In Eastern Uganda’s Bugisu sub region, literacy remains a substantial barrier to development. Here, radio can reach a large number of poor people because it is affordable and uses little electricity. This is why Bugisu Cooperative Union (BCU) turned to radio. BCU is a Ugandan agricultural cooperative federation established in July 1954. Based in Mbale town, Eastern Uganda, the Cooperative Union was started by a group of coffee farmers led
Last year, Farm Radio International created a new award to recognize radio programs that address gender equality and create opportunities to share the voices of rural women. Farm Radio International is now inviting stations and program production teams to apply for the second annual Liz Hughes Award for Her Farm Radio. Liz Hughes was a Farm Radio International board member who was passionate about broadcasting and a champion of gender
Livestock production is one of the most important activities of agriculture in South Africa. The Boer goat is a breed of goat that was developed in South Africa in the early 1900s and is a popular breed for meat production. Their name is derived from the Afrikaans word boer, meaning farmer. They have a high resistance to disease and adapt well to hot, dry semi-deserts. The standard boer goats have
Zimbabwe’s government is appealing for aid to help ease the burden of hunger currently affecting millions of already suffering citizens. The drought is a result of poor yields from the 2018/19 summer cropping season which normally runs from November to March. Erratic rains in the whole of Southern Africa resulted in this drought. Zimbabwe has experienced recurring droughts over the years leading to shortage of cereals in the country. Thousands
Modeste Shabani Bin Sweni was born in Kibango, in the chiefdom of Kawange, Kasondo territory in DRC. At the time of his birth, the village had no school, no health centre, no electricity, no communication, and no local radio station. His parents and other villagers survived on fishing and farming. To attend school, he went to live with an uncle 50 kilometres away. During the period of political tension in
By 2050, the global population of youth (ages 15-24 as defined by the UN) is projected to rise to 1.8 billion, with 35 percent estimated to live in Africa. This presents a challenge of creating economic opportunities for this growing segment of the population. Furthermore, the growing global demand for food and nutrition also presents a challenge, with some estimates citing a need to increase food availability by 70-100 percent.
The UN Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 aims to shed new light on what it means to be a family farmer in a rapidly changing world and highlights more than ever before the important role they play in eradicating hunger and shaping our future of food. Family farming The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launched the United Nations’ Decade of Family Farming
Rural communities are faced with numerous challenges related to access to water for potable and productive uses. Rural residents, especially young women and girls, spend quite a significant amount of their productive time looking for water. In some cases, rural communities collect potable water from unprotected and unsafe sources. The situation has been exacerbated by the high frequencies and magnitudes of agricultural droughts in Zimbabwe which are on the increase.
Effective collaboration between broadcasters and stakeholder groups such as extension workers, researchers, and women’s organizations can help improve the quality of information received by farmers in radio programs. If you are a broadcaster and want to learn how to improve your collaborations with different stakeholder groups, then this e-discussion is for you! For four weeks, Farm Radio International will be offering an e-discussion for broadcasters and stakeholders on collaboration, from
