it@coops - Information Technology for Southeast Asian Cooperatives
it@coops provides poverty-oriented cooperatives in Southeast Asia with basic and advanced ICT skills and stimulates ICT use for business development.
The it@coops website provides comprehensive information on the it@coops activities and latest news. Below follows a summary of it@inwent's involvement.
it@inwent, together with the Asian Women in Cooperatives Development Forum (AWCF), created the it@coops network initiative in 2004, bringing together cooperative umbrella organizations in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Through the umbrella organizations, it@coops reaches out to their individual affiliate cooperative members.
Southeast Asian cooperatives have proved to be a successful form of economic organization for marginalized people, especially for female entrepreneurs - who are the main target group of the ICT trainings. Through ICT capacity building and ICT integration into their work, it@coops aims to strengthen the cooperatives in effectively fostering business start-ups and creating new employment opportunities. With its strong orientation towards the poor segments of the population, it@coops contributes to the attainment of the first Millennium Development Goal.
it@inwent's Activities in the it@coops Network
it@coops follows a 3-step approach:
- ICT multipliers of each participating cooperative receive an extensive training on basic and advanced ICT and ICT training skills. Experienced local training institutions conduct the trainings of about 5 months, in local languages, with the curricula tailored towards the specific demands of the respective cooperative environment. The contextually relevant ICT “train-the-trainer” qualification enables the cooperative representatives to, in turn, share their acquired skills with fellow cooperative members.
- The establishment of ICT business development centers at selected cooperative offices complements the ICT trainings. Such centers enable cooperative members and various Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) to gain access to ICT-related services.
- it@coops encourages the formation of online collaboration networks. The networks help the cooperative members, trainers, and project partners to be in contact and to improve their competitiveness through exchange of information, synchronization of operational procedures, and acting together on the market.
Since 2004, it@inwent has facilitated trainings of about 60 ICT multipliers of cooperatives and umbrella organizations in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand.
it@coops started with “Social Marketing” workshops in each country, bringing together leaders of the individual cooperatives, in order to ensure awareness and commitment to it@coops within respective management, right from the start. The participating cooperatives agreed to identify one, mostly female, representative take part in the it@coops ICT capacity development program and become the cooperative's ICT trainer.
|
Feature
Wanted: Learning material developers and training consultants for LPI [it@inwent]
Do you have experience in training others on the LPI, and/or are you part of a training institution? Then respond by 27th August 2010 to become part of an exciting training materials development programme on FOSS Certification, and/or to become one of our trainers of trainers
Application Deadline is 27th August, 2010.
Media Center Update! [it@inwent]
Our Media Center is updated!!¶
Please see it@inwent's press releases and articles in the MEDIA CENTER.¶
APPLICATION CLOSED - To all Asia Source 3 applicants: Thank you for your submission to AS3! [it@inwent]
ASIA SOURCE 3 (Second call) 07-12 November 2009 Silang, Cavite, Philippines
MABUHAY! (Long live!) and get ready for Asia Source 3!
If you are a FOSS advocate, an enthusiast or end-user, a developer or even a newbie who strongly believes in building capacities and empowering humanity with the use of Free/Open Source Software, we look forward to welcome you to Asia Source 3 to connect, cooperate, and collaborate – the FOSS way.
Apply until 11th September 2009!
http://www.asiasource3.net/
Wanted: Future trainers on “FOSS Business Models for Africa” in East and Southern Africa [it@inwent]
Are you interested in building a successful business in Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in East and Southern Africa, and in helping others to do the same?¶
Do you have a solid background in business and FOSS?¶
Do you have experience in training others, and/or are you part of a training institution?¶
¶
Apply until May 30, 2009!
Open Call for FOSS Experts and Consultants [it@inwent]
We look for internationally oriented free/open source software experts and consultants as specialist and coordinator for our advanced training programmes. The application questionnaire is attached to this article.
WANTED: Co-editors for materials on FOSS Business Models in Africa [it@inwent]
Are you interested in developing training materials that make the
case for exciting new business models in the area of Free and Open
Source Software in Africa?
Then respond to this call by *November 25* to become part of an
exciting programme to build African FOSS businesses.
New Capacity Building Project in Africa: ict@innovation
Call for experts for Idlelo 3 [it@inwent]
Joint call of FOSSFA and InWEnt:
Call for resource persons/experts on FOSS Business Models and Capacity Building at the Idlelo 3 conference (Dakar, Senegal) in March 2008
Application already closed!
News
Press Release: ict@innovation Training Handbook released: "Free your IT-Business in Africa!" [it@inwent]
"How can I build a sustainable business around Free and Open Source Software in Africa?"
- In order to answer this frequently asked question by young African IT-business owners, InWEnt and FOSSFA are pleased to present "ict@innovation: Free your IT-Business in Africa!” - a set of advanced training materials on African Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) Business Models for IT-enterprises.
Asia Source 3 meeting reinforces Asian Free and Open Source Software movement [it@inwent]
- 150 representatives from Asian NGOs and SMEs gather for open source camp
- Open source advocates discuss tools, business models, and communities
- Theme of Asia Source 3: Building Capacities and Empowering Humanity through FOSS
While most technology conferences happen as swanky, slick, and well-rehearsed events, the recently concluded Asia Source 3 took the opposite track and ran a camp that was spartan yet spontaneous. From November 7 to 12, 2009, Asia Source 3 gathered 150 representatives from all over Asia in the Philippines to discuss developments in open source. For those six days, the campers lived in a communal environment that married fun and relaxation with exchange of ideas.
Asian-African Partnerships for Business Development with Free and Open Source Software [it@inwent]
Connecting InWEnt supported programmes across the continents
Bonn, Manila, Accra – This year Software Freedom Day will be celebrated globally on the 19th of September 2009. For this occasion, InWEnt has brought together its programme partners from Asia and Africa in an Internet Chat where they met and discussed opportunities for cooperation.
APPLICATION CLOSED - To all Asia Source 3 applicants: Thank you for your submission to AS3! [it@inwent]
ASIA SOURCE 3 (Second call) 07-12 November 2009 Silang, Cavite, Philippines
MABUHAY! (Long live!) and get ready for Asia Source 3!
If you are a FOSS advocate, an enthusiast or end-user, a developer or even a newbie who strongly believes in building capacities and empowering humanity with the use of Free/Open Source Software, we look forward to welcome you to Asia Source 3 to connect, cooperate, and collaborate – the FOSS way.
Apply until 11th September 2009!
Wanted: Future trainers on “FOSS Business Models for Africa” [it@inwent]
Are you interested in building a successful business in Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in East and Southern Africa, and in helping others to do the same?
Do you have a solid background in business and FOSS?
Do you have experience in training others, and/or are you part of a training institution?
Then respond by MAY 30 to become part of an exciting training programme on building businesses with Free and Open Source Software.
|
| INTRODUCTION |
