RuralAudiences

INTERNET

Rural Radio

IDRCFord Foundation CTA

INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON FARM RADIO BROADCASTING

Information and Communication Technologies Servicing Farm Radio:New Contents, New Partnerships

FoodandAgricultureOrganizationoftheUnitedNations

Final Report

INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON FARM RADIO BROADCASTING

Information and Communication Technologies Servicing Farm Radio: New Contents, New Partnerships

Final report

Communication for Development GroupExtension, Education and Communication Service

Research, Extension and Training DivisionSustainable Development Department

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONSRome, 2001

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of thecopyright owner. Applications for such permission, with a statement of the pur-pose and extent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Director, Infor-mation Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Vialedelle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.

© FAO 2001

The designations employed and the presentation of material inthis publication do not imply the expression of any opinionwhatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organiza-tion of the United Nations and the World Bank concerning thelegal status of any country, territory, city or area or of itsauthorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers orboundaries.

A WORD OF THANKS

The Workshop organizers would like to express their thanks toall those persons who generously gave of their time, their ener-gy and their resources in order to contribute to its success:

- The FAO representatives in the following countries: Ghana,Ethiopia, Benin, Uganda, Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Zim-babwe, Mali, Madagascar and South Africa, who providedvery valuable logistical and administrative support duringthe Workshop’s organizational phase.

- The Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development(CTA), the Ford Foundation and the International Develop-ment Research Centre (IDRC) for their valuable financialsupport, which supported many of the Workshop partici-pants.

- The members of the FAO Task Force (SDRE/GIIM).

- The FAO technical divisions (ESAF, SDRN, AGSI, AGSM,GILF, GILD and ESCG) who presented papers during thecourse of the Workshop.

- The Chairpersons and Secretaries of the Workshop’s plenarysessions and working groups.

- The SDRE Workshop Secretariat (Sandra Tardioli and Eve-lyne Kestenbaum).

- The US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

- The translators and interpreters.

Special gratitude goes to Mr. Jacques-Paul Eckebil, AssistantDirector-General of the FAO Sustainable Development Depart-ment, and Ms. Carleen Gardner, Assistant Director-General ofthe FAO General Affairs and Information Department, whokindly accepted to chair respectively the opening and closingceremonies.

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A special thank you also to Ambassador George McGovern,United States Ambassador to the United Nations Missions inRome, who was kind enough to provide a reception at his resi-dence. His address to the Workshop participants on food securi-ty and the role of communication, in particular radio, was veryrelevant and inspiring.

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

ICTs Information and Communication Technologies

ACMAD African Centre of Meteorological Applications forDevelopment

AIF Intergovernmental Agency of French-SpeakingCountries

AMARC World Association of Community Radio BroadcastersARDA African Radio Drama AssociationCCD Centre of Communication for DevelopmentCGIAR Consultative Group on International Agricultural

ResearchCIERRO Inter-African Centre for Rural Radio Studies of Oua-

gadougouCTA Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Develop-

ment DCFN Developing Countries Farm Radio NetworkFAMW Federation of African Media WomenFAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United

NationsIDRC International Development Research CentreIFAD International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentIMS Institute for Media and SocietyIPAO Panos Institute for West AfricaIPS Inter Press ServiceISNAR International Service for National Agricultural

ResearchJADE African Journalists for Development NetworkNCRF National Community Radio Forum SACRIN South African Community Radio Information Net-

workSADC-CCD Southern African Development Community- Centre

of Communication for Development URTEL Union of Radio and Television Broadcasting of MaliURTNA Union of Radio and Television Broadcasting of AfricaUSDA U.S. Department of AgricultureWAICENT World Agricultural Information Centre (FAO)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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A Word of Thanks iii

Abbreviations v

1. Introduction and Background 1

2. Workshop Objectives 2

3. Participants 3

4. Recommendations from the Workshop 34.1. Network 44.2. Contents 54.3. Training 54.4. North-South and South-South Cooperation 64.5. National Structures 64.6. Partnerships 74.7. Mobilization of Financial Resources 74.8. Others: Recommendations Aimed at FAO 7

5. Collaboration Proposals and Projects to Develop 8

AnnexesAnnex I - Final Communiqué and Motion of Thanks 11Annex II - List of Presentations 15Annex III - Evaluation of the Workshop by the Participants 19Annex IV - List and Details of Participants 23

FINAL REPORT

1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

The International Workshop on Farm Radio Broadcasting1,titled «Information and Communication Technologies ServicingRural Radio: New Contents, New Partnerships», was held from 19to 22 February, 2001, at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy.

