.org/group/WiserWestAfrica
> .
>
> To join Kabissa visit: http://www.kabissa.org.
> Attachment Size enquetecollaborationongafriqueocc_march_2011.pdf 1.02
> MB westafricacivilsocietysurvey_march_2011.pdf 1021.33
> KB--
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