Stockholm Challenge

http://event.stockholmchallenge.se/.

Indian project CAM-Mobile a finalist in the prestigious Stockholm Challenge Award 2008
 

(Stockholm April 2, 2008) The Indian project CAM-Mobile Enabled SHG Microfinance Management System has been selected as a finalist in the Economic Development category of the Stockholm Challenge Award 2008. For this achievement the project team has been invited to Challenge Week, May 19 – 22 in Stockholm, featuring the award dinner and ceremony, a series of workshops, conference and exhibition of ICT for development projects from over 50 countries.

The project is developed by Ekgaon Technologies (http://www.ekgaon.com/), a company specializing in design and development of technologies and information systems for rural areas in developing communities. CAM-Mobile Enabled SHG Microfinance Management System was chosen as a finalist for the way it demonstrates how a wide range of service access to can be offered to remote communities. It is based on the Ekgaon Technologies vision to use ICT to help create a healthier and more equitable world. The project now has a chance of winning the Stockholm Challenge Economic Development Trophy plus a prize award of 5.000 Euros.

The Stockholm Challenge Award is a leading ICT for Development Prize, since 1997. The winning projects in each of the six categories will be announced during the spectacular Gala Evening in the Stockholm City Hall on May 22.

“The Stockholm Challenge programme 2008 has been targeting ICT for Development projects globally”, says project manager Ulla Skidén and adds: “Great efforts have been put into the search for excellent examples of information and communication technologies that show convincing benefits to people and communities, wide impact and strategies for future sustainability. CAM-Mobile Enabled SHG Microfinance Management System is such a project and therefore it deserves its place among this year´s finalists”.

This is how the Ekgaon Technologies staff describes their visions of their finalist project:

“The main objective is to provide real time information of microfinance transactions of SHG’s available online and on time anywhere. The secondary objective is to enable rural women to get financial and non-financial assistance by using timely and accurate information, which in its turn will lead to economical and social upliftment. The wider vision is to get service access to the communities in other sectors like non-financial services through banks, insurance, retail, providing real time market information of agro-products, prices of commodities etc.”

The program for Challenge Event can be found here: http://event.stockholmchallenge.se/.

For more information, please contact Ulla Skidén, Project Manager, Stockholm Challenge Telephone +46 (0) 70 678 72 82, e-mail: ulla.skiden@stockholmchallenge.se

The Stockholm Challenge is a biannual awards programme since 1994 when it was launched by the City of Stockholm. It is now owned by the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm and sponsored by the
City of Stockholm, Ericsson and Sida.