Chapter 2 - WOUGNET, Uganda - Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET): Three years on, An evaluation

Dorothy Okello

Introduction

This case study presents the Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) as an example of local appropriation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by women and women’s organizations in Uganda.

“Local appropriation of ICTs is about communities and groups selecting and adopting communication tools according to the different information and communication needs identified by them, and then adapting the technologies so that they become rooted in their own social, economic and cultural processes.”¹

Through appropriation, communities select and transform media technologies and content to fit their needs, rather than to reflect the interests of external groups.

WOUGNET is a non-governmental organization established in May 2000 to develop the use of ICTs among women. ICTs include e-mail, the Internet, radio, television and print media. However the focus of this study is on e-mail and the Web, and how these technologies can be integrated with traditional means of information exchange and dissemination for maximum outreach.

WOUGNET’s vision is to improve the living conditions of Ugandan women by enhancing their capacities and opportunities to exchange information and to collaborate. Currently the NGO operates primarily online and so most members are based in Kampala, where Internet access is relatively easy. The few offline members (in rural areas or lacking immediate access for other reasons) rely on an old-fashioned network of contacts to act as ‘information conduits’ and all members can interact with WOUGNET by telephone, fax, and post or at the WOUGNET office. Nevertheless, outreach to rural areas remains a major challenge.

The role of information and communication technologies in rural development

ICTs are transforming activities to support rural development and food security² as opportunities grow for individuals and communities to be information producers as well as consumers and as new media are incorporated into existing structures, such as radio and television.

The FAO First Consultation on Agricultural Information Management (COAIM) has noted that there is still an incomplete understanding of the use and impact of ICTs. Nevertheless several potential benefits of these new technologies have been identified:³

• two-way and horizontal communication and new communication channels for rural communities and development organizations that support them

• grassroots articulation of development needs and perceptions

• integration of global and local knowledge and information

• the creation of or support for interactive and collaborative networks that overcome physical barriers to knowledge and information sharing

• support to policy and advocacy by meeting information needs of officials, decision-makers, interest groups and grassroots organizations

• an enhanced partnership with the mass media - particularly relevant for resource-poor community media

ICTs have an important and positive role to play in rural development, but only if rural communities are equal and active partners in the production and dissemination of information. The crucial question to be asked by these communities is, “What can technology do for us?” rather than, “What can we do with this technology?”

This means that communities should be empowered to define their needs in terms of:⁴

a) communication
(who wants to communicate? With whom? Why? How?)

b) information
(what information is needed? Who by? When? Where? Why?)

c) education and training
(who needs what? When? Where? How?)

A participant of the WOUGNET online conference, Information Access for Rural Women, commented on the special needs of rural communities by saying, “At the urban level the space is larger, the media are broader but at the rural level there is a need to tailor the message much more precisely.”

The Ugandan communications context

Increased women’s access to accurate and timely information means increased food production, better hygiene and increased participation in local economic and social development. The Government of Uganda recognizes this and has factored it into the national Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) and the Plan for the Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA).⁵

However, information is of limited use unless it is appropriately packaged and communicated. Packaging relates to factors such as the use of local language, culturally sensitive material and access to illiterate community members. Communication relates to the choice of technology based on factors such as speed of transmission, cost, reach and appropriateness.

ICT Initiatives in Uganda

The ICT industry is one of the fastest growing economic sectors in Uganda and one of the eight priority areas earmarked for export development through strategic partnership between the Government and the private sector and development partners.

ICTs are also being used in social development programmes. Examples include SchoolNet Uganda, the Telemedicine Project and the Acacia Initiative telecentre project. SchoolNet Uganda provides high-speed Internet connectivity to rural schools and training on the maintenance and networking of computers. The Telemedicine Project aims to link Mulago Referral Hospital to other hospitals in Uganda via videoconferencing facilities. The expected benefits of the project include improved access to and quality of medical care, reduced professional isolation and lower travel costs for patients.⁶

Perhaps the most widely known ICT initiative targeting community needs is the Acacia Initiative.⁷ This is a programme set up by the International Development Research Centre in Canada in 1997 to support research in and the use of ICTs in national development and poverty eradication. Uganda was one of four pilot countries selected, along with Mozambique, Senegal and South Africa, and telecentres have been built at Nakaseke, Buwama and Nabweru.

