Beyond simply fundraising for a good cause, the point of the Katine website has always been to paint a more complete picture of development work and of Africa – a continent so often misunderstood and misrepresented – by applying the journalistic lens to Katine sub-county in Uganda over three years.
As well as detailing how development funds are spent, the website offers a platform for the beneficiaries' stories to be told, giving villagers the opportunity to share stories about their lives and to get their opinions on the project. The current series on money is a good example.
This unlikely pairing of a media organisation and an NGO to shed light on the development process has now caught the eye of African bloggers.
Glenna Gordon, an American photographer initially based in Uganda and now in Liberia, blogged about the Katine Project as part of the 'Context Africa' series on her blog Scarlett Lion. The series seeks "to highlight projects that go above and beyond daily news to tell a story of a place in its context." Her photoblog was rated among the top 20 female bloggers in Africa.
Other photoblogs in the series include a story of surfing in post-conflict Liberia and a Q and A with Andrew Rice – author of The Teeth May Smile but the Heart Does Not Forget, a book about murder, "Idi Amin's legacy and modern Uganda".
If you have any questions about the Katine Project or would like to write about it, leave a comment below or email the Editor at: katine.editor@guardian.co.uk.
