Omidyar offers Praekelt Foundation a grant

9 Dec 2010

JOHANNESBURG: Omidyar Network on Tuesday, 7 December 2010 announced an US$825,000 grant to the Praekelt Foundation to support its pioneering use of mobile technology to drive positive social change. Funded through Omidyar Network's Government Transparency investment area, the grant will be used to extend the foundation's mobile technology platforms across Africa.

Built to take advantage of rapidly growing mobile penetration throughout the continent, these mobile platforms aim to provide the technological foundation and infrastructure for a variety of initiatives focusing on healthcare, education, human rights and government transparency initiatives.

Positive social impact

"Omidyar Network is deeply committed to furthering the use of mobile technology to engage citizens on issues of importance to them, advance economic opportunity, and catalyze positive social impact," commented Stephen King, investment partner at Omidyar Network.

"Praekelt Foundation has been a leader in Africa in providing open source, mobile tools to educate and motivate citizens on crucial issues. Omidyar Network is proud to help extend their successes and apply these tools to advance transparency and accountability across the continent."

Providing information and tools for citizens

Through its Government Transparency investment area, Omidyar Network invests in organisations that use technology and media platforms to provide access to information and tools necessary for citizens to participate in the governing process, shape outcomes important to them, and hold governments to account.

Over the last two years, the firm has granted over US$30 million to organisations such as Ushahidi, Refugees United, Global Voices and FrontlineSMS. In October 2010, Omidyar Network and Hivos announced the creation of the Africa Transparency and Technology Initiative, an investment fund that supports the incubation of technology-driven initiatives in Africa that give citizens the tools to hold their governments to account.

Said Gustav Praekelt, founder of Praekelt Foundation, "We are very excited about this partnership with Omidyar Network, and about the potential for the institutional growth and expansion it holds for the organisation. Praekelt Foundation strives to be a leading mobile technology incubator for tools and services that benefit the poor. We believe this relationship with Omidyar Network will bring us closer to achieving this goal - both in Africa and in other emerging markets."