These provide access to ICTs to local communities, ranging from the Internet to telephones. Several women’s organizations such as the Council for Economic Empowerment of Women of Africa (CEEWA-Uganda) and Isis-Women’s International Cross-Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE)⁸ have used the telecentres for training, research and advocacy.

In 1999 CEEWA initiated the Women’s Information Resource Electronic Service (WIRES),⁹ an Internet-based resource centre providing business information to small-scale women entrepreneurs in Uganda.

The service has produced at least three quantifiable and noticeable benefits:

a) Improved household nutrition and income generation

Household-level nutrition has improved significantly as women have accessed information on food values and farming practices. They have learned how to make better use of available land through poultry production and vegetable gardens, for example, and to increasing household income through the sale of surplus produce.

b) Increased access to markets
The WIRES service helped to create networks of women producers and organizations, enabling women to create and access local markets. For example, women could use the telephone to contact suppliers or clients and use the Internet to search for market information.

c) Increased recognition of ICTs
Technology is usually controlled by men and women are excluded from ownership or access. WIRES enabled women to understand technology and use it to improve their lives. For example, they saw how an e-mail could cut down on the need to travel long distances, saving time, money and energy.

WIRES and the Acacia Initiative demonstrate the ability of ICTs to promote economic empowerment. They also identified three major challenges:

• the lack of access to communication services

• the need to ensure that relevant content that is packaged to suit the needs of a community

• the importance of incorporating gender perspectives in the planning, implementation and evaluation of ICT projects

The regulatory environment in Uganda

Uganda’s communication infrastructure has developed significantly over the past decade but most of this development has taken place in urban areas, benefiting a small percentage of the national population. For example, the draft National ICT policy reveals that while MTN Uganda (one of two national telecommunication operators) provides 65 percent national coverage, 93 percent of that is in urban areas.

The goal of the Government is “a Uganda where national development, especially human development and good governance, are sustainably enhanced, promoted and accelerated by efficient application and use of ICTs, including timely access to information.”¹⁰ The status of information technology is influenced by various policies and regulations including the 1996 Electronic Media Statute, the 1997 Uganda Communications Act, the 2001 Rural Communications Development Policy and a proposed National ICT Policy, which was drafted in 2001.

The primary objective of the Uganda Communications Act is to increase the penetration and level of telecommunication services in Uganda through private sector investment. It allows two national corporations to monopolize the provision of landline, mobile, data and Internet services for a period of five years from July 2000, although other companies can obtain licenses for Internet service provision. The two national operators are Uganda Telecom Limited (UTL) and MTN Uganda. UTL was formed in 1995 and was privatized a year later with the government of Uganda retaining 49 percent shares.

Table 1: Communications Sector
Comparative Figures for 1996 - 2002

Table 1 presents the Uganda communications sector figures from December 1996 to Dec 2002.¹¹ It shows the huge increase in the number of subscriptions to mobile services - 16 000 percent compared to the 32 percent increase in the number of fixed lines. The table also reveals the impact of the Communications Act. Since 2000, the numbers of national telecommunication operators and international data gateways have remained fixed. On the other hand, there has been an increase in the number of ISPs and private radio and television stations.

Rural communications in Uganda

Uganda’s teledensity (mobile and fixed) has grown to about 1 line per 100 people from 0.21 per 100 people at the end of 1996.¹² However communication services are usually limited to a 10 km radius from district headquarters or major towns.

