Communication Congress: Community radio left out in the cold?

Rome: Radio experts and communicators working on community radio have urged the World Congress on Communication for Development (WCCD) to give community radio its rightful place as a development tool in the communications debate. Radio specialists are dismayed that the global meet has overlooked the vital role of community radio in empowering people and strengthening democracy in many regions, including, conflict places. Freeplay radio is changing how people in remote areas get critical health, education, nutrition and emergency information The radio fraternity is feeling left out as almost nothing related to the medium has been included in the draft recommendations by the WCCD. The Congress plans to give the final recommendations on how to mainstream development communication to governments as well as donor agencies and this crucial output is the place precisely where community radio does not find mention. Managing director at Communication for Social Change Consortium (CSCC), James Deane, said: “We have seen monumental changes taking place because of community radio interventions in various parts of the world – Nepal, Latin America and now in parts of Africa. In fact some of these go far deeper and have a bigger impact than many other communication strategies and I feel that the evidence of efficacy of radio cannot be questioned.” A documentary shown by the BBC World Service Trust highlighted the role of radio in disseminating news in times of stress. It showed Ghanian journalists providing live coverage of elections through mobile phones, for their radio stations, disallowing disgruntled politicians to criticise the electoral process. With live coverage from poll booths, the common man could make out the fairness of the electoral process giving no chance to certain candidates to complain. Making a strong pitch for giving more prominence to community radio, well known journalist, researcher and communication policy expert Bruce Girard, said: “It is a known fact that radio stations in Latin American countries have supported changes of governments and have espoused pro-people sentiments. In Bolivia when the military took over the very first action of the coal miners was to protect the radio stations.” Vice president of AMARC (World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters) and Nepalese community radio practitioner Raghu Mainali documented the medium’s strong role in the political changes in the Himalayan nation. He added that it took almost a decade for community radio to establish itself as an effective tool for bringing about social change in Nepal. Mainali said: “During the anti-king protests in Nepal, radio stations took a decision to defy the government. All information that we broadcast was carefully selected and the stations decided to broadcast this information simultaneously all over the country for better impact.” Though encouraged by success stories, experts listed legislative and regulatory framework as a threat to the survival of community radio. In many parts of the world where the government has not provided licences or opened up air space for community radio, people have used innovative means to make their voice heard. At the same time, many community radio stations have faced hostile political representatives and governments. An Indian radio jockey interviews a child at an orphanage. © Internews Network, Inc. Despite such barriers, community radio, which has had a relatively low profile in Africa is beginning to have an impact in many African countries. Civil society experiments coupled with strong advocacy efforts in Senegal worked so well in providing a voice to rural marginalised communities that even the government joined the fray. It voluntarily started providing funding to community radio stations. New information and communication technologies and the Internet have also enabled people to create their own media space in Africa. President of AMARC Africa, Grace Githaiga said that community radio has created a forum for African women to express their views. Narrating experiences of women with radio, Githaiga said: “Women are managing radio stations in rural areas and for the first time in their lives are being able to articulate their poverty and helplessness themselves and in their own language. At the same time, people who listen to these programmes walk into the radio stations, speak to the manager and air their opinion, something that is impossible to do with mainstream media.” Experts voiced hope that the global congress will take up their plea to provide more legitimacy and space to community radio as a strong and effective development communication tool.

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