There is such a wealth of information on Africa produced in Africa. While the Internet has helped these organizations to elevate their profile so that more people are aware of them, social networking sites such as Facebook and YouTube provide platforms where the general public can get to know more about Africa.

The Organization for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa (OSSREA) is a research and capacity-building organization that works to encourage more dialogue between researchers and policy makers in eastern and southern Africa. The main office is located on the campus of Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia.

Institutions and individuals can join and gain access to the online resources that are quite interesting and varied and provide a platform for social science research on a range of topics. They also have a Facebook page where their list of “Favorite Pages” is another source of interesting information on a range or resources such as Wikigender.

YouTube has also provided a platform for the general public to access information about Africa by Africans. A recent example is the video of Chimamanda Adichie’s “The danger of a single story,” featured as one the Tedtalks. This is a powerful reminder to all of us of the danger of looking at Africa through a single lens. There is also a powerful YouTube piece on Rural Women Solar Engineers of Africa that showcases the rural women who brought solar electricity to rural villages the different countries in Africa. It also raises questions about effective and cost effective approaches to education, workforce development and the role of women. It also offers some concrete examples of effective approaches that have demonstrated to work.

For funders interested in supporting organizations and projects in Africa, there are lots of resources to help you to understand better the context of the community and to provide some food for thought. Don’t forget these social media sights as part of your research. While the “openness” of these platforms enables it to be a forum for possible misinformation, it also provides an opportunity to see and learn about things that are working but absence from the major newspaper and media outlets.

If there are some examples you would like to share, please send them to me at blog@africagrantmakers.org