In 2001 the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) developed the Rural Communications Development Policy¹³ with three general objectives:

• to provide access to basic communication services within a reasonable distance to all people in Uganda

• to ensure effective use of the Rural Communications Development Fund (RCDF) to promote investment in rural communication development

• to promote ICT usage in Uganda

The RCD programme was launched in February 2003. Under it, service providers will operate in areas that already receive signals from existing telecommunication operators or that have cellular network coverage but that do not have public access services.¹⁴ The private sector will be the primary implementers of the RCD programme and to-date four firms have been selected as follows:

• Uganda Telecom Limited (UTL) will establish Internet Points of Presence (POPs) nationally at district level in all 56 districts. So far one POP has been established in Mbale District, Eastern Uganda

• MTN Publicom will establish 73 public telephone booths across the country. Currently 19 are planned for the Central Region, 20 for the Eastern Region and 30 for the Western Region. Site selection was made on the basis of signal availability, commercial viability and sustainability

• Uganda Home Pages Ltd will develop District Information Portals to offer comprehensive business and cultural information on each district

• Equator Telecom Uganda will set up Internet cafés at district headquarters or vanguard institutions

The RCDF is managed and administered by the UCC and funded by Commission budgetary allocations, donations and grants from development partners, government inputs and contributions from all service providers.

ICTs as tools for information access among women in Uganda

In 1998 a Uganda-wide survey by UNESCO showed that most information sources are either out of reach of rural women or fall short of their information needs.¹⁵ This is a finding that still holds true and is compounded by the additional challenges women face in accessing ICTs.

Obstacles should not be perceived as deterrents however. Until 2000 there were no organizations in Uganda to facilitate information exchange, but women’s organizations had already been using the Internet to share news and research and the decision to establish WOUGNET in May 2000 as an Internet-based women’s development forum was a logical next step.

WOUGNET’s Web site and mailing lists remain key sources of information about and for women in Uganda. Annex 1 presents a current list of member organizations.

WOUGNET activities

WOUGNET activities are e-mail-based, Web-based and offline. E-mail-based activities include the WOUGNET mailing list as a virtual forum. Information posted has included conferences and workshops, requests for information on current developments in various fields such as gender, agriculture and technology, and volunteer job postings. As of July 2003 there were 215 subscribers to the mailing lists, including representatives from 25 women’s organizations.

WOUGNET also produces a monthly e-newsletter, WOUGNET-Update, which provides details of national activities, upcoming conferences, workshops, training programmes, funding opportunities and tips on computer/Internet usage. The WOUGNET-Update is distributed via the mailing list, a subscription list and mailing lists with an ICT and/or gender focus.

WOUGNET has hosted the following e-mail-based online discussions:

• a 3-week-long conference, Information Access for Rural Women,¹⁶ in June 2002. A report of the online conference was presented during deliberations on Rural Women and Telecentres at the July 2002 Kampala Know How Conference,¹⁷ an international conference on information collection and dissemination for and by women

• on “An Information Society for Uganda” in April 2003 to facilitate Uganda’s contributions to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) working documents¹⁸

The WOUGNET Web site is the core Internet-based activity. It profiles Ugandan women’s organizations and contains practical information on various topics and projects in Uganda and internationally. The site was the winner of the 2003 African Information Society Initiative (AISI) Media Awards in the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) Local Content Applications category.¹⁹

The Awards Web site describes www.wougnet.org as, “... a good source of information, knowledge, best practices and lessons learned on women’s issues and a variety of socio-economic issues. The collection of information and Web resources on ICT policies, for example, informs the audience of key ICT for development issues, such as open source and the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) Gender Caucus.”

Another Internet-based activity is the WebDesign programme, which was started in April 2001 in collaboration with InterConnection.org, to develop Web sites for WOUGNET members.²⁰

WOUGNET’s offline activities support and strengthen online ones and include:

• sourcing relevant information (from organizations, newspapers, the Internet, etc.) to post on the WOUGNET Web site and/or via mailing lists

• conducting research (online or otherwise) pertinent to WOUGNET members, staff and partners

• contacting WOUGNET members for news and reports on projects to be added to their online profiles

• promoting WOUGNET membership to women’s organizations in Uganda

An important offline activity is the WorldSpace Satellite Radio Program (WSRP),²¹ which was set up in August 2002 to make WorldSpace radio available to members with difficulties accessing the Internet.

