OpenUpSA

24/06/2026

Big news: Cohort 1 grantees are already onboarding, and Cohort 2 applications are opening soon! The DDISA Fund supports community-based civil society organisations across Sub-Saharan Africa to advance digital democracy, and the next round is almost here.

Follow for updates, sign up for the DDISA newsletter, and visit the website to learn more.

📩 https://buff.ly/npjxg8s
🌐 https://buff.ly/JGLlJDZ

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation Civic Tech Innovation Network

22/06/2026

Tell us what you think! Help us build a better Census Wazi for you by filling out our (super quick) survey.

❓https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSegGS4Bl7A_ja9JQPn0RcMQS09_muQO83rzI5QoiNept-9XBA/viewform

19/06/2026

When data is missing or ignored, policy fails. Through the Africa Climate and Health Data Capacity Accelerator Network (Africa CAN), OpenUp and the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data brought together climate and health data experts from Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, and Ghana at the recent in Nairobi.

The focus? How do we turn data evidence into policy that fits local context, and actually sticks.

Read the full blog by OpenUp CEO Gabriella Razzano: https://openup.org.za/blog/policy-lessons-from-a-data-classroom

In early June, the Global Data Festival and Kenya Space Conference (GDF-KSEC) was hosted in Nairobi. Seizing the opportunity, OpenUp and our partners from the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data hosted a session as a continuation of our work on the Capacity Accelerator Network to bri...

16/06/2026

Meetings held, attendance rates, bills debated – but hundreds of learners still haven't set foot in a classroom this year. This Youth Day, ParliMeter dug into five key portfolio committees to see how Parliament is handling youth issues.

📊👉 Read the full article: https://www.parlimeter.org.za/post/youth-issues-in-parliament-50-years-after-soweto

OUTA - Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse Parliamentary Monitoring Group - PMG Equal Education

12/06/2026

If you applied for Cohort 1 of the DDISA Fund, check your inbox – application status notifications are out! 📬

Congratulations to all successful applicants. We're excited to support your projects over the next three months. 🎉

Questions about your application? Reach out to [email protected]

🌐Learn more: https://buff.ly/CmrqB8A
Sign up for our quarterly newsletter: https://buff.ly/67Ftx75

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation Civic Tech Innovation Network

09/06/2026

Some snaps from the and Kenya Space Expo & Conference in Nairobi!

OpenUp was represented by Adam Oxford, data journalist and strategy consultant, who hosted a workshop with the Africa Climate and Health Capacity Accelerator Network (CAN). The session unpacked how data scientists and academics can communicate their work clearly and build data strategies that feed meaningfully into policy. OpenUp CEO Gabriella Razzano joined remotely to reflect on climate, health and data policy across Africa.

Learn more about Africa CAN: https://www.data4sdgs.org/initiatives/capacity-accelerator-network

04/06/2026

📊 What does your municipality look like in data?

Census Wazi, our prototype dashboard, puts 2022 Census data across all 213 South African municipalities at your fingertips: Population, languages, education, water access, energy use and more. Start with a place you know and see what the numbers say.

Check out the guide, then tell us what you think – your feedback will directly shape what gets built next.💬
Get it here: https://buff.ly/sXa1Ww1

03/06/2026

🌍 You're invited to our next brown bag session!

On 11 June 2026, OpenUp and Africa Data Hub are hosting a free online session exploring GIBSON – a tool that makes exploring NASA satellite imagery data simple and accessible.

OpenUp developer Dirk Meerkotter will show how GIBSON streamlines browsing NASA GIBS imagery layers, making geospatial data easier to navigate for everyone.

📅 11 June 2026
🕐 1:00–2:00 PM SAST
💻 Online via MS Teams

Register here: https://buff.ly/q8s3ghL

01/06/2026

Is South Africa's parliament truly representative, or just diverse on paper?

OUTA - Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse's new Indicators for Democratic Parliaments report (Target 7: Representative Parliament) finds that while our electoral system is strong, real influence remains unevenly distributed. Women, youth, persons with disabilities and smaller parties still face barriers to meaningful participation in leadership and decision-making.

Presence is not enough. Read the full assessment on ParlimeterSA: https://www.parlimeter.org.za/post/representative-parliament

Parliamentary Monitoring Group - PMG

29/05/2026

Turning a less-than-ideal situation into an opportunity. 🌱

The DDISA team has turned the content from the workshop we were scheduled to present at RightsCon26 into a free DIY online resource – Ubuntu Economics: Building Sustainable Funding Models for Digital Democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa.

If your organisation is working on democracy and civic tech projects and grappling with funding sustainability, this is for you. It includes practical activities, revenue mapping, a pitch framework and a budgeting sheet – all free to access.

Blog article 👉 https://buff.ly/fUSLYei
Straight to the workshop 👉 https://buff.ly/BOUKUrX

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation Civic Tech Innovation Network