Distribution of Video Conference to NAFIS Network member Organizations
COVID 19 Pandemic has negatively affected diverse sectors of society, social affairs, economics, and convivial mobility, it has incremented the burden for many civil society organizations to fight for their organization sustains due to the funding gaps resulted from the COVID19. The crisis resulted from COVID 19 has additionally brought challenges for the CSOs to redesign their projects to respond to the emergency of the COVID19, local CSOs have already experienced a shrinking in the civic space in sundry components of the country due to fund gaps.
Another challenge faced by many small CSOs in the current lockdown situation in Somaliland was the lack of appropriate equipment for effective virtual participation in training provided by NAFIS, stakeholder and donor meetings, and consultation with the regional and national counterparts coordinating COVID-19 response and FGM abandonment.
Therefore, in collaboration with ISF, NAFIS Network has distributed Video Conference equipment to its member organizations. The Video conference equipment will enable all NAFIS network member organizations to communicate in the country and outside of the country during international and local conferences and meetings to enhance their communication among their stakeholders and donors. Similarly, Video Conference equipment will enhance the connection between the organization’s staff at the regional and national level during the COVID 19.
During the distribution ceremony of the video Conference, the Executive Director of the NAFIS Network Mr. Abdirahman Osman Gas has highlighted the importance of the video conferences received by the member organization in NAFIS Network and how it will change their organization staffs, stakeholders, and donor communications.
Ahmed Mire from the International Solidarity Foundation office in Hargeisa, Somaliland has denoted that COVID 19 has entirely changed the way the world works, and it is needed the local CSOs to change their previous approach, they should come up with a new method to adopt the changing environment due to the COVID19, it is very imperative the local organization to work together to overcome the challenges from the COVID19. The video conference will enable the NAFIS network organizations to communicate with their donors and write proposals through video conferences.
NAFIS Network member organizations who received the Video Conferences denoted that the equipment will enhance their communication with the communities, stakeholders, donors, and government institutions. The video conference boosts organizations’ communication and productivity, it will save time, reduce travel expenses to meet the donors, or attend international conferences, similarly, the video conference equipment will promote collaboration with CSOs. The advantage of video conferencing is the ability to facilitate all of those benefits without requiring constant travel for face-to-face communication.