The WSRP is the only service for which WOUGNET charges its members - a nominal fee is levied for equipment maintenance, transport costs and installation. The NGO runs on a shoestring budget and relies primarily on volunteer support and on resources provided either in kind or as donations. These include:

• low-cost Internet and e-mail hosting from Kabissa - Space for Change in Africa

• volunteer Web site design for the WebDesign programme from InterConnection.org

• volunteer moderation of online discussions sourced via Netaid.org and Idealist.org

• an evaluation of WOUGNET activities using Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) toolkit by the Association for Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support Program (WNSP)

• a grant in 2003 from the Global Fund for Women (GFW) to strengthen WOUGNET’s capacity to support networking and information-sharing

Worldspace receiver on loan to the AFLA Ministries Kasaka, (2003)

Clare O’Farrell

Challenges to using ICTs for communication among women in Uganda

Feedback from WOUGNET members reveals that the information shared and exchanged has been beneficial to their projects and/or research programmes. For example:

• the Lungujja Women’s Association (LWA) received an e-mail about KITE,²² an NGO based in the USA that supports information technology and education initiatives - including by providing a year’s free Internet access to organizations in developing countries.²³ LWA became the first international KITE partner in March 2002 and has been able to make electronic calculations of its micro-credit scheme, research business strategies online and network with other organizations.

• In August 2002 a WOUGNET member was selected as a finalist for BITSAfrica,²⁴ a programme sponsored by the World Economic Forum Global Leaders for Tomorrow and the Africa Technology Forum. The purpose of the BITSAfrica initiative is to assist African technology entrepreneurs in building a sustainable venture that will have an impact on the society around them. The member learnt of this programme via the WOUGNET mailing list.

In spite of these success stories, WOUGNET continues to face major challenges:

• limited outreach due to the organization’s online focus

• limited availability of information relevant to members’ development needs

• lack of awareness in rural areas of the benefits of ICTs as development tools

• a need for training on the use and application of ICTs

• limited resources to complement online networking with face-to-face meetings and advocacy

In January 2003 participants at a WOUGNET meeting in Kampala identified the following challenges to using ICTs and of being WOUGNET members:²⁵

• WOUGNET information resources are only available in English, and not in any local language

• typically NGOs have one computer and one person who knows how or is allowed to download information

• WOUGNET’s focus on the Internet instead of more established media such as the radio marginalizes those groups who lack computer access and skills

• technophobia is prevalent among women and girls, especially in rural communities

• men can deny women access to the telecentres because they think that they should stay at home

• WOUGNET runs several mailing lists and there is a danger of providing too much, irrelevant or poorly managed information

Information access for rural women

The demand for information in rural areas is increasing and ICTs have an important role in opening up channels for the exchange of new and indigenous knowledge and information with and among these communities. However rural women’s lack of access to and skills in ICTs present major challenges.

Significant inequities in access exist for disadvantaged populations - the poor, rural, female and aged. Cost is one factor, but others include: poor infrastructure; lack of basic facilities; poverty; illiteracy, particularly among women; cultural perceptions of women’s roles; little or no government support; the urban bias in development; lack of ICT skills; and instability and conflict.

Radio is essential for information sharing and dissemination in rural areas but it is important to recognize the role played by gender in this medium. For example in a meeting between AMARC-Africa, WOUGNET, and women in the community served by Radio Apac,²⁶ the following issues were identified:

• women need their own radios since the men take theirs with them when they go out

• women lack transport to travel to the station to participate in broadcasts

• women and children are very vulnerable during periods of crisis and there is a need for peace and conflict radio programmes

• a lack of women’s programmes addressing issues such as good farming practices and HIV/AIDS

• a lack of tape recorders so that the women can prepare their own programmes for community radio

• low literacy levels among women hinders programme development

Several WOUGNET members have programmes addressing information access for rural women, including the two organizations below. Both subscribe to the WOUGNET mailing lists and are profiled on the WOUGNET Web site.

ALFA Women’s Groups, a project with ALFA Ministries²⁷

ALFA Ministries was set up in 1999 in a rural area with no landlines or mobile phone access, frequent electricity blackouts and limited radio ownership. ALFA Ministries works with six women’s organizations to promote projects that focus on participation, capacity building and women.

The NGO has set up a rural information and communication centre (RICC) with 13 computers and printers, a photocopier, a digital camera, a WorldSpace satellite radio and a video camera. The lack of landlines means that Internet surfing is via a mobile phone line and the main communication channels within the community are printed images and words, spoken words, music, dance and drama.

