Shout campaign proves successful

Shout SA, the civil society anti-crime movement led by prominent South African musicians, artists and celebrities, is ready to make the first donations at the end of June 2010. This is according to Yusuf Abramjee, chairperson of the Shout Foundation.

"From the launch of the campaign and revenue inputs from the SMS campaign and Shout song downloads, there is a 60-day period before money donated through the SMS download mechanism filters through to Shout. In addition to this, important auditing processes need to be completed and all donations need to be reconciled before they can be allocated in June," he says.

Results

Shout single downloads to cellphones have reportedly exceeded all previous South African download records with over 48 000 recorded to date.
Over 110 000 fans have pledged their support for it on Facebook, with SA fans signing on at an average rate of 1 500 new fans per day during the first month. This is one of the fastest growing Facebook groups in South Africa.
YouTube has clocked almost 40 000 views of the video.
The single reached number 1 on the 94.7 Highveld Stereo and 94.5 KFM Top 40 SA music charts

The funding will go towards infrastructural and technological enhancements of crime fighting centres, which play a major role in the day-to-day operations of the South African Police Service, enabling them to intensify the fight against crime. Other funding will be spent on additional navigational equipment for police vehicles, and ID tool machines which assist to identify criminals, through fingerprinting technology. Funds will also be allocated to non-governmental organisations, which play a vital role in crime prevention and victim support programmes, and the rehabilitation of convicted criminals.

Other results

In addition to the response to the awareness phase of this initiative, Abramjee, who is also head of Crime Line, notes that there has been an enormous and positive response from the public, companies and NGOs: "Crime Line has noticed a major spike in the number of tip-offs received since it was launched. More feedback and information received from the public will assist in the prevention of criminal activity and increase the police's ability to apprehend suspected criminals."

Future promotions

With the confirmation that Pick 'n Pay has released 150 000 units of the CD single into its retail outlets, priced at R19.99, the Foundation hopes to raise even more for the cause in months to come.

There have been numerous requests from international donors requesting facilities to make donations and these facilities are now available through the credit card donation method on the website. The demand for branded merchandise such as T-shirts, wristbands and bumper stickers will be met over the next few weeks.

Visit the website www.shoutsa.com for merchandise details