2020

CSOs speak of policy, peace, post-harvest loss in statement to FAO Africa Regional Conference

CSO STATEMENT TO THE 31th FAO REGIONAL CONFERENCE FOR AFRICA Honourable Chairperson, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates and Observers, Ladies and Gentlemen, We, the 53 representatives of small and medium-scale farmers, rural women and youth, fisherfolk, agricultural workers, livestock keepers, pastoralists, indigenous peoples, cooperatives, consumers, and NGOs, representing national, regional and international CSOs coming from 22 countries met in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 25th to 27th of February 2020 for the Civil Society

Rural women: Radio stories

In line with the theme of the 62nd session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (12 – 23 March), “Challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls,” and in collaboration with the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), UN Women brings to life stories of rural women from around the world, from Haiti and Canada to Iraq and

Nyinabwenge show: Amplifying the voices of women for action

Fifty-year-old Ruth Kasimba lives in Butimba village in Kikuube district, a few kilometres from where Uganda’s proposed oil refinery will be constructed in oil-rich Hoima district in western Uganda Like any other rural woman, Ms. Kasimba collects firewood for cooking. It is exercise she describes as physically exhausting but also mentally draining. As a peasant farmer who grows different types of crops for food and sale, Ms. Kasimba could not

Farmers' Voice Radio resources enable African smallholders to access knowledge they need to succeed

On Thursday 13th February 2020, the Lorna Young Foundation (LYF) will launch its FARMERS’ VOICE RADIO initiative. In solidarity with World Radio Day, the LYF will unveil both its new Farmers’ Voice Radio brand and its website. The website has been designed to give away, for FREE, the LYF’s Farmers’ Voice Radio methodology and resources, so that the world’s poorest smallholder farmers—who are in desperate need of information, learning and

Celebrating the diversity of Farm Radio's network

Each year, we celebrate World Radio Day and the important role that radio plays in our lives and the lives of the communities we serve. Radio communicates important information, provides entertainment, shares stories and people’s opinions, and starts conversations 一 on air and off. The theme of World Radio Day this year is diversity, celebrating pluralism in radio, representation in the newsroom, and diversity of content and program types shared

FAO appeals for urgent support to fight worsening Desert Locust upsurge in the Horn of Africa

30 January 2020, Rome – FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said today the Desert Locust upsurge in the Horn of Africa threatened to provoke a humanitarian crisis and appealed for urgent funding to tackle the outbreak in order to protect livelihoods and food security. The locust outbreak is the worst to strike Ethiopia and Somalia for 25 years and the worst infestation that Kenya had experienced in 70 years. Djibouti and

WACC, FAO partner to help farmers & communities address climate change

WACC Global is proud to announce its new initiative with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to help build the capacity of communities at the grassroots level – particularly family farmers’ associations –  in using local and traditional knowledge for sustainable resource management and climate change mitigation. WACC and FAO will jointly support three (3) year-long projects starting in the first quarter of 2020: one in Kenya in partnership with

Talking about collaboration: Notes from our FRI e-Discussion

From November 1-29, 46 participants from more than 11 countries took part in an online discussion on collaboration in radio. The participants discussed the definition of collaboration, its advantages and challenges, how collaboration can address gender issues, and how to make collaborations last. Here is a summary of key points discussed. What is collaboration in radio? Effective collaboration requires two or more partners, groups, or individuals (radio stations, researchers, funders,

Using radio to inspire poachers to become conservationists

Interestingly, Andrew Maimisa is not a COMACO farmer but an ardent follower and listener of COMACO’s Farm Talk radio program. “I listen to COMACO programs on radio Breeze FM and I have heard testimonies from a lot of farmers that have had their lives transformed because of the work COMACO does to empower rural farmers. I also want to be part of this winning team; I am old and I have realized