The Workshop, prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organiza-tion of the United Nations (FAO), was attended by more thanfifty North-American, African and European participants, all ofwhom are experts in the area of farm or rural radio broadcast-ing. The sharing of experiences that resulted helped to reinforceNorth-South and South-South collaboration.

More than two billion men and women live in the rural areas ofthe developing countries. For all of these people, radio is still themost popular, the most economic and the most accessiblemeans of communication. Radio’s mission and the services itoffers are many and varied: communicating on vital subjectssuch as agriculture and public health, educating people aboutnew practices, allowing the actors in rural development toexpress themselves in their local languages, building social con-sciousness and mobilizing and accelerating change.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, avery active partner of local, rural and/or community radio net-works for more than thirty years, chose through the Workshopto dedicate a special meeting to this extraordinary communica-tion tool, while at the same time opening new perspectives on itsuse for development.

The initiative for the Workshop was originally the idea of Mr.Gus Schumacher, former U.S. Under Secretary of Agriculture,

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1 Organized with the financial support of the Ford Foundation (Nigeria),International Development Research Center (IDRC, Senegal) and TechnicalCenter for Agriculture and Rural Development (CTA, Netherlands).

and of Mr. Jacques Diouf, Director General of the FAO. The twoleaders envisaged a meeting between «two worlds» that areapparently different - American farm radio specialists on theone hand, and African rural radio professionals on the other -but who share a common passion and expertise. The idea wasthat by sharing their ideas and experiences, these professionalswould be able to work together in favor of agricultural produc-tion and rural development.

As regards perspectives and new approaches, communicationfor development cannot ignore the new Information and Com-munication Technologies (ICTs). Most people are aware of thesuccess that has been achieved by rural radio in Africa. Howev-er, we cannot remain silent with regard to the seriousness of the«digital divide», namely, the huge disparity that exists betweenthe rich and poor countries in the area of information and newtechnologies. Ninety- five percent (95%) of the persons who usethe Internet live in North-America, Europe or Asia, while only0.75% live in Africa.

But technology is not the only issue. There is another threat fac-ing the world. Can we accept the fact that only a small minority ofthe people in the world have access to knowledge, to the vast fieldof research favoring agricultural production, public health, eco-nomic development, political freedom and the continuingimprovement in living conditions, while the majority are excludedfrom the new knowledge revolution? What is at stake here is farmore than mere technology. It involves the appropriation ofknowledge and the access to vital content itself, for in communi-cation content, knowledge and information are inseparable.

Radio can be a superb intermediary, one that easily reachesrural communities, sending out knowledge, and is also able toprofit from new technologies.

Do information and communication technologies constitute athreat or an opportunity to the world? Can they serve rural radio?And if so, how can they do it? Finally, what solutions do we haveto the problem of the digital divide?

All of these questions were addressed during the course of theInternational Workshop on ”Information and Communication Tech-nologies Servicing Rural Radio: New Contents, New Partnerships».

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE WORKSHOP

The main objective of the Workshop was to organize anencounter between rural radio experts from developing coun-tries on one hand and North-American farm radio specialists onthe other.

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African rural radio professionals met with American agricultur-al broadcasters in order to share their experiences, both interms of the approaches to be taken as well as the lessons to belearned in disseminating knowledge and information that wouldhelp in promoting rural and agricultural development.

The Workshop was also intended to be a venue for developingNorth-South collaboration, and for encouraging eventual part-nerships.

3. PARTICIPANTS

The Workshop was fortunate in having the participation of morethan fifty persons coming from Africa, Europe and the UnitedStates. These participants represented a variety of networks,unions and federations of rural radio stations as well as institu-tions which support the development of rural radio. In addition,staff from FAO technical divisions attended the Workshop.

