Nelson Mandela Foundation goes digital

Johannesburg, 01 Oct 2004

The Nelson Mandela Foundation (NMF) has appointed a new ICT strategist and has also launched a redesigned Web site as part of the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory and Commemoration Project, held in late September.

Digital Mall`s founder and CEO, Yaron Assabi, will take on the role of ICT strategist with the NMF, while his company has also sponsored the redesigned Web site.

"ICT forms an integral part of everything we do at the NMF, and it is our aim to use these technologies to demonstrate new possibilities to expand our social development agenda. Digital Mall has enabled us to explore new ways of doing this," says COO Tim Scholtz.

Digital Mall has redesigned the site in order to make it e-commerce-enabled and has added a new content management system, which will manage all content on the site and the addition of all future content to the NMF Web site.

The site will act as the central repository for the NMF as it seeks to continue Mandela`s legacy and has been designed with ease of use and clarity of purpose in mind.

"It is a privilege and an honour to be involved with the foundation and the great work it does and we look forward to assisting the NMF by using ICT solutions to further broadcast its message," says Assabi.

As part of its social contribution, Digital Mall has arranged a fund-raising opportunity with the help of the three cellular operators.

Using an SMS-based solution, members of the public can interact with and pledge support to the NMF via a short code SMS service that uses Mandela`s prison number, 46664. Each SMS is charged at R20, the proceeds of which go to the foundation.

Digital Mall also helped the NMF to provide its first live Webcast, allowing many people globally to view the launch of the Centre of Memory and Commemoration Project, together with the launch of a new exhibit tracing Mandela`s time in prison entitled "46664: A Prisoner in the Garden".