The Southern African NGO Network (SANGONeT) was founded in 1987. Over the past 27 years SANGONeT has developed into a dynamic civil society organisation (CSO) with a history closely linked to the social and political changes experienced by South Africa during its transition to democracy. SANGONeT is still one of very few non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Africa involved in the field of information communication technologies (ICTs) and continues to serve civil society with a wide range of ICT products and services.

Vision:

SANGONeT’s vision is to be a strategic leadership organisation influencing social transformation through ICTs.

We strive to contribute to a just, equitable and prosperous Southern African society, where the impact and contribution of sustainable development programmes are supported by appropriate, relevant and affordable ICT solutions.

Mission:

SANGONeT’s mission is to support the effective use of ICTs in Southern African CSOs by providing quality services and initiatives.

We exist for the purpose of facilitating access, sharing information, building capacity, raising awareness, enhancing reach and impact, and linking people and organisations through the use of ICTs in Southern Africa.

SANGONeT’s services and interventions continue to be shaped by the challenge of strengthening the capacity of NGOs in finding long-term and sustainable solutions in response to Southern Africa’s development problems. NGOs’ capacity for service delivery increasingly requires that attention be given to their ability to integrate ICTs into their activities. Although many South African NGOs are already active users of ICTs, much more needs to be done to build the capacity of the sector in this regard.

With approximately 122 000 nonprofit organisations operating in South Africa, and only a small percentage of these equipped with the necessary ICT capacity and expertise required in support of their development work, the potential impact of ICTs on the work of NGOs remains limited.

This situation defines the raison d’étre for the role and contribution of an organisation such as SANGONeT in support of the NGO sector in Southern Africa and beyond.

Email: info@sangonet.org.za
Website: www.sangonet.org.za

SANGONeT’s activities centre around three interrelated programme areas:

• Civil Society Information Services
• ICT Services
• ICT Advocacy

SANGONeT is currently implementing the following:

NGO Pulse: The South African NGO and Development Information Portal – launched on 24 October 2005, this portal provides a gateway to the South African NGO sector and a media platform for development news, commentary and debate. It promotes communication and networking in the NGO and broader civil society sector by providing a unique snapshot of the sector’s daily activities and outputs and also supports the process of repositioning and strengthening the sector in response to the development challenges facing Southern Africa. Website: www.ngopulse.org.

Prodder NGO and Development Directory – Prodder is the most comprehensive online directory of NGOs and development organisations in South Africa. It includes information about organisations and institutions involved in development in South Africa and raises awareness about their work. It provides a reference point for donors and other stakeholders that want to engage with the NGO sector, and maps the scope and scale of NGO activities in the country. Website: www.prodder.org.za.

SANGOTeCH – this online technology donation programme assists NGOs by providing software and hardware for very low or discounted fees in conjunction with ICT donor partners, as well as by supporting NGOs to maximise their ICT purchases and infrastructure. Since inception, this initiative has resulted in savings of more than R130 million for the NGO sector in South Africa. Website: www.sangotech.org.za.

NGO Pulse Premium Advertising Service – this is SANGONeT’s offering to the NGO sector and anyone interested in communicating with NGOs in South Africa. It integrates all of SANGONeT’s advertising and communication channels into a single suite of services. Users have the option of ‘buying’ space on the NGO Pulse homepage for a specified period of time, linked to SN Announce, and the use of SANGONeT’s social media channels, i.e. Twitter and Facebook. To advertise, refer to www.ngopulse.org/resource-centre/sn-announce-help-pages/ngo-pulse-premium-advertising-service.

NGO Source – this is a project of the Council on Foundation and TechSoup Global, an equivalency determination service which will assist United States-based grantmakers to streamline their international giving. NGO Source simplifies the often expensive, complicated, duplicative task of evaluating whether a non-U.S organisation is equivalent to a U.S. public charity.