The following countries were represented in the Workshop:Canada, United States, France, Italy, the Netherlands, UnitedKingdom, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar,Mali, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

And the following institutions, networks and organizationsalso participated:USAID, the USDA, AMARC, ACMAD, UNESCO, the FORDFOUNDATION, FAMW/SADC, IMS (Nigeria), PANOS (IPAO),CTA, AIF, CIERRO/URTNA, DCFN, ISNAR, the BBC, the SADC-CCD, French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, SYFIA/JADE, ARDA,URTEL Mali, the Madagascar Rural Radio Network, the BeninLocal Radio Network, UNALFA (Burkina), SIDAMA EducationalRadio (Ethiopia), Learfield Communications, the SoutheastAgNet Radio Network and the AgRadio Network.

4. THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE WORKSHOP

During the Workshop, three Working Groups were created onthe following subjects:

1) Working Group I: Creation of a Network Linking the AfricanRural Radio Broadcasters with the American Farm RadioBroadcasters via the Internet.

2) Working Group II: The Challenges of New Technologies andNew Contents.

3) Working Group III: Activities in terms of North-South andSouth-South Cooperation.

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The participants at these Working Groups made recommenda-tions in the following fields:

• Network• Contents• Training• North-South and South-South Cooperation• National Structures• Partnerships• Mobilization of Financial Resources• Others: Recommendations Aimed at FAO.

4.1. NETWORK

The Workshop, on the subject of networking, recommended to:

• Allow African rural radio broadcasters to access informationthat would facilitate the production of content as well as theexchange of data among the Network members.

• Include in the Network producers, since they are dealing «onthe ground» with the local people. Other potential membersof the network might be the national, regional and continen-tal hubs, depending on the type of content that the Networkwould produce.

• Produce an inventory of the existing networks, link themtogether, and support the creation of local networks in thosecountries, which do not have them at the present time.

• Use the Internet, satellite transmissions, and other telecom-munications facilities (fax, telephone, etc.) for this network.

• Evaluate the impact of the network to see if the problemsencountered turn out to be greater than the successesachieved.

It was also recommended by the North-American delegation tocreate a network linking the African rural radio broadcasterswith their American farm radio counterparts. This idea of a net-work refers to an association that already exists in the UnitedStates2. This network will begin its operations by establishingan electronic list of its members, and then will distribute infor-mation to each member regarding training courses available,exchange programmes, study grants, etc.

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2 The National Association of Farm Radio Broadcasters (NAFB)

4.2. CONTENTS

With regard to contents, the Workshop made the following rec-ommendations:

• Radio broadcasters should assess farmers’ needs in terms ofinformation in a more systematic way as well as needs of vul-nerable social groups, such as women and children.

• African rural people should be informed on top priorities: 1)Market prices and meteorology. 2) Agriculture. 3) Pest anddisease control.

• International agencies - such as the FAO, the CGIAR andACMAD - should inform African people, and particularly thejournalists, that international information exists, and indi-cate to them the Internet websites or databases where theinformation can be found.

• National and local interpretation of this information will beusually needed, as the information from these agencies, avail-able on the Internet, is frequently at a fairly general level.

• Finally, if the information needed does not exist in globaldatabases at the present time, it should be researched, andbroadcasted from the field.

4.3. TRAINING

With regard to training, the Workshop recommended to:

• Open up training to the private radio stations, as trainingshould no longer be the exclusive domain of the public net-works.

• Meet objectives in the following order of priority: 1) Train the trainers in rural radio 2) Provide training to the personnel of the rural and com-

munity radio stations 3) Offer study grants to those persons who would like to

study radio broadcasting and journalism.

• Focus training on the new technologies, the use of the Inter-net, and on researching information from websites.

• Give preference to specialised training and of very shortduration.

• For efficiency reasons, give priority to training the trainers.This economic solution allows radio stations to send one of

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their staff to follow a quality training course, after which thisstaff member can share this training with his or her col-leagues at the radio station, or in the country.

• Make full use of the Southern training institutions – CIERROand SADC-CCD - and help them to train more of the ruralradio station personnel.

