ICT Training 2023

There are more than 6.3 lakh villages in India and approximately 30 lakh NPOs who claim to work for the betterment of these villages. This works out to around 5 NPOs serving one village! However, the impact these NPOs have on the lives of the villagers is not visible on the ground. The COVID-19 pandemic has also dwelt a body blow to each NPO causing a fund crunch and drastically affecting their impact in the field. The past two years have been particularly challenging for the development sector. The recession forced many NPOs to cut costs, scale-back programme activities and find new strategies for to generating funding and other resources. Primary amongst these has been the potential of the Internet, which was effectively used by individuals as well as NPO community.

We are currently living in a Digital Era. Society has been drastically transformed by digital means. And when society undergoes a change, NPOs cannot remain unaffected. ICT has become a very essential component for NPO functioning, particularly in the technology-driven age, where most information is just a click away, there is a need to be ‘out there’ to connect with younger generations to garner support, raise awareness, recruit volunteers, invite donors and use social media for good.

As technology is rapidly becoming accessible to the younger generation, NGOs with social media channels can easily spread their messages of goodwill and kindness among them. Social media adds that personal touch which was previously difficult to deliver through letters and emails. Now, NGOs have a direct line with their donors with whom they can communicate instantly to answer their queries and keep them updated about their work. According to the research published by the Tech Report in 2018, Facebook is the most popular social media platform with 92% NPOs around the world using it to connect with their supporters, followed by Twitter and Instagram. With over 4 billion users, it’s clear why social media can be an effective tool to bring change in society.

The internet and social media in itself are very powerful tools that can be used to raise awareness about social causes, charitable events, and volunteering opportunities. Hence, there is a need to make it easier for them to use social media for change. Therefore, it is essential that NGOs build their capacities in the field of ICT as part of the larger goal of benefitting society.

Many NPOs have little internal ICT capacity and infrastructure. Very few of them specialize in ICT issues as their primary and/or secondary activities. NPOs face numerous challenges in keeping up with rapidly changing ICT developments. These include developing internal organizational and educational processes, planning and implementing technology investments, developing and implementing electronic communication strategies, and staying abreast of a wide range of ICT policy issues that impact on the sector. Some of the main contributing factors in this regard are ignorance, lack of overall strategic direction, and lack of training and support. This has resulted in the uneven adoption of ICT across the sector, and without a significant change in the status of any of these factors, the potential impact of ICTs on the work of Indian NPOs will continue to be limited.

Embracing and integrating ICTs as a tool for communication, organizational development and service delivery represent huge opportunities in the process of transforming and strengthening the Indian NGO sector. The challenge is to expose NGOs to ICT issues, encourage them to take an active interest in these issues, sustain and expand this interest, and harness the power of ICTs in meeting their development and organizational objectives.

Vishwa Yuvak Kendra believes in the power of ICT and social media to bring change at the grassroots level. Considering the importance of the subject, and in order to capacitate NPOs and make them aware of the potential of ICT and how ICT could aid an organization’s growth, VYK is organizing a three-day residential training programme on ICT Tools and Techniques for NPOs from March 13-15, 2023 in its campus.

The participation fee for per participant is INR 1770/- all-inclusive (Rs. 1500 fee + Rs. 270 GST @18%). Nominations may be sent through post/ email by providing participants’ name, designation, contact number & e-mail ID along with a cheque/DD in favour of Vishwa Yuvak Kendra payable at New Delhi. Please note that the participation fee is to be paid at the time of nomination. In case of payment through online mode, details are as under: –

Name of the A/c Holder	Vishwa Yuvak Kendra
Account Number	15230100020938
Bank Name	Federal Bank
Branch Name	Connaught Circus Extension, New Delhi
IFSC Code	FDRL0001105

Though the last date for registration is 20 February 2023, registration may be closed earlier due to the availability of limited seats and high demand for course from participating NGOs. Hence, a first come first serve basis shall be applicable and aspirants are encouraged to initiate the registration process as per the earliest.

Please note that once the batch is filled, we will be unable to consider any further registration requests. The registration fee will not be refunded or adjusted against any other training programmes.