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Bibi steps in 2013 Calendar Tanzania

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 11:25:00 +0000

Twaweza has published a calendar for 2013 focusing on health. The idea behind this is inspired by our recent Ni Sisi campaign - you and I are the ones that can make a difference. Health is a core Twaweza priority and through this calendar we are trying to prompt thought and action on two specific issues - the availability of essential medicines (at regulated prices) and the motivation of health workers. These are often quite complex issues but we see a clear route for citizens to have impact that we have illustrated through cartoons. The stories in the calendar are not meant to be instructions on how citizens should act, but instead are meant to inspire ideas. They present a set of scenarios which many people will be familiar with and show how just one person or a few people, thinking differently, can turn these around. The stories all feature a Bibi (which means grandmother in Swahili), who provides the pivot point in all of these situations. And in each case the calendar asks 'Na wewe, je?' (And what about you?).

In the first story medicines are not available at the local dispensary. The people are angry, thinking that they have been stolen. Bibi steps in and suggests that they try amongst themselves to sort it out. She asks a young man to call the local health official to check if the medicines have actually been sent or not. The mood changes. A young lady suggests that she can call someone, and a teacher volunteers to check on the situation when he travels to the area for a meeting.

In the second story Bibi is shown trying to flag down a local doctor. He is in a rush and reacts angrily to her, clearly indicating that he is in no mood to be stopped. But to his surprise, instead of asking for help, Bibi thanks the doctor wholeheartedly for curing her granddaughter. ‘If there were only 10 doctors like you in the world…’ The doctor feels appreciated, his mood changes, almost as if Bibi reminded him about what matters. He then goes off to the clinic, and greets patients with a refreshing level of caring and responsiveness.

The third story again takes the issue of medicine. In this case the government in Tanzania is part of a program to subsidise the most effective malaria medication on the market (according to World Health Organization guidelines). Unfortunately it is often not sold at the regulated price. We see a familiar scene of a young father being denied the medicine even though he has the correct money. The young man refuses to give in and sits outside the pharmacy in protest. Bibi sees what is happening and gives the pharmacist a long hard look. Other people are also walking buy seeing what is happening. The pharmacist cannot hold out and sells the young man the medicine at the right price.

In the final story there is a long line of people waiting for the doctor at the clinic. They are understandably angry because he is late. As he arrives trying to explain that his bicycle broke there is an air of intolerance. Again Bibi steps in and kindly but firmly tells the doctor that her grandson will pick him up on his bicycle so that he can get to work on time. Again this causes a switch in the atmosphere with others offering the various modes of transportation they have available, including a donkey!

And hidden in the stories are some familiar faces...

Twaweza and Uwezo Annual Plans 2013 Ready

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 05:37:00 +0000

Twaweza has just released the 2013 Annual Plans for its Uwezo initiative and main Twaweza citizen engagement work. You can see what we plan to do and achieve, and some of the core ideas that inform our thinking. Plus expected outputs, potential partners and detailed budgets.

Do they make sense? Will the work be effective? Do you think it represents value for money? You have a cool idea of how to attain our goals more effectively? Feedback welcome to info@twaweza.org

Annual Reports for 2012 are expected out by April 2013, once our Advisory and Governance Boards have gone through them.

Twaweza 2012 Annual Plan

Mon, 11 Jun 2012 08:53:00 +0000

Read Twaweza's 2012 Annual Plan, including expected outputs and budgets for each department of the organization. Read the plan here or click on the link below.

The Community Together: Observations from Immersion 2012

Fri, 11 May 2012 07:14:00 +0000

In March 2012 the Twaweza East Africa team, in conjuction with Daraja, did a week long immersion in Njombe, in the southern highlands of Tanzania. During our immersion, we saw communities working together to bring change to their lives. In the absence of specific services and facilities, the community works together with leadership from inspiring individuals to fill the gaps.

While it is impossible to neatly sum up or come to any definite conclusions about what we experienced, we have put together some observations from participants. View our Informal presentation, The Community Together, to read of our observations on access to information, power, change, education, health and water.

The lessons we learnt are already informing our work and will continue to do so throughout the year.

Twaweza Annual Report 2011

Wed, 09 May 2012 07:42:00 +0000

Our Annual Report for 2011, a year of the glass half full and half empty, has been released.

In 2011 we failed to develop as many partnerships as anticipated, or enough of an ecosystem effect between partners, or spend our budget. At the same time, we sharpened our approaches and investments, fostered innovative citizen monitoring, influenced national policies (particularly in education), stimulated the public imagination in interesting ways, and played a key role in establishing a major global initiative. Our main evaluations got off the ground and began to generate valuable lessons. We could interpret the facts to tell a compelling story about 2011 in either direction; the truth in all likelihood is that we have both succeeded powerfully and fallen short.

The report highlights a selection of our engagements, major achievements and lessons learned in 2011. Read the full report here.

How transparency and accountability can make development work

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:10:00 +0000

'How transparency and accountability can make development work' was a presentation made to the Board of the Hewlett Foundation, one of our donors. The presenation talks of how transparency and accountability can energize development by creating opportunities for people to know, connect and act and by providing incentives for those in charge to be more responsive and deliver. Transparency and accountability enables citizens to reclaim government and make services work for them.

Citizens making stuff happen

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 09:13:00 +0000

Things may be moving slowly in the world of officialdom. But people are not always waiting for their governments to do everything in their daily lives. According to Rakesh Rajani, Twaweza's Head, despite bureaucratic service delivery systems citizens find ways to get things done.

Twaweza works with the five networks to fuel flows of information, stories, and ideas to make it easier for people to get, make, and share information and ideas. Twaweza helps spread information about rights, laws and budgets, as well as information on how citizens compare with their neighbors. All of this has stimulated informed public debate.

Twaweza’s idea is very simple, Rajani stated: We identify what reaches people at scale and works, we get behind it and enable it to fly higher.