4.4. NORTH-SOUTH AND SOUTH-SOUTH COOPERATION

In terms of North-South cooperation, the Workshop recommend-ed to develop exchanges and training courses in order to reinforcethe technical abilities of African journalists in radio broadcastingin general and in the rural radio domain in particular. The BBC,for example, might accept English-speaking trainees, and RadioFrance might open its doors to French-speaking Africans. More-over, the American government may offer and finance trainingmodules in the field of farm and rural radio.

Regarding, South-South cooperation, the Workshop recom-mended to strengthen sharing of experience on the continent, sothat English-speaking Africa profits from the wider experiencethat the French-speaking countries have with regard to ruralradio training. Therefore, CIERRO (French-speaking institute)will share methods, personnel and teaching material withSADC-CCD (English-speaking counterpart).

4.5. NATIONAL STRUCTURES

The Workshop recommended to build teams, at a national level,to make the link between local communities on one hand andinternational networks/organizations on the other hand.

These country-level teams of technical and communication spe-cialists will:

• Maintain contact with the local populations, by collectingtheir needs in order to define the kind of contents thatshould be broadcast by local radio stations.

• Collect, produce or package some of the information.

• Help in the interpretation of highly technical information3,and the packaging of this information for radio, possibly

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3 Distribution could be made through the Internet, systems like WorldSpace, e-mail between scientists and communicators, or simply by bus, oreven mule or donkey.

involving the sorting out of scientific knowledge in local lan-guages.

• Finally, they will make sure that networking, archiving,fund-raising and local training activities are carried out.

4.6. PARTNERSHIPS

The Workshop strongly recommends to develop technical andfinancial partnerships and to obtain the support of internationalbodies which already exist, rather than creating new structures.

Potential partners have been identified:

• Institutes for scientific research, like ISNAR and ACMAD, aswell as technical divisions of the FAO, regarding access toinformation (CONTENT).

• Associations like NAFB and radio networks such as AMARC,to help create an international network (NETWORK).

• African institutions for rural radio training, namely CIERROand SADC-CCD (TRAINING).

4.7. MOBILISATIONS OF FUNDS

The Workshop recommended a mobilisation of funds, not man-aged by governments, to provide projects that have beenbrought about through collaboration between organizationssuch as CIERRO, SADC-CCD, AMARC and NAFB.

These projects could include training, equipment, scholarshipsand exchanges. Proposals should be precise, with clearlydefined objectives.

4.8. RECOMMENDATIONS AIMED AT FAO

The Workshop strongly recommended that FAO:

• Concentrate more on using radio to communicate agricul-tural issues.

• Include the subject of rural radio for development in all of thedifferent FAO technical committee documents.

• Contribute in the institution of a World Day for Radio.

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• Edit documentation on rural radio and dedicate a website tothis topic.

The Workshop suggests the creation of a «Global Help Desk forRural Radio» within FAO to:

• Centralise key technical information to be broadcastthrough rural radio.

• Offer rural radio stations a «tool kit» including many of thetools that have been discussed at the Workshop (like needsassessment and evaluation instruments).

• Design a “map” of the rural radio partnerships that present-ly exist, to know whether the different African countries haverural radio stations, and if they do, whether these radios arepublic or commercial.

FAO would utilise the inputs from all the other partners, includ-ing radio stations, donor agencies and international agencies, tocreate this Global “Help Desk”.

Finally, the Workshop recommended that FAO, in associationwith its partners, create a follow-up committee to transformWorkshop recommendations into actions, and that FAO take theleadership of this Committee.

5. THE COLLABORATION PROPOSALS AND THEPROJECTS TO BE DEVELOPED

The Workshop gave the opportunity to develop a number of col-laboration proposals with the following institutions:

• Intergovernmental Agency of French-Speaking Countries (AIF)

• World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters(AMARC)

• The Ford Foundation

• Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development (CTA)

• African Centre for the Application of Meteorology for Devel-opment (ACMAD).

Various collaboration projects were identified and agreed uponas part of the follow-up to the Workshop.

• Create a virtual follow-up committee for carrying out the rec-ommendations decided upon by the Workshop. In addition to

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FAO, this committee will include the following partners: AIF,AMARC, CIERRO, CTA, the Ford Foundation, IDRC, and thePanos Institute.