Kasaka, ALFA center, computer training for rural women

Clare O’Farrell

The purpose of the RICC is to enhance community participation, promote cultural knowledge and assist communities to work together for their own social and economic well-being. ALFA Ministries makes the following recommendations for assessing the information needs of rural communities:

• all community development work should recognize the importance of information access for rural communities

• rural information and communication centres should be set up, with full community participation, wherever possible

• governments should make affordable electricity available to rural households and establish a supportive ICT policy environment

Isis-Women’s International Cross-Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE)²⁸

Isis-WICCE was founded in 1974 to communicate ideas, create women’s solidarity networks and share information to overcome gender inequalities. It moved to Africa in 1993 to focus on supporting women in developing countries who lack access to information and ICTs and has developed as one of its focus areas the challenges facing African women in conflict and post-conflict situations.

While documenting women’s experiences during a crisis, Isis-WICCE researchers realized that access to information about sexual, reproductive and psychological health and rights was almost entirely lacking for women in post-conflict societies. In 1998 the NGO worked with local women’s groups in rural Uganda to set up three rural information units equipped with reading material, a tape recorder and tapes for women to record both human rights violations and community success stories. The units are still operational and the contents of hundreds of tapes have been transcribed by Isis-WICCE and disseminated via e-mail lists from Kampala - a necessary step because of the lack of e-mail connectivity in rural areas.

Mama FM radio station works hard to attract both female and male listeners. Women’s Media Centre, Kampala (2003) (a)

Roberto Faidutti

Mama FM radio station works hard to attract both female and male listeners. Women’s Media Centre, Kampala (2003) (b)

Roberto Faidutti

Two of the units also use television and video to record and disseminate women’s experiences in war. These run on car batteries during blackouts, or in remote areas. The women have identified music, dance and drama as effective communication channels, and have produced several dramas highlighting key issues that affect their communities.

Isis-WICCE has recorded some of these plays for dissemination beyond the communities, but poor roads and transport costs are usually prohibitive. However the NGO believes that these initiatives are vital to overcoming technophobia and ensuring that ICTs can play an important role in post-conflict environments and providing women with access to new and relevant technical skills.

Evaluation of WOUGNET, three years on

Reliable statistics exist to map the growth in teledensity and communications infrastructure in Uganda over the last six years. But little research has been done on the impact of this on gender relations, thus limiting opportunities to engender ICTs at the policy level. This problem is not unique to Uganda, as was noted at the Working Group on Gender Issues (WGGI) of the International Telecommunication Union in July 2003.

The ICT Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) is one of several being developed to address the lack of research on ICTs and gender. GEM is produced by the APC Women’s Networking Support Programme (WNSP)²⁹ and in October 2002 WOUGNET became one of the GEM testers in Africa, along with AMARC, the African Women’s Development and Communications Network (FEMNET), Fantsuam Foundation, SANGONeT, Women’sNet, Isis-WICCE and the Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Center and Network (ZWRCN).

Overview of WOUGNET Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM) Project

WOUGNET is using GEM to evaluate how its Web site and mailing lists have been used by women’s organizations in Uganda. Specifically, the evaluation project will seek to:

• assess the relevance of the information provided through WOUGNET’s ICTs

• identify information needs and gaps within existing WOUGNET programmes

• assess the effectiveness of the Web site and mailing lists in information sharing and dissemination

WOUGNET will use the results of the GEM evaluation to improve its Web site and mailing lists to increase its membership and the number of services offered to members, and improve existing programmes. An important goal is to integrate Internet-based technologies with established media, such as radio and print. Communication services developed will not only increase information sharing and dissemination via the Internet but also via integration with traditional media, including radio and print.

The GEM evaluation is made up of three components. The first was a questionnaire distributed online and offline from May to July 2003. The second was a review of the WOUGNET Web site and an analysis of hits. Finally, a Focus Group Discussion was scheduled for September 2003. This section presents the preliminary findings from the questionnaire and the Web site review.

