[UgaBYTES] Roles and Responsibilities of telecentrecommittees|response

[Kiringai Kamau]

Dear All,
I have been out of circulation, not promising much that I am back but this
discussion is important to me for one reason that roles and responsibilities
among staff and the board, otherwise called governance, in telecentres is
taken differently by different people.

When a charity like the telecentre is to consider the laying out of roles
and responsibilities, my view is that it is difficult to have a very
balanced board from volunteers unless there is some other dimension to the
reason behind the creation of the telecentre. In this case as happens in all
issues where governance is considered, the critical challenge is the content
that a member of staff or board will address...

In other words it is what service that the telecentre delivers to the
community that makes it attract one personality or the other in its board or
management.

The minute a telecentre becomes sustainable, it is bound to have a high
caliber board and staff too, it's programmes are therefore bound to
demonstrate the same level of maturity.

What is needed therefore is to ensure that the programmes offered at the
telecentre appeal to the community with products that appeal to people and
communities of from all levels of the social strata. The larger the social
appeal in the product offering or content, the better the quality of the
management and the board.

It is therefore logical using this thinking to say that Telecentre
committees will have clearly defined responsibilities where its products and
service offering are clearly defined.

Kiringai Kamau


-----Original Message-----
From: ugabytes-bounces at lists.ugabytes.org
[mailto:ugabytes-bounces at lists.ugabytes.org] On Behalf Of B. Shadrach
Sent: Tuesday, September 09, 2008 6:41 AM
To: ugabytes at lists.ugabytes.org
Subject: Re: [UgaBYTES] Roles and Responsibilities of
telecentrecommittees|response

Hi Meddie

This is an interesting discussion.  In some places, the committees have
moved a step forward in defining the charter of the telecentre it governs,
ensuring that the minimum service standards are met by those who staff these
centres.  In some other places, the committee, as is drawn from members of
the various sections within the society, has been doing its best to protect
the interest of the entire community, especially the section they represent
(such as teachers, housewives, hospital staff, local authorities, local
businesses, children, the elderly, young adults, etc.)

In the Philippines, interestingly there are engineers on the committee, most
often appointed by the Municipality, who seem to use their logistics and
planning skills to support the telecentre with its technical and business
planning.

Cheers
Shaddy


-----Original Message-----
From: ugabytes-bounces at lists.ugabytes.org
[mailto:ugabytes-bounces at lists.ugabytes.org] On Behalf Of Meddie Mayanja
Sent: September 9, 2008 2:10 AM
To: ugabytes at lists.ugabytes.org
Subject: [UgaBYTES] Roles and Responsibilities of telecentre
committees|response


In response to the question about the roles and responsibilities of
telecentre committees:

In ideal situation, it matters a lot what the telecentre is doing, the type
of ownership (community or private) and why the committee is started in the
first place. These issues would determine the roles and responsibilities of
the committee at the end of the day.

Let me assume that this is a community focused telecentre and all other
considerations support this.

The roles of the committee would be broadly include:

- Provide technical advice and feedback to the telecentre staff
- Help telecentre staff to find additional partners, resources and contacts
that would help the telecentre to flourish
- Support the telecentre in marketing its services in the community

I know that committees are very helpful in running telecentres but if they
are not well defined can be a major source of problems. Yes, we have seen a
number of cases where committees have not worked well with staff. In most
cases, this has come from unclear defination of roles or guidance of the
committees about how they would deliver their part.

May I invite telecentres with committees to share how they defined roles as
well.

Regards, Meddie


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