About SANGONeT
The Southern African NGO Network (SANGONeT) was founded in 1987. Over the past 30 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
Twitter: twitter.com
Facebook: facebook.com
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.
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
Company Registration Number
9104120/08 (Association Incorporated under section 21 of the Companies Act, 61 of 1973
Section 18A PBO Registration Number
930004261
Nonprofit Corporation
045729
VAT Number
4750154371
Income Tax Number
9665340841P
Auditors
NolandsJhbInc (previously named Fordham &Oshry)
Financial Year
1 April – 31 March
Board of Directors
As a nonprofit organisation, SANGONeT has no shareholders. Its Board of Directors is the highest governing structure. Board meetings are held three times per year. Board members represent expertise in a wide range of areas of key importance to the strategic focus and direction of SANGONeT, including finance, business, leadership, governance and IT.
NGO Services
