February 2019

Nakolo village women's group excels in shea butter production

Shea production is a growing sector with its produce (shea butter) having great benefit to health, skin and hair. Shea butter is an extract from the nuts of the Karite tree fruits. This tree grows majorly in Africa and has been used for various health and body remedies for years. It is produced by crushing the nuts through a machine. These crushed nuts are further put out under the sun

The Bangangté Local Council prioritizes women’s empowerment

The 23rd edition of the World Rural Women’s Day celebrated under the theme ‘Empowering rural women through the development of effective partnerships’ has given the Bangangté Local Council the opportunity to revitalize local governance approaches to better align rural women to its empowerment mission. For quite some time now, this Local Council in the West region of Cameroon, which covers a population of about 215 000 inhabitants, has realized the need

Youth organization for peace and rural development promotes sustainable agriculture

As part of the support project for farmers of the South Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of Congo, our organization Youth for Peace and Development of the Rural World- JPDMR, non-profit association, has developed an approach named “Sustainable Family Farming in Rural Areas” in the Kajuchu locality, Irambi-Katana community on the Kabare Territory with the aim of educating and sensitizing farmers in this area. Two themes were developed during

Communication strategies for effective climate services

The publication is based on the lessons of the “Meteo Media Days” organized in 15 countries in West Africa and Chad between 2012 and 2016. The activity was an element of communication strategies of METAGRI and the Global Forum for Climate Services GFCS, two programs implemented by the World Meteorological Organization. Acknowledging that communication specialists and meteorologists have a different perception of the adequate way to convey useful messages to

Community radio stations unite to build peace - Part 1

The role of radio as source of information mustn’t be underrated, despite TV, Internet, social media and the still existing printed press. Especially in Africa, radio plays an important role in informing and educating the people. Media can contribute to dialogue and understanding but they can also be a factor in generating social and ethnic tension through stereotyping and inaccurate reporting. This assumption is the entry point of the Kenyan

Growing community: Conservation agriculture over the airwaves

Matefie Meja is a single mother of three who farms a half-hectare of land in Chifisa, Ethiopia. It’s intensive work. As she has no ox to plow the land, weeding is a time consuming chore for her, one that leaves her little time to complete the other work she must do to keep her farm running smoothly. Recently, thanks to a radio program that explained conservation agriculture to her —

The garden in a packet

Nonhlanhla Joye is known as a Farmer, a Social Entrepreneur and the Founder of Umgibe Farming Organics and Training Institute who is passionate about food security and community empowerment.  Umgibe’s main purpose is to train and promote farmer-owned, well-governed, well-managed, profitable & equitable cooperatives and small scale farmers. Ma Joye as she is known in the community, was born in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) province in South Africa.  She is the

CCAFS Working Paper: Interactive radio’s promising role in climate information services

Farmers require relevant, timely and continuous information and advice regarding historic climate variability, probabilistic seasonal forecasts, and monitoring and short-lead information about growing season weather. This information can help them to make informed decisions about their farming practices and enable decision-makers to understand and act on the information (Tall et al., 2014). These services are especially important for farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, where up to 95% of crop production is

Liz Hughes Award for Her Farm Radio

Farm Radio International has created a new award to recognize radio programs that address the issue of gender equality and create opportunities to share the voices of rural women. Farm Radio International invites stations and program production teams to apply for the Liz Hughes Award for Her Farm Radio. Liz Hughes was a board member of Farm Radio International who was passionate about broadcasting and a champion of gender equality.

Studio Yafa informing young people and boosting dialogue between generations in Burkina Faso

Fondation Hirondelle, in partnership with local media and youth organizations, is creating ‘Studio Yafa’ in Burkina Faso. In the local language “Yafa” means “mediation” or “finding common ground.” The first productions, in radio and then multimedia, will be launched in February 2019. A team of Burkinabe journalists supervised and trained by Fondation Hirondelle experts, will produce weekly radio magazines, as well as videos and articles for social networks. The main