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Position open: Junior ICT expert for Kenya Human Rights Commission

Petra Pålsson — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:14:17 +0100

Spider and Aiesec are looking for a Junior ICT expert for Kenya Human Rights commision. Please apply no later than February 13.

"Everything falls into place"

superadmin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:05:36 +0100

So says Paula Uimonen, new director of the Spider since one year. In this role she will benefit from all her knowledge and experience. This past year the Centre has undergone a radical renewal, and they are now ready to show off Spider 2.0 - with a clear focus in their development projects and a clearer link to research.

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New site for the ICT4Democracy in East Africa Network

superadmin — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 08:58:40 +0100

We are proud to present the new website for the ICT4Democracy in East Africa Network. Head on over to www.ict4democracy.org and learn more about the projects and our partners.
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Spider ICT4D Seminars: Gendering of Technology or the technology of gendering?

superadmin — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 10:45:35 +0100

The seminar draws on research among urban and rural farmers in Uganda on their access and use of ICTs in their everyday lives. Drawing on theories from gender and technology studies Caroline Wamala, PhD will analyze access and use of ICTs in Uganda and focus in particular on the cultural embeddedness of gender and technology from a development perspective.
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A note from the Director

superadmin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:40:00 +0100

As 2011 is drawing to a close, we wish to thank all our partners for your support and collaboration. We wish you happy holidays and look forward to working with you in 2012.
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Corruption, eating and the morality of greed

superadmin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:35:27 +0100
Dominant understandings of corruption tend to replicate a narrow view of society that falls short of addressing the root causes of corrupt practices. By defining corruption as "the abuse of entrusted power for private gain" or "misusing publicly entrusted power for private gain," as exemplified in the work of Transparency International, the private (individual) sphere is opposed to the public (social) sphere.
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What evidence exists to support the argument that the mobile phone is an effective tool in the fight against corruption?

superadmin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:22:42 +0100
A year ago, Spider launched the publication "Increasing transparency and fighting corruption through ICT" in which Spider wished to highlight the potential of ICT as an anti-corruption tool. This year, the number of ICT related initiatives and projects that address corruption (defined in its widest sense) have doubled if not tripled.
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Call for Expression of Interest; grants for research related to Spider projects in 2012

Petra Pålsson — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:54:05 +0100
Spider calls for expression of interest regarding grants for research related to our projects. Apply no later than January 13 2012!
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Global initiates on connecting the unconnected: Myth and reality

superadmin — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 14:23:54 +0100

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Opportunity for Junior ICT expert in Uganda

Petra Pålsson — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:48:59 +0100
Spider and AIESEC are currently looking for a Junior ICT expert for a placement with WOUGNET in Uganda. Please apply no later than December 16!
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Anti-corruption campaign interrupted by Tanzanian Anti-corruption Bureau

superadmin — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 16:03:02 +0100

As a way of using ICT in anti-corruption work, Spider is supporting a project called called CHANJO YA RUSHWA - Vaccination against corruption, laziness and selfishness.
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Spider goes Democrazy - video online

superadmin — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:00:38 +0100
On 9 June about 40 representatives from government agencies, civil society organizations and academia gathered in Kista Science Tower to discuss the influence of ICT on democratic processes. Those who could not make it in person could follow the workshop online.

The inception of the workshop was the popular uprisings that have swept North Africa and the Middle East throughout the spring. Twitter and Facebook were widely recognized as key elements in enabling popular movements. Indeed, social media have become an important tool in the mobilization of crowds, by enabling people to share information with friends, friends of friends and so. The consequences have been unprecedented.
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Spider 2.0 - a note from the Director

superadmin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:57:00 +0200

In September 2011 we launched Spider 2.0. Strategy and Roadmap 2011-2015. This strategy outlines our overall aim to become an internationally recognized ICT4D broker, serving as a central node in a network of actors from academia, civil society, government and business.
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Gender, youth and digital democratic processes in East Africa

superadmin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:34:27 +0200

The Arab Spring has demonstrated a couple of things namely the power and importance of social media, the ability for technology to unite crowds of people in the shortest amount of time no matter the location, and the increased blurriness between the local and global entities with the use of tools like Twitter and Facebook.
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ICTs for the construction of democracy in Bolivia