Analysis of the survey results was hampered by a low response rate (16 percent) to online questionnaires, although the response rate to hard copy questionnaires was 48 percent. The results of the survey cannot therefore be seen as representative, but they will still provide valuable insights into the use of ICTs by women’s organizations. Indeed, the return rate is in itself an important indicator of the need for multi-media information channels.

Findings of WOUGNET GEM evaluation

Most respondents represent organizations involved in women’s issues ranging from economic empowerment, leadership, cultural development and capacity building to health, education and violence against women and children. Several organizations promote the use of ICTs for social justice and economic development.

The number of women’s organizations belonging to WOUGNET has increased from 18 in 2000 to 41. Fig.1 shows the trends for subscriptions to mailing lists and the monthly e-newsletter, WOUGNET-Update, from 2000 to June 2003. Note however, that few rural women’s organizations are able to subscribe to online information resources.

Figure 1: Subscription trends for WOUGNET mailing lists

Fig. 2 shows how often respondents read and/or disseminate postings from the mailing lists and how often they access the Web site. It indicates that while 87 percent of the respondents read the postings, significantly fewer than 50 percent use the lists to disseminate information via the lists and 63 percent only visit the Web sometimes.

Figure 2: Frequency of accessing WOUGNET Web site and mailing lists

Respondents were also asked how information is shared within their organizations and with other organizations. The answers included word-of-mouth, meetings, workshops, telephone, newsletters, internal memos, radio, e-mail and the Web. These strategies highlight opportunities for intermediaries to bridge the online-offline information access gap.

Impact of WOUGNET membership

One of the evaluation objectives was to assess the impact of WOUGNET membership with respect to the Web site and mailing lists. Evaluation respondents noted benefits in six areas: communication, networking, advocacy, outreach, participation, and awareness. The comments below are representative of overall responses:

• increased awareness of and participation in several activities, especially ICT development

• training opportunities, workshops and conferences, funding opportunities for women’s organizations

• “I can speak more knowledgeably about the “landscape” I am working in even though I am far away”

• “a number of organizations have accessed our e-mail address and we can work with sister organizations”

• “outreach, where we may not have reached, we reach through WOUGNET”

• “through the mailing list and Web site, we are aware of what is happening elsewhere”

Several respondents noted obstacles to accessing the Web site and mailing lists:

• organization lacks computers and/or Internet access and options such as Internet cafés are very expensive or located some distance (50 km in one instance) away

• not all members of organization/network have Internet access so information dissemination is limited

• too much or too technical information, not all of which is relevant to organization’s needs

• difficulty repackaging information to suit needs of organization’s target audience or to follow up the various opportunities identified

Respondents were asked to recommend ways for WOUGNET to improve service delivery and promote the use of ICTs among members. The recommendations are broadly classified below:

(a) Provide ICT information, equipment and/or training

• information about donor agencies that assist CBOs/NGOs to acquire ICT equipment and training

• computers and other ICT equipment for use by members

• training for members and grassroots organizations

(b) Facilitate Internet access

• solicit funding to help rural organizations access the Internet at their respective locations

• diversify the media for information dissemination - especially offline

(c) Improve WOUGNET mailing list and Web site

• provide information that is relevant to the nature of work of a given organization.

• promote the use of local languages, either by encouraging members to post in local languages or by translating information to local languages

(d) Enhance WOUGNET networking and services

• facilitate networking and provide more opportunities for interaction with WOUGNET staff

• conduct awareness training sessions to encourage more women to use WOUGNET services to share information about their activities as well as for networking and advocacy

• continue to provide techtips to prevent members being conned by people who use the Internet to take advantage of NGOs

• meet with members offline to track new developments and changes in contact information

• make use of the Discussion Groups (D-Groups) platform

WOUGNET will try to incorporate this feedback to strengthen and broaden its capacity to support networking and information sharing among women in Uganda.

Lessons learned and mapping a way forward

A key lesson learned so far has been the need to consider a variety of ICTs in reaching out to women and women’s organizations in Uganda. The response rate among organizations that received printed questionnaires was 48 percent compared to the 16 percent online response rate. This disparity would seem to indicate that print distribution is more effective, but it is difficult to say whether these 50 would have responded to an online survey if they had had access.

