Sangonet and Easigiving have introduced Backabuddy, an online fundraising portal that allows South Africans to donate to their favourite cause and support a sporting event at the same time.
According to Sangonet executive director David Barnard, Backabuddy provides a simple, locally-developed solution that allows people to donate money by credit card or debit card. NGOs can also use the portal to raise funds online, he says.
Backabuddy allows people to support their friend's sporting, commemorative or corporate events through donations.
"Charities and NGOs benefit financially and their friends have the satisfaction of knowing their efforts have been recognised," he says.
The portal has already been tested, and was found to be effective, says Easigiving director Sue Peiser.
"In the first three weeks of operation, Backabuddy collected over R60 000 on behalf of the Childhood Cancer Foundation SA through four riders in the 2008 Cape Argus and Cape Epic," she says.
Free listing
According to Barnard, NGOs seeking to take part in the fundraising system can apply for a free listing.
"Once registered, an NGO can communicate its status to a broad audience, encouraging charity champions to participate in fundraising events such as running, cycling, swimming or even something as simple as a shave-athon," he says.
The charity champion creates a free page on Backabuddy, and e-mails the information to a range of potential supporters, nominating a specific charity or NGO as the beneficiary, he says.
He notes that Backabuddy has been officially appointed as a credit card payment portal for the "Discovery 702 Walk The Talk", an event punted to be the biggest walking event in Africa.
The event will take place on 27 July, and is expected to attract over 30 000 walkers.
"We are very excited about our involvement in this project as it provides us with an opportunity to promote the strategic benefits of the Internet to NGOs in SA," says Barnard.
Sangonet will provide potential donors for this event with detailed information about the NGOs profiled for support on Backabuddy through its Prodder NGO directory, he says.
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