Advances in technology have incentivized higher levels of transparency and paved new ways for information visualization among NGOs. Mapping, here meaning the display of information on a map, is rapidly becoming a favorite tool of organizations for showing off their work. Regardless of which continent, country, state or city, we have the ability to be there and see “who is doing what, where.”
InterAction’s recently launched NGO Aid Map initiative is focused on collecting project-level information on NGOs’ work and making it accessible to donors, NGOs, businesses, governments and the public through an online, interactive mapping tool. Its aim in doing so is to increase transparency within the NGO community, facilitate partnerships and improve coordination among NGOs, the private sector, governments and donors, and help NGOs and others involved in relief and development make more informed decisions about where to direct resources. Mending the confines of traditional vehicles (i.e. annual reports, financial statements, etc.) that promote transparency and accountability, this form of innovative transparency complements conventional methods by utilizing emerging technologies to package, visualize and share information.
Loaded with interactive maps, appealing data layouts and rich multimedia, NGO Aid Map serves as an information hub for a broad spectrum of audiences ranging from the seasoned professional looking for collaborative opportunities, the public citizen who is trying to decide which charity to contribute to or a teacher utilizing it as an aide in a classroom full of students. A built-in export feature allow users to extract data in two formats and manipulate the information to fit individual needs.
See a woman buy food using her mobile phone in Haiti, a child enjoying sweet potatoes in Mali or women learning about growing seasons in Nepal.
Through NGO Aid Map, InterAction has visually depicted the breadth of member NGOs responding to the January 12 earthquake that devastated Haiti and members’ work in the food security and agriculture arena. InterAction has collected data on over 1,600 projects spanning 68 countries around the world. The platform is tailored to allow users to view project information based on a country of interest, a specific organization or one of twelve sectors and includes information on project duration, geographic location(s), budget, donors, partners and beneficiaries, amongst others.
For more information on the NGO Aid Map initiative, please email mappinginfo@interaction.org.