Figure 3: How evaluation questionnaires were returned

Most responses were received by e-mail, followed by physical collection of questionnaires by the GEM team. But overall most questionnaires were received via non-Internet methods, especially delivered by hand - an indication of the benefits derived from the establishment of the WOUGNET office in Kampala with funding from the Global Fund for Women.

In general respondents agreed that WOUGNET had contributed to raising awareness of women’s issues in Uganda and abroad through the repackaging and dissemination of information. They defined a need for more local content and languages and for more offline member participation.

The WOUGNET GEM evaluation ends in November 2003 and a detailed action plan will be drawn up for WOUGNET. Some of the elements to be included in this plan are:

• the development of an information hub for members to source or disseminate information online by submitting a request or information via telephone, fax or letter

• an integrated information sharing and dissemination project, running from the information hub, to support women’s programming at community radio stations

• in partnership with members, WOUGNET will seek to develop theme-based mailing lists for focused and more interactive information sharing and discussion among members

• the development of awareness raising and training programmes about ICTs and WOUGNET services

Conclusion

WOUGNET members defined a need for ICT awareness and training programmes, greater networking among members, consideration of other media for information sharing/dissemination, especially in rural areas, and support in acquiring ICT equipment and Internet services.

Preliminary results from the GEM evaluation support the general conclusion that while the local appropriation of ICTs offers important benefits to a community, further research is necessary to clearly understand their impact. This research will also support the design of innovative programmes that address the ICT needs of all members of a community as well as promote best practices on ICT usage.

Annex I: WOUGNET Institutional Members (as of July 2003)

Member profiles can be accessed via http://www.wougnet.org/wo_dir.html

• Akina Mama wa Afrika-Uganda (AMwA-U)

• ALFA Women’s Groups

• Association of Uganda Women Lawyers (FIDA (U))

• Association of Uganda Women Medical Doctors (AUWMD)

• Coalition on Violence Against Women (CVAW)

• Council for Economic Empowerment for Women in Africa - Uganda (CEEWA-UGANDA)

• Crisis Pregnancy & Counseling Center (CPCC)

• Disabled Women in Development (DIWODE)

• Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI)

• Forum for African Women Educationalists - Uganda (FAWEU)

• Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE)

• Gender Advisory Board - Africa Region Secretariat

• Hope After Rape (HAR)

• Isis-Women’s International Cross-Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE)

• Kassanda Development Initiative

• Kyakabadiima Women’s Group

• Law and Advocacy for Women in Uganda (LAW-U)

• Lungujja Women’s Association (LWA)

• The Mifumi Project

• Nakaseke Women Development Association (NAWODA)

• Nakazadde Ward Women Development Association (NAWDA)

• Namalemba Bugweri Association (NABA)

• National Association of Women’s organizations in Uganda (NAWOU)

• National Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda (NACWOLA)

• Ntulume Village Women’s Development Association (NVIWODA)

• Pan African Women Liberation Organization (PAWLO)

• Rurama Women’s Handicraft Society (RWHS)

• Safe Motherhood Initiative in Uganda (SMIU)

• Slum Aid Project (SAP)

• Uganda Gender Resource Center (UGRC)

• Uganda Media Women’s Association (UMWA)

• Uganda Muslim Women’s Vision (UMWV)

• Uganda Private Midwives Association (UPMA)

• Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association (UWEAL)

• Uganda Women’s Network (UWONET)

• Uganda Women Tree Planting Movement (UWTPM)

• Uganda Women Writers’ Association (FEMRITE)

• Women and Children’s Crisis Center (WCC)

• Women Engineers, Technicians and Scientists in Uganda (WETSU)

• Women in Law and Development in Africa - Uganda Chapter (WiLDAF - U)

• Women’s Organization for Development and Conflict Resolution (WODREC)

Footnotes and references

¹ Sabine I. Michiels and L. Van Crowder
Discovering the “Magic Box”: Local appropriation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) SD Dimensions, June 2001
FAO Sustainable Development Department
http://www.fao.org/sd/2001/KN0602a_en.htm

² The role of information and communication technologies in rural development and food security
SD Dimensions, November 2000
http://www.fao.org/sd/CDdirect/CDre0055.htm

³ Sabine I. Michiels and L. Van Crowder. op. cit.

