Each year, people across the world are encouraged to celebrate Nelson Mandela International Day by engaging in 67 minutes of community service, honouring the 67 years that Mandela spent fighting for equality and social justice. Today, we want to explore how civic tech tools and open data can be used to enable active citizenship and public service – and help you do your part this Mandela Day.
At a 1990 rally in Durban, Mandela said: “Since my release, I have become more convinced than ever that the real makers of history are the ordinary men and women of our country. Their participation in every decision about the future is the only guarantee of true democracy and freedom.”
Civic technology aims to make it easier for citizens to interact with their governments by facilitating citizen participation and advocacy across a range of community issues. Access to understandable government data lowers the barrier to entry for citizens to stay knowledgeable on the matters affecting their communities, which in turn allows them to take action through informed voting, community organising or by reaching out to governing representatives to advocate for specific issues.
As a civic tech organisation, OpenUp has a variety of readily available tools that can help South Africans identify pressing matters in their communities, get involved and play a role in the decision-making that affects them presently and in the future.
Know your community
While the last census was criticised for its data gaps, it is still an essential dataset to better understand South Africa and the challenges it faces. Wazimap-powered dashboards like Youth Explorer, Community Explorer and our latest prototype, Census Wazi, can give you broader insight into the socioeconomic reality of your community and surroundings.
“A fundamental concern for others in our individual and community lives would go a long way in making the world the better place we so passionately dreamt of.” – Nelson Mandela, 2008
For example, you can use Census Wazi to take a look at demographic and service delivery markers like education levels, sources of water or refuse and rubbish collection to gauge which areas in your vicinity are in the most dire need of fundraising schemes, volunteer assistance or local government advocacy.
Find the gaps
Created in collaboration with the South African National Treasury, Municipal Money is a tool designed to help you easily keep tabs on how your municipality is implementing their budget and spending your tax money. You can track overview statistics such as overall spending, liquidity and wasteful expenditure – or zoom in on how much your municipality is spending on specific categories such as Governance, Health, Waste Management or Road and Transport. This allows you to gain a deeper understanding of which spending sectors your municipality is prioritising, and which may be neglected.
"The time has come to accept in our hearts and minds that with freedom comes responsibility." – Nelson Mandela, 1995
You can also use ParliMeter, a parliamentary oversight dashboard developed in collaboration with the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) and the Parliamentary Monitoring Group (PMG), to explore how specific issues are being addressed on a national level by tracking committee activity, parliamentary bills and progress on recommendations made in Budget Review and Recommendations Reports (BRRRs).
Act on what you find
Once you have identified local issues affecting you or your community, you can take action by finding fundraising initiatives or volunteering opportunities in your area, where you can spend your 67 minutes of service. You can also contribute through advocacy – by looking up your ward councillor or relevant mayoral committee members to reach out to them directly or by logging a formal service request.
If you want to take it up a level, you can access this Constituency Map to find your nearest constituency office and look up which Member of Parliament (MP) is linked to your constituency in order to raise your concerns with them. Although constituency offices currently occupy a somewhat grey area in South African systems of governance, each MP is supposed to serve a specific local area (or constituency), acting as a direct line to Parliament for local issues.
“Whether you change the linen or stitch up wounds, cook the food or dispense the medicines, it is in your hands to help build a public service worthy of all those who gave their lives for the dream of democracy.” – Nelson Mandela, 1998
Staying informed about the matters affecting your community and the ways in which your local government is addressing (or not addressing) those matters doesn’t have to be difficult. Civic tech tools can help ensure that your community service and advocacy is backed up by the relevant data – on this Mandela Day, and on any other day of the year.
