[UgaBYTES] The Soul Beat Issue 115: Rural Radio

Fri Sep 26 07:27:40 GMT 2008

This issue of The Soul Beat contains programme experiences, strategic
thinking documents, evaluations, and resources that highlight the use
of radio to communicate to and from rural audiences about issues
related to health, agriculture and farming, and human rights.

If you would like your organisation's communication work or research
and resource documents to be featured on the Soul Beat Africa website
and in The Soul Beat newsletters, please contact soulbeat at comminit.com

To subscribe to The Soul Beat, go to
http://www.comminit.com/en/user/register/38 or send an email to
soulbeat at comminit.com with a subject of "subscribe".

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PROGRAMME EXPERIENCES
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/experiences.html

1. Mali Shambani - Kenya
This interactive radio programme, initiated by FIT Resources-Kenya, is
designed to increase access to farming information for smallholder
farmers and fishing communities in Kenya. Launched in 2006, the radio
programme, which in Kiswahili means "wealth in the farms", is
broadcast throughout the country with information adapted to local
languages, issues, and needs. Each programme also features a question
and answer segment, where listeners can call (or SMS) the radio
station and interact live with a featured panel of experts.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/274693/38
Contact Richard Isiaho fit at wananchi.com

2. Rural Women Reporting - Kenya, Sierra Leone, South Africa
The Rural Women Reporting radio workshop series was initiated by
FAHAMU Networks for Social Justice and Community Media for Development
(CMFD) Productions. The project was designed to increase rural women's
access to media, build the capacity of rural women to create their own
media, and create a space for rural women's voices, issues, and
concerns to be heard. The project included a series of participatory
workshops in which rural women developed radio programmes on issues
that they identified as important to them.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/274695/38
Contact Deborah Walter info at cmfd.org OR Firoze Manji firoze at fahamu.org

3. Farm Radio Weekly - Africa
Initiated by Farm Radio International (FRI), Farm Radio Weekly (FRW)
is a news and information service designed to help meet the
information needs of small-scale farmers and farming families in
Africa. Through a newsletter and a website, FRW seeks to provide rural
radio organisations in sub-Saharan Africa with news and resources that
they can use to create relevant programming for their listeners.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/274768/38
Contact Heather Miller hmiller at farmradio.org OR Nelly Bassily
nbassily at farmradio.org

4. Pilika Pilika (Busy Busy) - Tanzania
Launched in 2004, this is a radio drama broadcast in Kiswahili in
Tanzania. The drama aims to spread awareness about issues relating to
sustainable rural livelihoods, such as home hygiene and community
water management, gender issues, and local rights and responsibilities
at the village level. Pilika Pilika, which means "busy, busy" in
English, is set in the fictional Tanzanian village of Jitazame, a kind
of crossroads village that has representatives of most local cultures.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/268640/38
Contact David Campbell mediae at africaonline.co.ke

5. Radio Bubusa - Democratic Republic of the Congo
Initiated by Sauti ya Mwanamke Kijijini (SAMWAKI), this is a community
radio station in the Democratic Republic of Congo set up by and for
rural women to improve their knowledge and practices around health and
rights issues. Programming focuses on key issues such as
discrimination, reproductive health, gender-based violence, HIV/AIDS,
and agriculture. As part of the communication efforts, the organisers
support and develop listener's clubs, who use solar powered radios to
listen to the programmes.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/274155/38
Contact Adeline Nsimire samwakiasbl at yahoo.fr

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Gender and Rural Employment - Call for Papers for a Technical Expert Workshop

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the
International Labour Organization (ILO), and International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD) are calling for papers for a technical
expert workshop on "Gaps, trends and current research in gender
dimensions of agricultural and rural employment: differentiated
pathways out of poverty", which will be held in Rome in the week of
March 30 to April 3 2009.

Deadline for submission is October 15 2008.