• Link rural radio to agricultural research.

• Connect the rural radio network to the Internet (Farm RadioNetwork, FARMNET) in Nigeria (financing to be supplied bythe Ford Foundation).

• Launch a project for collective listening by women’s groupsin Sierra Leone, Ghana and Nigeria (the project is financedby the Ford Foundation, with FAO serving as the executivebody).

• Create the equivalent of CIERRO for the English-speakingcountries, in order to train rural radio specialists in Africa.

• Invite two African rural radio specialists to undergo trainingin Rome in order to set up a food security information ser-vice, in collaboration with AMARC (protocol of agreementbetween AMARC and FAO to launch an information serviceon food security in Africa).

• Recruit a French associate executive, or call in visiting scien-tists, in order to adapt WAICENT information to the needs ofrural radio producers from French-speaking Africa, in collab-oration with the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and theIntergovernmental Agency for French-speaking Countries.

• Participate in rural radio projects in the Congo DemocraticRepublic (cooperation with the French Ministry for ForeignAffairs), in Niger and in Chad, in collaboration with the Inter-governmental Agency for French-speaking Countries.

• Create scholarships, exchanges and courses, so thatAfricans can undergo a training period in the United States(as proposed by the USDA), and acquire radio broadcastingexperience in Europe by following training periods at theBBC or at Radio France.

• Publish a book analysing the training needs of trainers in thedomain of rural radio in Africa, develop these training pro-grammes, and organise the training sessions, all in collabo-ration with CTA, CIERRO, and the SADC-CCD.

• Launch a project (FAO/ACMAD) dealing with meteorologyand environmental information in answer to the questionsposed by farmers in Niger, Burkina, Chad, in collaborationwith USAID.

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• Mobilise the necessary capital from private North-Americanfoundations, for the purpose of supporting the developmentof rural radio in Africa (a proposal made by Mr. Gus Schu-macher).

• Publish a book dealing with radio and ICTs.

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ANNEX I

FINAL COMMUNIQUE

The First International Workshop on Farm Radio Broadcasting,organised by the Extension, Education and CommunicationService (SDRE), was held from the 19th to the 22nd of February,2001, at FAO Headquarters in Rome (Italy).

The title of the workshop was ”Information and CommunicationTechnologies Servicing Farm Radio: New Contents, New Partner-ships».

The Workshop was attended by more than fifty participants rep-resenting unions, federations, African, European and NorthAmerican farm radio networks, institutions supporting farmradio, and communication experts as well as persons from otherFAO technical services.

The participants in this first Workshop organised in Rome, camefrom the following countries: Ghana, Ethiopia, Benin, Canada,Uganda, Niger, Nigeria, United States, Burkina Faso, theNetherlands, France, Zimbabwe, Mali, Madagascar and SouthAfrica.

The Workshop participants were welcomed during the officialopening ceremony held on Monday, 19 February 2001, presidedover by Mr. Jacques Eckebil, Assistant Director-General of theSustainable Development Department.

Mr. Gus Schumacher, former U. S. Under Secretary of Agricul-ture, who, in conjunction with the FAO Director General, wasone of the initiators of the idea of holding this Workshop, wasalso present at the official opening ceremony.

Following the opening ceremony, the Workshop began with aseries of plenary sessions, which allowed the participants tohear more than thirty papers and technical presentations deal-ing with the new information and communication technologiesand their significance for farm radio, the training of farm radioproducers, audience research, as well as with the links betweenresearch, extension, and farm radio.

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The institutions supporting farm radio included:

USAID, USDA, AMARC, ACMAD, UNESCO, the Ford Founda-tion, the Federation of African Media Women, the Nigerian Insti-tute for Media and Society, the PANOS Institute, CTA, URTEL,the Intergovernmental Agency of French-Speaking Countries,CIERRO/URTNA, the Developing Countries Farm Radio Net-work, ISNAR, BBC, the SADC Communication Centre for Devel-opment, SYFIA/JADE, the Ghana Community BroadcastingService, the Madagascar Farm Radio Network, the African RadioDrama Association.

They presented their organizations, and described their viewswith regard to the theme of the Workshop.

