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 —
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
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.
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
One hundred years after the invention of Radio, this technology remains an essential tool in the education of peoples, especially the poor. This is demonstrated by Radio Taboo, a new radio station powered by solar energy in the village of Nditam on the Tikar Plain, Ngambé Tikar Subdivision, Mbam and Kim Division of the Centre region of Cameroon. The methods applied by those in charge of this radio station are
Radio, more than any other medium, speaks the language of farmers. Farmers count on radio to provide the information they need, when they need it. However, too often, radio lets farmers down. It doesn’t have to be this way- stemming from our numerous interviews conducted across radio stations in Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi, we are publishing a list of tips for broadcasters who want to improve their programs.
Radio is celebrated world over for its life changing attributes especially in developing countries where the development agenda remains a common denominator of all engagements. The UN, set aside the 13th February as a day to celebrate radio. This year’s edition of the World Radio Day(WRD) is commemorated under the theme, Radio: Dialogue, Tolerance and Peace, a theme which is most appropriate to countries like Zimbabwe given its perpetual instabilities
If you are looking for ways to improve your farmer program, Farm Radio International’s online learning module is a great place to learn new techniques. This self-guided learning module uses simple pictures, questions, and short activities to explain key concepts. Use VOICE to make good farmer programming This module explores Farm Radio’s VOICE Standards. You will learn why farmers turn off a farmer program, why your station should have a
Many low-income Ugandans living in rural and hard-to-reach areas lack access to basic health information and services. This means most people may be unaware of their health-related rights and may feel their needs aren’t met because their voices aren’t heard. In many cases, medical and educational outreach is affected by poor literacy rates or lack of distribution channels for behavioural change campaigns. Gaps like these have caused certain illnesses, like
This toolkit is designed to help development practitioners use interactive radio to create compelling radio programming. The toolkit does not assume that radio is always the most appropriate solution for disseminating information. Rather, given the presence of radio in much of the world, this toolkit aims to help practitioners develop a systematic approach to using interactive radio as one effective way of sharing information with their target audience. Find the
