Team News
Awards
Liezl Coetzee — Senior Consultant: Liezl was selected as a winner for the 2008 International Travel Award by the American Evaluation Association (AEA) and the International & Cross-Cultural Evaluation Topical Interest Group. She presented two papers, one on the monitoring and evaluation of population policy, and another on monitoring and evaluating biodiversity. Liezl has recently been awarded another scholarship to visit the African Evaluation Association Conference in Cairo and will be representing Southern Hemisphere there.
New Arrivals...We welcome to our team:
Cathy Chames— Senior Consultant: Cathy has an MA in Social Development, is a registered social worker and brings with her extensive experience in various fields. She has developed a psycho-social support programme for refugee children, has worked in the childcare system in the UK, managing a children's home for street children in Cape Town and initiated a peer mediation programme at a school in Cape Town. Cathy is lecturing a course on Community Development for the University of Cape Town Department of Social Development.
Christy Tawii—Junior Project Officer: Christy has completed a BTech in Environmental Management and is currently conducting one course in GIS. She joined Southern Hemisphere as an intern in 2008 and has been promoted to Junior Projects Officer in 2009. Christy has done a learnership at the City of Windhoek in Namibia and was a volunteer for the mass polio immunisation program in Namibia in 2006. Her interests include project management and issues concerning environmental and socio-economic development.
Thokozani Norushe - Projects Officer: Thokozani holds an Honours degree in Social Anthropology and is working towards her Masters in Sociology at UCT. She worked with the Department of Environmental Affairs where she was part of a team that trained 45 teachers in Climate Change concepts.Her main research interests are in the field of policy development and the impact of HIV/AIDS on orphaned children.
New Beginnings
We sadly say goodbye to Thokozani Mhlambi who has moved to JHB to read for a PhD in African History having received a Ford Foundation Scholarship to study at Monash University. Thokozani was with us as a Projects Officer in 2009 and we really enjoyed his spirit in our office. He still remains associated with Southern Hemisphere and will work on projects with us from Jozi. Look out for him around town!
Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation
Government Wide M&E System: Planning, monitoring and evaluation (P,M&E) plays an important part in any organisation’s assessment of themselves and the programmes they implement. GWME has over the past few years played a key role in promoting monitoring and evaluation (M&E) in all spheres of government, with the aim of strengthening the role of the monitoring function. The growth of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) units in
government, together with an increased supply of M&E expertise from the private sector, calls for a common language on M&E.
Southern Hemisphere is at the cutting-edge of this phenomenon. We have been in the field since 1999 and have
remained current all these years. We are confident about calling ourselves innovative leaders in the PM&E world.
We have conducted evaluations, designed monitoring and evaluation systems, and trained many people in
Project planning monitoring and evaluation. Through our P,M&E services, we help to build learning organisations. Our evaluation ethos is that monitoring and evaluation should not only help with accountability, but should also help to build the capacity of the organisation to improve programme implementation and delivery.
Our P,M&E approach is firmly rooted in the theory of organisational learning, and we help to build cultures of learning. We have always had a results based focus and employ participatory methods to ensure buying from key stakeholders. Southern Hemisphere has developed and tested a participatory means of implementing M&E systems in Government. We offer consultancy and training in this. Visit the website for more details on our consultancy and courses. See www.southernhemisphere.co.za
Supporting Advocacy
Southern Hemisphere Consultants (SHC) is involved in supporting advocacy efforts towards those engaged in the promotion of social justice. We seek to maximise the impact of our work in our chosen fields, conducting rigorous evaluations, disseminating our knowledge and experience and contributing to public policy development. Advocacy is important as it ensures that organizations address the context in which they operate, and are not only output focused. Our task is to support communities and NGOs so they can sustain and improve their operations, participate in public policy debates, and help to influence the environments in which they work. For instance, when working with school going youth, an organization may need to look at the whole school environment in order to achieve an impact. Working with the learners may not be enough to get lasting behavior change.
Submissions: The Catholic Justice and Peace Commission operates under the sponsorship of the South African Catholic Bishop’s Conference, and they approached Southern Hemisphere to assist with their response to the Western Cape Liquor Bill. Nana Davies wrote a submission focusing on how the Draft Liquor Bill affects poor people on behalf of the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace. In 2006 Dena Lomofsky also assisted them with a crime survey that they had conducted which informed a submission on crime to National Parliament. We have also helped numerous NGOs plan and evaluate their advocacy programmes over the years.
Bridging the gap between the state and non-state sector & upscaling
As Government looks to increase the pace, reach and quality of service delivery, it turns towards the Non-State sector, including NPOs for solutions. There are many
excellent models in the NPO sector that can be upscaled and replicated with the support of government.
The key concern is to see that the goals of state and non-state actors are met in a way that is mutually reinforcing. Considering the different mandates of Government and NGO’s, and the power imbalances, it is not an easy terrain to traverse. This is a question we have been thinking about deeply!
Southern Hemisphere has recently been involved in 3 projects that look at how to bridge the divide between the state and non-state sector in order to upscale and improve service delivery. Dena Lomofsky was the lead researcher on these projects and together with Southern Hemisphere was selected due to our company’s intimate knowledge of the NPO landscape as well as the understanding of government programmes
and our ability to conduct
sectoral and structural analysis.
The first was a chapter in a research report for the Department of Trade and Industry looking at how the NPO sector could be strengthened from a supply side to facilitate equity, employment and growth.
The second was for the HRSC as part of a study on scaling up Early Childhood Development in South Africa. The aim is ultimately to improve the potential of all children reaching formal school age. The research focused on the possible use of intermediary support organizations in support of the National Integrated Plan (NIP) for ECD. Various models that were explored included social franchising, networks and capacity building mentorship models.
The third is a project for Shisaka Development on behalf of the EPWP Phase II. The EPWP became interested in the concept of intermediary organizations as a means
of extending EPWP into the non-state sector. Southern Hemisphere is currently
assisting with identifying the potential of NPOs to provide employment opportunities
for EPWP.
As Government looks to increase the pace, reach and quality of service delivery, it turns towards the Non-State sector, including NPOs for solutions. There are many
excellent models in the NPO sector that can be upscaled and replicated with the support of government. The key concern is to see that the goals of state and non-state
actors are met in a way that is mutually reinforcing. Considering the different mandates of Government and NGO’s, and the power imbalances, it is not an easy terrain to traverse. This is a question we have been thinking about deeply!
New MISSION for 2009—2011
Southern Hemisphere specializes in participatory development interventions with a focus on building learning organisations.
We assist the State, NGOs, academic institutions, civil society groups, CSIs, multi-lateral organisations and
donors through:
• Applied Research and Evaluations
• Facilitation
• Planning, Monitoring,
Evaluation, and Reporting :-design, development and implementation
• Capacity Building
• Organisational Development
By remaining committed to our vision, values, staff and outstanding service, and through working with excellent consultants and partnering with our clients, we will continue to facilitate sustainable outcomes.
New VISION for 2009—2011
Southern Hemisphere Consultants is a leading, dynamic, socio-economic development consultancy which contributes to creating a better world through strengthening transformative processes for social justice
HANDY TIP:
An electronic M&E system cannot be designed before the paper based Monitoring and Evaluation Framework is in Place. Ask an IT developer to design you an electronic M&E system without it and you are looking for disappointment.
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