From safe online shopping and e-hailing a ride around town to supporting the next generation with digital skills, gogos (grandmothers) in Alexandra Township are finally entering the world of WhatsApp group chats, mobile apps and emails, thanks to non-governmental organisation (NGO) goGOGOgo and its iGOGO training programme.
For over four years, iGOGO has been instrumental in equipping gogos across the country with digital skills and development programmes and empowering them as agents of change in their families and communities. “With many gogos playing the role of caregiver, and taking on the responsibility of raising their grandchildren, and with children in South Africa expected to begin using digital devices once they reach Grade 7, the goal of the initiative is to equip gogos with the knowledge and skills necessary to support this process,” says Jane Simmonds, Executive Director and Founder of goGOGOgo.
To help expand the reach and efficacy of the programme, one of South Africa’s leading fibre network providers, Vuma, has been working with goGOGOgo to assist in delivering much-needed ICT training and digital devices to gogos for over three years through the GOGOs with Vuma partnership.
The Vuma Fibre to Schools’ project, which has connected over 780 schools, plays a vital role in the GOGOs with Vuma initiative. The GOGOs with Vuma digital skills training workshops are hosted in partnership with Vuma-connected schools in selected regions, with teaching staff and learners helping to spread the word and encourage their grandmothers to join. To date, the iGOGO project has impacted over 500 gogos nationally and over 230 of these gogos have graduated through GOGOs with Vuma.
“In all our programmes, we are driven by a goal to stimulate educational and economic activity in local communities. By ensuring that our gogos are digitally equipped, we support them to participate in today’s modern economy, wholly fulfil their roles as breadwinners and carers – raising over 4 million grandchildren and assisting them with homework – as well as providing digital access to jobs and academic opportunities,” says Taylor Kwong, Head of Marketing at Vuma.
Kwong adds that with schools adjusting to the modern methods of teaching and offering educational support while changing their communication platforms, this initiative helps gogos stay updated with what’s happening in their grandchildren’s educational lives and provides the support needed by the learners such as keeping up with the schools digitised systems, helping them with research tasks for assignments and homework.
“This benefit goes beyond gogos themselves, creating a ripple effect on the overall economic growth and development of their families and communities. Their grandchildren will be prepared to participate in the increasingly digital society we live in when they graduate and become educated members of the community who can possibly bring change one day,” says Kwong.
This initiative has seen impactful milestones over the years, expanding to five provinces in the country and updating the training programme to now focus on cybersecurity when shopping online or using internet banking. This ensures grandmothers do not fall prey to online scams and fraud that would typically target elderly users. “Imagine how much easier would life be for a gogo in Seshego, Polokwane for instance, if she could have her groceries delivered to her home with Checkers Sixty60? It’s just about teaching gogos how to use the apps safely and responsibly,” says Jane.
“If a grandmother’s life is made easier and more convenient as the head of the household responsible for managing finances and taking care of the well-being of the family, then the life of the household as a whole automatically becomes easier,” adds Simmonds. Furthermore, iGOGO training also includes a session on the value of reading to children using the Book Dash app, an open-source app with thousands of free-to-access stories all originating from African authors.
“We, the gogos…”
goGOGOgo aims to give gogos a platform and amplify their voices as they navigate the digital world and take advantage of new opportunities. Other programmes offered by the NGO include GOGOvision, a programme to provide grandmothers with eye tests and prescription spectacles as required and GOGOBox, allowing gogos to get fit and have fun boxing once a week. A new project in the pipeline is Masifunde GOGO, a reading club for gogos to provide them with children’s books and teaching the importance and value of reading to children up to the age of 13 to improve childhood literacy.
“Your life changes if you can access the internet and for our gogos, this training and the many projects facilitated by goGOGOgo have the potential to change their lives for the better. But as we know in South Africa, internet access is expensive,” says Simmonds. “They need data, so they don’t have to choose between buying data or buying food. We are appealing for funders to join us in our work to bridge the digital divide.”
For sponsorship or donation queries, contact Jane Simmonds at [email protected], or visit www.go-gogo-go.org.za for more information on goGOGOgo’s many life-changing initiatives.