Tipfuxeni Project – SANGONeT, in partnership with the South African National NGO Coalition, is implementing the Tipfuxeni Project, an online funding facility and capacity building programme. Funded by the National Lotteries Distribution Trust Fund, one of the components of the Tipfuxeni Project is the web platform, which has been developed to enable the participating NGOs to share best practices, profile themselves and build their capacity to utilise ICTs in support of their development initiatives, among others. Website: www.tipfuxeni.org.za.

During the past few years SANGONeT has conceptualised and implemented the following strategic interventions to enhance the use of ICTs among NGOs in Southern Africa:

Thetha: The SANGONeT ICT Discussion Forum – launched in March 2003, Thetha forums provided NGOs with the opportunity to discuss ICT issues of common concern at both provincial and national levels. SANGONeT has already organised more than 20 Thetha forums in South Africa. In 2006, the Thetha initiative was expanded to five Southern African countries, with another five countries added in 2008. Website: www.ngopulse.org/thetha.

SANGONeT ‘ICTs for Civil Society’ Conference and Exhibition – this annual event, first held in March 2005, is the premier technology event on the NGO calendar and presents NGOs with an important opportunity to reflect on the challenges and opportunities presented by ICTs in support of their work. The most recent event was held from 1-3 November 2011 in Johannesburg. Website: www.ngopulse.org/ict4rd.

The State of ICTs in the South African NGO Sector – this bi-annual research project, first implemented in 2007, aims to analyse the South African NGO sector’s application and awareness of ICTs in support of achieving its strategic objectives. The outcomes of the project inform and guide the development of SANGONeT’s future ICT products and services for the NGO sector, and assist NGOs, funders and other strategic stakeholders in understanding the role and relevance of ICTs in support of the sector. Website: www.ngopulse.org/article/state-icts-south-african-ngo-sector-2009.

South African NGO Web Awards – first held in 2006, this annual competition ran in conjunction with the SANGONeT Conference and raised awareness among NGOs about the benefits of having a web presence, stimulate interest in the application of web solutions and applications, and showcase best practices in website creation and maintenance.

All SANGONeT’s activities are geared towards optimising resources and outputs, and increasing its impact on ICT uptake in the Southern African NGO sector.

Meet the people who publish content, organise our annual conference and other events, validate entries in our directories, provide technical support to NGOs, engage in various other organisational activities, and manage SANGONeT.

Kenneth Thlaka – Executive Director

Kenneth Thlaka is a development practitioner with considerable experience of more than 18 years in the NGO sector. Thlaka’s journey started from a community youth movement where he became an activist. He worked as executive director for two youth development organisations and also as a board member in several NGOs. He also got an opportunity to develop and facilitate development programmes in Belgium, United Kingdom, Sweden, Swaziland, Mozambique, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mauritius, Seychelles and Tanzania. He is currently serving as the chairperson of the Alliance for Youth NGOs in South Africa. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Public and Development Management from the University of the Witwatersrand and the Advanced Certificate in Organisational Development from the University of South Africa. He is currently studying towards a Master’s Degree in Public and Development Management at the University of the Witwatersrand.  He joined SANGONeT in July 2013 as its executive director. E-mail: kenneth@sangonet.org.za

Arnold Ndifhedzo Netshambidi – Programme Manager

Arnold is responsible for managing SANGONeT’sSANGOTeCH Programme and the NGO Source project. He is also responsible for validating Office 365 requests from nonprofit organisations in South Africa and Nigeria. His past experience includes working for Small Business Project, the Centre for Development and Enterprise, and the Institute for Democracy in South Africa. He holds a Diploma in Computer Skills from College for Computer and Business Education, Certificate in Database Design from the University of South Africa, Certificate in Office Administration from College Campus and a Certificate in Information Technology from IT Plus. He joined SANGONeT in January 2011. E-mail: arnold@sangonet.org.za

