The project seeks to use animation to highlight social and political issues that affect the community of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe.The idea is to hold workshops with young people between the age of 15-25 to educate them on how they can tell their stories using social media like faceboo and twitter. The issues that we are going to get from the youth during the training workshops are going to be used to do series of animation videos. We will upload the videos on facebook(The Bulawayo show), You tube and also distribute the video on mobile phones via whats app. We will also hold mobile sh
Topical focus:
Country:
What locality or neighborhood will your project focus on?
Bulawayo
Describe the specific population with whom you will be working.
We are planning to work with youth between the age of 15 and 25. These are young people who are very innovative and are always interested in using new media. While this age group have access to new media they do not have information on how they can use social media to develop their communities.Most of the times you people use social media to just upload personal photos and mostly use facebook for gossip. Mobile cellphone network penetration in zimbabwe is at 100% and many young people have smart phones that have whats up and social networ sites. It will be therefore easy to share the material that will be created with young people.
It also young people who are affected by bad decisions by goverment especially when there is no employment or lack of acess to HIV drugs.
Who else will be on your team to help implement the project?
The team will be made of of 5 people people. Two journalists who will be able to record write scripts about the issues that will be raised by the youth. One animator who will put together the different episodes that we are going to come up with, one web develpoer who will be our webmater and a grpahic designer who will help in coming up with different posters t promot our shows. The 5 people will als be involved in condusting worshops in the community when we go around educating the youth about the youse of social media in raising issues that affect them.
What kinds of news, stories and other content will be created?
The Bulawayo show will tackle social and political issues like service delivery, corruption, encorage youth to go and get tested for hiv and aslo produce weekly comentary on political issues especiall decisions and policies that affec the youth. every week we will produce at least one 5 min episode of animation on one of the above isues. We will crate chatacters which young people will esaily identity and address different issues.
What technologies and digital tools do you plan to use in the trainings?
Describe the connections that you or your organization have already established or plan to establish that will contribute to the success of the project.
We are already working with different youths in producing animation videos on topical issues and we have a page on facebook called The Bulawayo show which has more than 1800 likes. Currently we do not have rsources to role out the plan on a large scale. We are also members of the Bulawayo Hackers hackers club where a about 30-40 youth meet every friday to come up with inovative ideas. We also have good wrking relationships with youth organisations in Bulawayo including the Youth clubs run by the Bulawayo city council.
How many participants do you think will be trained in your project?
We hope to hold one worshop a month workshop were we will train an average of 20 youth per workshop and we hope to run this product for about three months,This means by the end of the programme we will have trianed about 60 youth.
Describe which technologies, tools, and media you will focus on when training participants.
We will train youth on how they can use social media newworks to adcocate for issues that affect them . We want youth to be aware that with social media they have a powerful tool in their hands which they can use to lpbby ministers on issues that affect them.Many Goverment ministers are active on socialmedia sites like facebook and twittr ans youth can engage them in these plaforms without going through the official channel which usually takes a lot of time or never happens .
Describe the facilities where you will hold the workshops.
We are going to offices for the local community radio initiative radio dialogue.They have a training for the youths which has 17 computers, , voice recorders and project screen.They facility has broadband internet.
What is your current relationship with the community with whom you plan to work? What makes you the most appropriate individual or organization to implement this project?
Currently we are already working with the youth in Bulawayo in using social media to advocate for different issues.We are young people from bulawayo and we already have links with other youths in the city. We also organise comedy shows where young people come and show case their talent. We believe we are the right indivuduals to implement this project becuse we are currently involved in a similar project and the response has been encouraging. We are not starting a totally new project but expansing something that has aready taking off ground.
What specific challenges do you expect to face when planning and implementing your project?
The challenge we might face is maintaing the project at a large scale after the project is completed,How ever we hope during the implentation of the prject we will be able to educate other youths so that they also duplicate and complement what we do.
How will you measure and evaluate the project’s impact, specifically: your primary participants, the wider regional community, or the global digital community?
We will measure the impact of the project by :
The number of people who will attend our workshops and actively participate
The number of issues that we will get from youth leading to us from producing a certain number of episodes.At least one episode a week.
The increase in the number of people who visit pur social media platform.
Attendance duting our community issues
The number of similar initiatives that we will b set up after the conclusion of the project.
If your project were to be selected as a Rising Voices grantee, what would be the general timeline of project activities in 2014?
If the project were to be selected we will be able to start running workshop in mid -may.
We will also start producing 5 minutes animation videos.
In June-july we will do community hall shows.
In august we will carry out an evaluation and conclude the project.
Detail a specific budget of up to $2,500 USD for operating costs.
Hiring of training room $ 200 a workshop for 3 workshops $600
Hiring of community halls for shows $50 for 6 community shows $300
One computer to increase production of production of videos $600
Buying animation software $100
Refreshments for participants at workshops $100 per workshop $300
Transport and cordination costs for the team $400
Besides the microgrant funding, what other support can Rising Voices provide for your project to ensure its success?
The Rising voices can help in promoting our work on its website and social metwork pages.
Contact name
Zenzele Ndebele