For more information about the call for papers, please e-mail info at fao-ilo.org

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EVALUATIONS
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/evaluations.html

6. Learning for Livelihoods in Somalia: Initial Insights on Audience
Patterns and Preferences
This evaluation report outlines key findings from research conducted
during the first year of the BBC World Service Trust's three-year
livestock welfare education project in Somalia, "Barnaamijka Xoolaha"
(The Livestock Programme), broadcast on the BBC Somali Service. The
programme is designed to reach males and females, aged 15 and above,
who are engaged both directly and indirectly in the production,
marketing, and selling of livestock. The report suggests that
Barnaamijka Xoolaha is an effective vehicle for delivering livestock
education content in Somalia, and that the show offers a mix of topics
that audiences find interesting and relevant.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/273684/38

7. Communicating with Radio: What Do We Know? Findings from a Review
of Selected Rural Radio Effectiveness Evaluations
The main objective of this study was to discover, review, and analyse
what has already been documented on links between radio-based
communication strategies and rural development outcomes, particularly
with regards to smallholder farming and food security outcomes in
Africa. It also explores best radio practices, including optimal
formats, schedules, production qualities, and station management. The
study analysed 17 case studies from India, the Philippines, Tanzania,
Mali, Malawi, Mozambique, Ghana, and South Africa to assess the
effectiveness of rural radio. The report outlines key findings from
these case studies, as well as five knowledge gaps in rural and farm
radio effectiveness.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/272475/38

8. Andrew Lees Trust Impact Data of Projet Radio SIDA
Since 2003, the Andrew Lees Trust (ALT) has collaborated with the
National HIV AIDS Awareness Committee of Madagascar (Commite Nationale
Lutte contre le SIDA - CNLS) to deliver HIV information via radio to
rural populations in southern Madagascar. ALT also distributed 2,000
radios for the CNLS across the Provinces of Toliara and Fianarantsoa,
setting up dedicated listening groups to receive national broadcasts
about HIV/AIDS as well as locally produced radio programmes on the
subject. According to the organisers, explaining complex medical
issues to an illiterate audience is challenging, particularly in this
region where traditional beliefs attribute illnesses to spirit
possession.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/269640/38

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VOTE IN THE COMMUNITY RADIO POLL:

What is required most to strengthen the role of community radio in Africa?

- a strong African representative body
- more funding
- more capacity building
- more networking
- more information sharing
- more government support
- more community involvement

To vote and send comments go to
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/community-radio and see the Top Right side
of the page.

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STRATEGIC THINKING
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/strategicthinking.html

9. Report of the Sensitisation Workshop on Rural Radio for Policy and
Decision Makers in East and Southern Africa
by Frowin Paul Nyoni and Nyangi Hamis Lucas
This workshop report, published by the Food and Agriculture
Organization, shares information from a workshop held April 26-29 2005
in Malawi to sensitise policy and decision makers on the status of
rural radio and its practitioners in East and Southern Africa. The
workshop included participants from Burundi, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania,
Uganda, and Zambia. According to the report, at the end of the
workshop, participants unanimously recommended that national
governments should formulate national communication for development
policies that recognise rural radio as an important development tool.
They also recommended that the Southern Africa Development Community
Centre of Communication for Development should expand its operations
and facilitate the development of an accredited and accepted rural
radio curriculum.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/270407/38

10. Communicating Agricultural Research in Africa: The New Role of Rural Radio
by Helen Hambly Odame
This paper addresses the role of rural radio in Africa and explores
how researchers can improve communication with farmers via radio. It
also discusses research relationships among civil society where media
is an influential but often underestimated institutional partner. The
report concludes that radio is the most important medium for
communicating with the rural populations of developing countries. It
suggests that communication should move beyond the "technology
triangle" of research-extension-farmer linkages, whereby information
is selectively released and controlled, towards a learning-centred
approach for knowledge sharing in which radio has an important role to
play.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/223240/38