⁴ The first mile of connectivity: Advancing telecommunications for rural development through participatory communication
SD Dimensions, July 1999
http://www.fao.org/sd/cddirect/cdre0025.html

⁵ Proposed Uganda National Information and Communication Technology Policy, July 2002
http://www.logos-net.net/ilo/150_base/en/init/uga_1.htm

⁶ Bridging the Digital Divide - Uganda’s experience
Uganda Communications Commission
Proceedings of the 12th East African Regional Postal Telecommunication Operators (EARPTO) meeting, Nairobi, Kenya, March 2003

⁷ Acacia Initiative
http://web.idrc.ca

⁸ ISIS-WICCE, Women’s Information Cross-cultural Exchange
http://www.isis.or.ug

⁹ CEEWA Women’s Information Resource Electronic Service (WIRES)
http://www.ceewawires.org

¹⁰ Uganda’s Working Document for the Second Preparatory Meeting for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), Geneva, Switzerland, February 2003
http://www.itu.int/dms_pub/itu-s/md/03/wsispc2/c/S03-WSISPC2-C-0086!!PDF-E.pdf

¹¹ Communications Sector Comparative Figures for Dec 1996 to Dec 2002
Uganda Communications Commission
http://www.ucc.co.ug/marketInfo/about.html

¹² ibid

¹³ Rural Communications Development Policy for Uganda
Uganda Communications Commission, July 2001
http://www.ucc.co.ug/rcdf/about.html

¹⁴ Rural Communication Development Fund
Government of Uganda
http://www.dip.go.ug/rcdf.htm

¹⁵ Rural Women and Information in Uganda
Ruth Ojiambo Ochieng
Paper presented at the FAO High Level Consultation on Rural Women and Information, Rome, Italy, October 4-6, 1999
http://www.fao.org/docrep/X3803E/x3803e23.htm

¹⁶ Information Access for Rural Women
WOUGNET online conference, June 3-21, 2002
http://www.wougnet.org/Events/iarw.html

¹⁷ Kampala Know How Conference 2002: A safari into the cross-cultural world of women’s knowledge exchange, 23-27 July, 2002
http://www.isis.or.ug/knowhow

¹⁸ An Information Society for Uganda
WOUGNET online conference, April 14-30, 2002
http://www.wougnet.org/WSIS/ug/isug.html

¹⁹ 2003 AISI Media Awards
http://www.uneca.org/aisi/mediaawardWinners.htm

²⁰ WOUGNET Web Design programme
http://www.wougnet.org/Support/webdesign.html
So far five WOUGNET members have had their sites designed under this programme:
1 - Association for Uganda Women Medical Doctors (AUWMD)
http://www.auwmd.interconnection.org/
2 - Hope After Rape (HAR)
http://www.har.interconnection.org/
3 - National Association of Women Organizations in Uganda (NAWOU)
http://www.peoplink.org/nawou/
4 - SOS Sudan Association (SOSSA)
http://www.interconnection.org/sossa/
5 - Uganda Media Women’s Association (UMWA)
http://www.interconnection.org/umwa/text.htm

²¹ WorldSpace Satellite Radio Program (WSRP)
http://www.wougnet.org/Support/WSprogram.html

²² Key to information technology and Education
http://www.kiteinc.org

²³ Lungujja Women’s Association
http://www.wougnet.org/Profiles/lungujja.html

²⁴ BITSAfrica
www.wougnet.org/links/business.html

²⁵ Information Sharing on the Application of ICTs
WOUGNET meeting, January 15, 2003
http://www.wougnet.org/Events/wougnetmeeting1.html

²⁶ Radio Apac, a community radio station in northern Uganda, was established in 1999 with support from the Commonwealth of Learning (COL)
http://www.interconnection.org/radioapac

²⁷ ALFA Women’s Groups
http://www.wougnet.org/Profiles/alfawg.html

²⁸ Isis-Women’s International Cross-Cultural Exchange (Isis-WICCE)
http://www.wougnet.org/Profiles/isis.html

²⁹ Women’s Networking Support Programme
http://www.apcwomen.org/