SXSW 2012 - SMS And Social Change: Lessons From Senegal

SMS And Social Change: Lessons From Senegal
Event	Interactive 2010
Format	Panel
Organizer	Terra Weikel – UNICEF
Description	UNICEF and Tostan project managers from the US and Senegal will present lessons learned, questions remaining, and interesting data gathered from the 2009-2010 project that is launching and testing several SMS services in Senegalese communities, integrating them into a non-formal education program, with a focus on empowering girls and women.
Questions Answered	What is Tostan's traditional work; in which areas has their work been particularly effective? What are the challenges to literacy learning and literacy practice in rural West Africa, including special obstacles that girls and women face? What are the obstacles to communication in rural Senegal? What were the mobile/SMS-based strategies initially proposed by Tostan and UNICEF to meet these challenges? What was the technology used during this project? What were some challenges faced by the rural communities in this pilot, when adopting new technologies? What changed between the start of the project and the end, in our thinking about how SMS technology could support literacy learning and community empowerment? What are the various factors to consider that affect the success of SMS-based programs like this? In the longer term, what kind of outcomes are UNICEF and Tostan expecting? What's the next significant step that Tostan/UNICEF expect to take, in providing mobile solutions to the communities they serve?
Level	Intermediate
Category