superadmin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:27:02 +0200
When Sweden a few years ago decided to realign its long term cooperation policy, Bolivia was the one country in South America that made the cut. Although slightly higher up in the development rankings than many of the other countries selected, it remains one of the poorest countries in that part of the world.
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Spider 2.0. Strategy and Roadmap 2011-2015

superadmin — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:37:28 +0200

On behalf of our Board, we are pleased to launch Spider 2.0. Strategy and Roadmap 2011-2015. This strategy outlines our overall aim to become an internationally recognized ICT4D broker, serving as a central node in a network of actors from academia, civil society, government and business.
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Dawn in the Serengeti - Sweden's partnership with a Young African Lion Economy

superadmin — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:05:50 +0200

On 27 September Spider participated in the seminar "Dawn in the Serengeti - Sweden's partnership with a Young African Lion Economy". Tanzania's Vice President, Mohammed Bilal, attended the event and was recieved by Minister for International Development Cooperation Gunilla Carlsson.
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Junior ICT Experts needed in Tanzania

Petra Pålsson — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 11:41:35 +0200

The Junior ICT expert will be based at the NOC in Bunda town. Occassional traveling to Serengeti will be required when needed. The expert will help develop the critical skills of the local technicians to manage network and system administration using a hands-on participatory approach to facilitate the transfer of knowledge.
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ISOC-SE seminar on Freedom of Internet and Human Rights

superadmin — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 15:05:49 +0200

Spider participated at an ISOC-SE seminar on the freedom of the Internet and Human Rights. Johan Hellenborg from the Foreign Ministry presented the recent Swedish and international initiatives in the area of Human Rights and the Internet focusing in particular on the Cross-regional statement on freedom of expression on the Internet.
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Broad Band Africa – screening of documentary and discussion

Petra Pålsson — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 09:59:26 +0200
On Friday September 16 Spider hosted a screening of the documentary Broad Band Africa—The Digital Highway To Rural Tanzania, a short documentary by Rutger Rozental (NL) that focuses on the opportunities that Africans themselves see in ICT. Among attendees were representatives from Sida, KTH, Spider, civil society and students at DSV.

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Delegation from Botswana visits DSV and Spider

Petra Pålsson — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:48:17 +0200

On September 8, DSV and Spider welcomed Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Phandu Skelemani and H.E. Ambassador Bernadette Rathedi from Botswana as well as representatives of the Swedish Trade Council.
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ICT4D Research Grants

superadmin — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 17:32:11 +0200

We offer grants for research related to ongoing Spider-supported ICT4D projects in democracy, education, and health. The research should be undertaken by researchers based in Sweden together with researchers in the project country. The aim of this research is to facilitate knowledge production in ICT4D, while strengthening ongoing and future projects.
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Spider supported Ugandan project “iFarms” wins National Innovation Award

superadmin — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:02:50 +0200
The purpose of the project is to develop and apply SMS technology to address the information and development needs of the under privileged dairy farmers in Western Uganda. Supported by Spider the focus on the diary sector is because milk offers high nutritional value and income generation.
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New partnerships in Tanzania

superadmin — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 16:10:32 +0200
In conjunction with the eLearningAfrica conference, Spider held a one day workshop with a number of organizations in Tanzania, to explore possibilities for collaboration and partnership. Only half of the representatives present had heard of Spider before and no one had received funding. Spider emphasized collaboration between several organizations and underscored that Spider can only provide catalytic seed funding and that additional funding must come from other sources. The discussion was structured by Spider’s thematic areas: education, health, and democracy.
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ICT4Democracy in East Africa

superadmin — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 16:06:00 +0200
Recently, we have seen a number of projects, pilots and tools where ICT is used in various ways to promote democracy. Many of these initiatives have been launched in East Africa: crowd-sourcing platforms such as Ugandawatch2011, uReport and Ushahidi (and variations thereof such as Uchaguzi, Huduma and Map Kibera); innovative SMS applications such as Grid 6464, CU@SCHOOL, 3356 shortcode by City Council in Nairobi and Trac FM; and of course the widespread use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter.
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