Terms and Conditions
Welcome to Deralanga: Advancing Participatory Digital Dialogue
This digital platform, Deralanga (https://deralanga.com/), is established as scholarly initiative of the Master of Arts in Theatre and Media Communications in Development (MATMCD) under the School of Arts Communication and Design at the University of Malawi. It aims to bridge communication divides by empowering community members to engage transparently and securely with local councils through a digital media channel.
- Purpose and Guiding Principles
Deralanga promotes inclusive communication, enabling residents to share grievances, suggestions, and reflections with local authorities. The platform supplements existing mechanisms (such as suggestion boxes, SMS, and face-to-face dialogue) with a digital conduit designed for accessibility, safety, and effectiveness. Additionally, it serves to enhance dialogue as a critical factor in development.
- User Engagement Responsibilities
- Users are encouraged to submit authentic concerns, experiences, and feedback intended for constructive community development.
- Submissions should embody respect, integrity, and a commitment to truth. Inflammatory, misleading, or unlawful communication undermines the collaborative spirit of the platform.
- Users are asked to provide clear, relevant, and honest information to facilitate meaningful council responses.
- Privacy, Confidentiality, and Ethical Stewardship
Deralanga is committed to ethical stewardship of information. All reports are treated as confidential and are accessible solely to authorized council officials and platform administrators, in accordance with our Data Policy and academic standards for research integrity.
- Limitation of Liability for Platform Use
While every effort is made to facilitate effective communication and redress, Deralanga, its scholarly custodians, and technical partners disclaim liability for outcomes arising from platform interactions or third-party actions.
- Intellectual Property and Academic Integrity
Content produced or hosted on the Website is protected and intended for advancing participatory development communication in local governance. Unauthorized reproduction or use is prohibited except by permission or for educational purposes aligned with the MATMCD program objectives.
- Amendments to Terms
These Terms and Conditions may be updated to reflect evolving best practices and research insights. Continued use after amendments constitutes acceptance of the updated framework for digital engagement.
- Jurisdiction and Values
Use of Deralanga is governed by the laws of Malawi and the ethical values upheld by the MATMCD program and University policies.
Data Policy (Privacy Policy)
Deralanga’s Commitment to Data Ethics and Social Trust
- Information Collection and Purpose
The Deralanga platform collects information voluntarily provided by residents including names (optional), contact data (if shared), and report content to support actionable dialogue with councils. Additionally, technical data such as device types and regional access metrics may be gathered for research and security enhancement purposes.
- Use and Ethical Handling of Information
- All data serves the sole purpose of connecting communities with local councils and informing ongoing development communication research.
- User data facilitates direct council responses, participatory analysis, and continuous platform improvement.
- Data Protection, Confidentiality, and Academic Responsibility
- Data is securely stored and processed by authorized personnel and research administrators only.
- No data is distributed beyond designated officials or research partners without explicit user consent.
- Data Retention and Scholarship
Data will be retained only as needed for meaningful resolution, academic research, or as otherwise required by law. Research outputs may anonymize and aggregate data to ensure privacy.
- User Rights and Participatory Choice
Users may request to access, correct, or withdraw their information at any time, as way reflecting the principles of participatory action research in digital media, users may request to access correct or withdraw their info at any time. Contact details for such requests are provided on the Website.
- Usage of Cookies and Nonintrusive Analytics
Minimal digital tracking is employed—only as necessary to support platform functionality, safeguard users, and inform research improvements. No intrusive or commercial tracking is performed.
Disclaimer
- Purpose and Limitations of Scholarly Facilitation
Deralanga offers a mediated, scholarly channel for constructive dialogue between residents and councils. While we strive to enable responsive governance, outcomes ultimately depend on council policies and broader socio-institutional factors.
- Accuracy, Research Integrity, and Community Voice
The platform functions as a vessel for community expression and does not judge or verify individual submissions’ factual accuracy. Participation is voluntary and at the discretion of contributors.
- External Resources and Exogenous Content
Where the Website links to external bodies or resources, Deralanga and its scholarly team disclaim responsibility for those entities’ content and data practices.
- Informed Use and Participatory Agency
Engagement with Deralanga is voluntary and informed. All warranties (including commercial and fitness caveats) are disclaimed, consistent with educational research norms in Development Communication.