We have been working with Tshikululu Social Investments, contributing data to their “Mapping Social Investors Response to Covid-19 in South Africa”  an impressive initiative and available online at https://tshikululu.org.za/

In an article recently published by Tshikululu, their Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist Nyaradzo Mutanha said: “COVID-19 has not only brought the world to a standstill, but it has thrown us into the future where there is no choice but to use technology to work collaboratively and remotely. The pandemic has forced us to start thinking differently.  COVID-19 has not only left countries reeling, but has forced social investors – whether they are grantmakers or impact investors – to think creatively about crafting solutions that are responsive to the current environment.

“Social investment responses have taken a variety of forms, including emergency food parcels, provision of PPE, water supplies, psychosocial support, educational support (e.g. data for e-learning) and support to small business, to name just a few. Although the examples of social investors contributing to the fight against the virus are powerful and inspiring, accountability and transparency of social spending is just as – if not more – important today than before the pandemic. Impact Management and Measurement (IMM) under these circumstances is particularly challenging given restrictions on movement and the rapid evolution of conditions in communities all over the country. With this in mind, social investors must identify smart and intelligent ways of collecting, monitoring and reporting data.

“There are numerous remote data collection and monitoring methods/tools that IMM practitioners can use to collect data in order to monitor COVID-19 response interventions.  We are currently carrying out a “rapid response” survey with our network of nearly 1 000 organisations we work and partner with every year. This will help us build a deeper understanding of how the pandemic is impacting on important development work around the country and gain insight on what the “post-COVID” world may look like for these stakeholders. In addition, we are mapping our clients’ impressive response to the pandemic thus far – they have allocated more than R300 million in funding to date – to prevent duplication and identify opportunities for leverage.

“Needless to say, everything has changed and the world will never be the same.”

Source: Tshikululu