Exchange to Change Sept 2017 20170911 E2C zomer web | Page 11

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Tanzanian IOB Alumni Seminar & Launch Synergy Platform
In the framework of IOB’s Going global programme, IOB
and Mzumbe University jointly organized an alumni seminar
and launched their Synergy platform. Milanzi Mursali (Mzumbe). Afterwards, a poster reception
showcased previous and current work of IOB & Mzumbe
alumni, students and staff.
On 20 August 2017 the first Tanzanian IOB alumni seminar
took place at Mzumbe University. The informal meet and
greet brought together some thirty IOB alumni from Tanzania
and IOB & Mzumbe staff to get to know one another or see
each other again after many years. Afterwards IOB alumni
were invited to dinner in Morogoro. The staff and alumni
spent a lovely evening together. “Knowledge received from IOB has been so instrumental in
achieving my goals as an expert in monitoring and evaluation … it
was really worth it! Such alumni events are very useful in knowledge
sharing. I look forward to more of these events in the future!” James
Kajuna (alumnus DEM 2002-03, vice president of the Tanzania
alumni chapter).
The next day saw the birth of the Synergy Platform. The
Synergy Platform aims to facilitate interaction between
the demand side for evaluation studies (i.e. Tanzania based
development actors) and those who have the capacity
to undertake evaluation studies and research (i.e. IOB &
Mzumbe alumni, staff, students). In the morning several
workshops on evaluation methods (RCT, Process tracing
and Social Network analysis) were organized for members
of the Synergy Platform and IOB alumni.
In the afternoon, the startup meeting of the synergy platform
took place, chaired by Prof. Nathalie Holvoet (IOB) and Prof.
This event also marked the start of a formal IOB Tanzania
alumni chapter and enabled students and staff to discuss the
way forward. Mrs Martha Mwolo was elected president of the
Tanzania alumni chapter and a team of several alumni offered
to help out.
“IOB offered me an opportunity of a lifetime. A saying goes: when
you educate a woman, you educate the whole community. The
knowledge I got laid the foundation for me to pursue a teaching
career in development studies in academia. Now I want to give
something back” Martha Mwolo (alumna GOV 2004-05,
president of the Tanzania alumni chapter).
E xchange to change S eptember 2017