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OneWorld
South Asia resolves to achieve
the MDGs
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“The objective was to
strengthen the partnership by sharing information and exploring
potential areas of co-operation towards the achievement of Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs). |
We believe that Information
and Communication Tools (ICTs) are a powerful tool to help NGOs achieve this
goal at the grassroots, particularly by allowing local communities to have a
voice in their own development. OneWorld wants to catalyze the use of these
tools by our partners in collaborative ways that are really effective. The
response at the meeting was very positive with a number of practical strategic
alliances emerging out of the discussions,” commented Basheerhamad Shadrach,
Director, OneWorld South Asia. He was speaking at the closing session of the
two day “3rd Annual Meeting of OneWorld South Asia Partners’, organized in
New Delhi, India from 11-12 February, 2004.
The
theme of the meeting was ‘Working Together to Achieve Millennium Development
Goals’. The representatives of
over 100 NGOs from the sub-continent that are partners of OneWorld South Asia
attended the meeting. The director of One World International Foundation,
Anuradha Vittachi, while speaking in the inaugural session said, “ I believe
that Media for All should be included as another MDG”. This statement is an
indication of the critical role media can play in achieving the MDGs. She
further said that communication tools are being made available in the local
language with local content to reach out to the grassroots. “Mobiles, for
example, are becoming the new medium for reaching out to people”, she added.
The President NASSCOM mentioned how “ ICTs
instead of being thought of as a tool in the hands of the oppressor
could be used to empower the oppressed”, said Kiran Karnik, President of the
National Association of the Software Companies, India. He cited the example of
the Bhoomi project in the state of Karnataka where land records have been
computerised and farmers do need not to grease palms anymore to get a copy of
their land record.
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