Adam Mukendi Ntala – Digital Media Manager

Adam joined SANGONeT as the Project Coordinator for the Citizen Journalism Africa Programme implemented by SANGONeT in partnership with HIVOS. He holds a Honours degree in Development Studies and a Certificate in web 2.0 from the University of the Witwatersrand – South Africa. Adam also holds a BA Law degree from the University of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo where he has completed his postgraduate in Law toward a LLM (pending). Among other certificates, he has a Certificate in Project Management from ICDL International. His past experience includes working with research organisations, human rights and development organisations as well as activists. In 2008, he worked in new media for the Global Call Against Poverty (GCAP) and contributed to the “Stand up Against Poverty”, worldwide campaign supported by the United Nations. Adam is passionate about social justice, entrepreneurship and Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). He has experience with digital media, advocacy, graphic design and online strategies. Adam has been supporting NGOs in the Southern Africa region with training on advocacy and community building. He now serves as SANGONeT Digital Media Manager. E-mail: adam@sangonet.org.za

David Malesela Makhafola – Capacity Building Manager

David manages the Capacity Building Unit where he is also responsible for the implementation of the Tipfuxeni Project. He is an experienced trainer having worked for different Institutions as both the trainer / facilitator and training manager. His past experience includes working for the Establishment for Comprehensive Youth Development, KMK Training Services, Thushanang Trust and the Moral Regeneration Movement.  He holds a Diploma in Public Management, a Certificate in Public Relations and a Certificate in Project Management. He is currently studying towards a Bachelor of Business Administration with Southern Business School. He joined SANGONeT in March 2014. Email: davidm@sangonet.org.za

Butjwana Seokoma – Information Manager

Butjwana manages SANGONeT’s Civil Society Information Programme. He is responsible for updating the NGO Pulse Portal and compiling the weekly NGO Pulse e-newsletter. His past experience includes working for the Live Africa Broadcasting Corporation, National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa (Language Portal Project) as well as the Government Communication & Information System (Batho Pele e-Gateway Portal) websites. He also worked as a volunteer at Mamelodi Community Information Services. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Limpopo, Postgraduate Diploma in Radio Production and a Web Design Certificate from the National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa. He is currently studying towards a Master’s Degree in Development Studies (pending dissertation). He joined SANGONeT’s Civil Society Information as an Information Coordinator in January 2006. E-mail: butjwana@sangonet.org.za

Nomsa Nxumalo – Database Administrator

Nomsa joined SANGONeT in November 2006 as a Database Administrator. She is responsible for various tasks relating to the Prodder NGO Directory, including validating entries, capturing information and overall Prodder administration enquiries. Her past experience includes working for Funda Community College as Personal Assistant and the South African National Anti-Discrimination Forum as Office Administrator. She holds a Secretarial and Office AdministrationDiploma. E-mail: nomsa@sangonet.org.za.

Mashadi Letwaba – Information Coordinator

Mashadi is responsible for updating the NGO Pulse Portal and also managing the NGO Pulse Premium Advertising Service. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Psychology as well as a Bachelor of Commerce Honours in Development Theory and Policy from the University of the Witwatersrand. She joined SANGONeT in April 2013 as an Intern and was promoted to the Information Coordinator role in December 2014. Email: mashadi@sangonet.org.za

Dipuo Mahanyele – Administrator / Receptionist

As SANGONeT’s receptionist, Dipuo is the first face you will see when visiting SANGONeT office the voice you hear when calling the organisation. Her previous experience includes working at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation in an administrative capacity. Dipuo currently holds a Diploma in PA and Administration from IT Business Campus and a Diploma in Bookkeeping from Rosebank College. She joined SANGONeT in June 2006. E-mail: dipuo@sangonet.org.za

Emmah Ramadzulu – Office Assistant

Emmah helps around the office ensuring that all goes smoothly. She has been with SANGONeT since 2000. Emmah is responsible for ensuring that the office is always clean and presentable. She assists with the filing, faxing and general administrative work around the office. Emmah holds a Diploma in Office Administration and has a computer certificate. E-mail: emmah@sangonet.org.za