The Workshop enabled the participants to familiarise them-selves with the activities of a number of FAO technical divisionswhich are depositories of scientific and technical informationconcerning food security, global information, early warning sys-tem, post-harvest operations, agro-meteorology and marketprices.

Thursday, the 22nd of February was devoted to WorkingGroups. Three Working Groups were created.• Working Group I concentrated on the «Creation of a Network

Linking the African Farm Radio Broadcasters with the Amer-ican Farm Radio Broadcasters via the INTERNET»

• Working Group II dealt with «The Challenges of New Tech-nologies and New Contents»

• Working Group III discussed «Following-Up the Workshop’sActivities, as well as South-South and North-South Cooper-ation».

At the end of their work, the reporters for the different groupspresented an accounting to the Workshop of the conclusions,recommendations, dialogue and exchanges of views formulatedby the groups:

Working Group I, on the subject of networking, recommended:1. That a network be created to improve the flow of information

relevant to rural areas, using the existing networks2. That FAO use radio to more effectively communicate on agri-

cultural issues3. That FAO and other interested parties complement each

other through the implementation of such a network4. That a World Radio Day for Development be instituted.

Working Group II made the following recommendations:

1. Recognising the fact that local information has existed, existsand will exist, there is, nevertheless, important technical

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information available at FAO (via WAICENT and the techni-cal divisions), as well as at other agencies such as ACMADand CGIAR. In this regard:- The information in question can be fairly general- Journalists have to develop links in order for them to

know where they can access this information- The approach used should not be «top-down» - communi-

ty input is needed- We must find out what and whose needs this information

will respond to- Needs should be assessed informally, and are often non-

systematic- It is important to include key social groups, such as

women and young people.

2. The priority information needed is as follows:a) Market and weather informationb) Inputs for agriculture, e.g., pest and disease controlc) Local agricultural and environmental practices.

This type of information cannot necessarily be found in globaldatabases. It must be researched, rather than broadcasted inthe field.

3 Suggested Actions:a) Build national capacity (country-level teams of technical

and communication specialists) in order to:I) Make contact with local levels, to collect and inter-

pret needsII) Interpret and package technical information for

radioIII) Distribute it via World Space, e-mail or busIV) Build district capacity and partnerships.

b) Local Radio Stations- These can act as information centres, and solve

problems in local languages and contexts.- They should include knowledgeable community

members. c) Create a database of frequently asked questions:

- From questions asked at the local level, and collect-ed and answered at the national level

- That is constantly updated, and can serve as a livingrecord.

d) Create a Global Help-Desk for Rural Radio:- That will include key technical information, a tool-kit

for rural radio as well as a map of partnerships andcountries / districts with rural radio;

- FAO headquarters will lead with inputs from all part-ners.

Working Group III concluded as follows:• Our Objective is:

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To improve the quality and flow of information and commu-nication of rural radio stations and the communities theyserve

- Our Recommendation:That there be a mobilisation of funds, not managed by gov-ernments, to provide projects that have been brought aboutthrough collaboration between organizations such as CIER-RO, SADC, AMARC and NAFB.These projects could include training, equipment, scholar-ships and exchanges.Proposals for funds must be precise, with clearly definedobjectives.

Furthermore, the Workshop strongly recommends that the sub-ject of rural radio for development be included in all of the dif-ferent FAO technical committee documents, namely, those pro-duced by the Agricultural Committee, the Food Security Com-mittee, etc.

Finally, the Workshop recommends that FAO, in associationwith its partners, create a follow-up committee to carry out allof the recommendations that have been made by the Workshop.

The different papers that have been presented during the courseof the Workshop, as well as the discussions and debates thathave taken place, will be included in subsequent publications,which will be sent to all the Workshop participants.

Rome, 22 February 2001The Workshop

MOTION OF THANKS

We, the participants at the First International Workshop onRural Radio, held in Rome from the 19th to the 22nd of Febru-ary, 2001 on the subject: «Information and Communication Tech-nologies Servicing Rural Radio», would like to thank and con-gratulate FAO for its superb initiative, on the one hand, and forthe perfect organisation of the Workshop, on the other.