11. Rural Radio and the Promotion of People-Centred Development in Africa
by Linje Manyozo
This document explores the nature and levels of villagers'
participation in facilitated dialogues on local development using
radio as a rural information and communication technology (ICT).
Focusing on two models of Radio Listening Clubs (RLCs) organised by
the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation's (MBC) Development Broadcasting
Unit (DBU) and Dzimwe Community Radio, the discussion establishes how
rural radio broadcasting shapes local discourses on local development
planning, implementation, and evaluation.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/223246/38

12. The Economics of Rural Radio in Africa: An Introductory Study into
the Costs and Revenues
by Christopher Yordy
This report, published by Farm Radio International (FRI), examines the
economics of radio in order to determine the costs involved in
developing and sustaining farm broadcasting. One of the objectives of
the study was to identify the levels of investment required for radio
and related information and communication technologies (ICTs) to
provide sustainable, effective contributions to smallholder farmers'
agriculture and food security needs. The aim of the study was also to
help ensure that the African Farm Radio Research Initiative (AFFRI)
explores and develops radio-based communication strategies for farmers
that can be continually offered by rural radio stations with
appropriate and sustainable levels of public or donor investment.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/274684/38

13. Formats, Partnerships, and Content: Optimising the Components of
an HIV and AIDS Media Campaign in Angola
This report highlights the findings of a survey that was conducted to
assess the impact of Mo Kamba (My Mate), a radio call-in and
discussion programme with complementary public service announcements,
dealing with a wide range of issues around HIV and AIDS. According to
the report, Mo Kamba enjoys high reach among rural populations where
prevalence of HIV and AIDS is highest in Angola. It shows that
audiences and media consumption patterns are fragmented and varied
across the population. For example, the PSAs have higher reach among
urban populations than the long format programme, Mo Kamba.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/267077/38

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Looking for more information about radio?
Visit the Soul Beat Africa Community Radio Themesite here
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/community-radio

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MATERIALS
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/materials.html

14. Manual Temático Grupo Editorial de Agricultura (Editorial Group
Production of Agriculture)
by Faruco Sadique
This manual, published as part of the "Strengthening Democracy and
Governance through Development of the Media in Mozambique" project,
was designed to assist editorial groups in producing programmes on
agriculture for community radio. The programming aimed to provide
information and create a forum for farmers to share their experiences
and ideas. The manual is designed to be a step-by-step tool to guide
editorial groups to identify and respond to the needs of farming
communities.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/271347/38

15. Improving Educational Quality Through Interactive Radio
Instruction: A Toolkit for Policymakers and Planners
by Stephen Anzalone and Andrea Bosch
This guide, published by the World Bank, is designed for African
policymakers, education planners, and pedagogical specialists who may
be considering the feasibility of using interactive radio instruction
(IRI) in their education systems. According to the World Bank, studies
of the IRI experience in more than two dozen countries during the past
25 years have shown that the use of IRI has led to significant and
consistent improvements in school achievement and has helped overcome
equity gaps between urban and rural children and between boys and
girls.
http://www.comminit.com/en/node/272677/38

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For related previous issues of The Soul Beat see:

The Soul Beat 98 - Radio for Social Change in Africa
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/soul-beat-98.html

The Soul Beat 83 - Communication for Food Security and Agricultural
Development in Africa
http://www.comminit.com/en/africa/soul-beat-83.html

To view archived editions of The Soul Beat Newsletter see
http://www.comminit.com/africa/soul-beat-archives.html

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We would love to hear from you: Please send us your comments by going
to http://www.comminit.com/africa/comments.html or email
soulbeat at comminit.com

For more comments on the Soul Beat Africa website see
http://www.comminit.com/africa/comments_aboutus.html

Please send material for The Soul Beat to soulbeat at comminit.com

-- 
Francis Mwathi
Assistant Technical Officer
UgaBYTES Initiatives
Tel: +256414370163
Mob: +256752995063
Mob: +25472362187
Skype: francis.mwathi
G-Mail:  MwathiFrancis at gmail.com
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UgaBYTES E-Mail: mfrancis at ugabytes.org