A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Embedded and Mobile Systems of the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology
Civil Society Organizations are non-governmental and not-for-profit organizations which act
as a bridge between the government, society and the private sector by holding the
government accountable and give a voice to the marginalized groups on issues such as
education, health and other sectors. The problem in this study is that currently, the
information about CSOs and their activities in East Africa cannot be found in one place
online and it is inaccurate and sometimes outdated. The data collection was done through
questionnaires, observations and interviews with different stakeholders in the civil society
arena. In the system development phase, agile development methodology was used. The
study showed that there is a gap in the availability of a single platform where different actors
can readily get reliable and up-to-date information about the available CSOs of interest. The
outcome of the study is the development of an interactive online directory of Civil Society
Organizations. The platform is mobile based and enables CSOs to register and fill up their
current details, ensuring that there is always correct and updated information. The platform is
equipped with a geo-mapping facility which enables users of the system to correctly geo locate their civil societies of interest on a map. The results of system evaluation showed that
88.125% of users were satisfied with the system basing on the evaluation criteria. The
developed system will benefit stakeholders in the non-profit sector by having one platform
where accurate and up-to-date information about civil societies can be easily found.