Description
Choose a specific locally-based organization (or government entity) that is engaged in making positive changes in a community in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Write a 5-6 page paper that examines this organization.
Your paper will need a description of the organization and its goals, including where it is based, how many members/staff it has, whether members are part of the decision-making or not, how members are incorporated into the organization, and what kinds of resources the organization provides to communities.
A detailed description (2 pages minimum) of one major issue which the organization is addressing. You will need to do some research around this issue yourself. You will need to also have a brief description of the setting in which the organization is working. eg. if in an informal settlement in Cape Town, South Africa, you will need to describe what living conditions are like there: e.g. what kinds of housing do people have?
What kinds of facilities do people have?
How many people live here? What is the average income?
a DETAILED account of the ways in which that organization is addressing the issue. (2 pages or more). Your description should look at what approaches the organization uses, the specific ways it engages local communities, the obstacles that the organization faces and the concrete way it puts its values into practice. This means that you will need to choose an organization that is fairly well-documented, and which has more than simple PR statements on its website.
If possible some discussion of the ways in which the organization is accountable to the community in which it works (eg. “The Maasai Women’s Council holds itself accountable by holding community meetings where community members can question the actions of the organization, by ensuring that women from Maasai communities are part of the decision-making, and that women from rural communities make up 50% of the board of directors”.
Some Examples of Organizations to Use:
Pastoral Women’s Council
Tostan
The Green Belt Movement
Jamii Bora
Y’en a Marre
Mzalendo
The Tafelsig Anti-Eviction Committee
Soweto Electricity Crisis Committee
Westcliff Flat Residents’ Association
YOU HAVE TO use this source in the research: