Information Society Watch

L. Ramakrishnan, Digital Opportunity Channel

This article explores the work of SAATHII - Solidarity and Action Against the HIV Infection in India - a non-profit organisation launched in 2000 to facilitate dialogue among the diverse sectors involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS in India. The author reports on the organisation's use of various ICTs to provide information to activists, volunteers, NGO programme personnel, funders and policy makers, and also examines the lessons learned so far. SAATHII was among the first Indian non-profit organisations to use ICT tools in the HIV/AIDS area through through three main avenues: a Yahoo! group; an online directory of HIV/AIDS organisations; and the website (www.saathii.org) which provides information on HIV/AIDS in India. Qualitative evidence shows that saathii.org has become indispensable as a source of information on HIV/AIDS and SAATHII has networked effectively with most of the civil society agencies that are working against HIV/AIDS in India through its website, mailing list and resource directory. More recent activities of SAATHII include a range of capacity-building initiatives such as facilitating network-formation, mapping of resources and services, and information dissemination and technical assistance to service providers. In addition, SAATHII hosts the India satellite meetings at international AIDS conferences and is involved in advocacy for various treatment, support and care issues (Adapted from author).

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