We would also like to thank all of the persons and organisationsthanks to whose efforts this Workshop could be held, namely,the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation(CTA) of the Netherlands, the Ford Foundation, and the Interna-tional Development Research Centre (IDRC).

We would like, in particular, to offer our very special thanks tothe Honourable George McGovern, U.S. Ambassador to FAO,and to all the personnel of the Embassy for the reception whichAmbassador McGovern offered to the participants of the Work-shop at his residence.

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ANNEX II

LIST OF PAPERS

1. Rural Broadcasting in GhanaAbbey-Mensah Samuel (Rural Broadcasting Corporation,Ghana)

2. Presentation of the Institute for Media and Society, NigeriaAkingbulu, Akin (Institute for Media and Society, IMS, Nigeria)

3. Presentation of the Agrhymet Regional Center, NigerAlhassane Adama Diallo (Agrhymet Regional Center, Niger)

4. Presentation of the Developing Countries Farm RadioNetworkBennett, Nancy (Developing Countries Farm Radio Network,Toronto, Canada)

5. The Role of Rural Radio in Agricultural and Rural Devel-opment. Translating Agricultural Research InformationInto Messages for Farm AudiencesBiraahwa, Sylvia Nakabugu (Radio Uganda, Uganda)

6. RANET: Use of Climate and Environmental Informationas a Resource for Development and Poverty Reduction inAfricaBoulahya, Mohammed (African Center of MeteorologicalApplications for Development, ACMAD, Niger)

7. Communicating Information about Food Securitythough Rural RadioCampbell, David (Nairobi Representation of the Mediae Com-pany UK, Nairobi, Kenya)

8. Commercial Farm Broadcasting in the United StatesCooper, Gary (Southeast AgNet Radio Network, USA) andZimmerman, Chuck (Brownfield Network, USA)

9. U.S. Department of Agriculture’s RadioCurtis-Heiken, Brenda J. (United States Department of Agri-culture, USDA, USA)

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10. Inter-African Center for Rural Radio Broadcasting Stud-ies of Ouagadougou (CIERRO): A 23-year Contribution tothe Development of Rural Radio and Local Radio InAfricada Matha, Jacques (CIERRO, Burkina Faso)

11. The Challenges of ICTs and Rural Radio Girard, Bruce (Consultant, Expert in Local and CommunityRadio, Netherlands)

12. What Can Modern Agricultural Meteorology do for theSubsistence Farmers?Gommes, René (Environment and Natural Resources Ser-vice, SDRN, FAO)

13. Making Waves in the CGIAR (Consultative Group forInternational Agricultural Research): Rural Radio andAgricultural ScienceHambly, Odame Helen (International Service for NationalAgricultural Research, ISNAR, Netherlands)

14. BBC Farm Radio ProgrammesHill, Anna (BBC Radio Four, United Kingdom)

15. Farm and Rural Radio: Some Beginnings and ModelsHilliard, Robert L. (Columbia University, United States)

16. Community Multimedia Centres: Integrating Modernand Traditional Information and Communication Tech-nologies for Community DevelopmentHughes, Stella (Communication Division, UNESCO, France)

17. FAO Experience in the Field of Rural Radio and ICTs Ser-vicing Rural Radio: New Contents, New PartnershipsIlboudo, Jean-Pierre (Extension, Education and Communi-cation Service, FAO)

18. Global Information and Early Warning SystemJost, Stéphane (Global Information and Early Warning Ser-vice, FAO)

19. Training Needs For Trainers in The Field of Rural Radioin AfricaKamlongera, Christopher (Southern African DevelopmentCommunity, Zimbabwe)

20. The Action of Agence Intergouvernementale de la Fran-cophonie (AIF) in Local Radio Broadcasting: The LocalRadios ProgramLamonde, Jean-Pierre (Agence Intergouvernementale de laFrancophonie, AIF, France)

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21. The World Association of Community Radio Broadcast-ers (AMARC): Community Radio and Food Security Ly, K. Sophie (World Association of Community Radio Broad-casters, Canada)

22. How to Get Information on Post-Harvest in the InternetJungleMazaud, François (Post-Harvest Management Service, FAO)

23. The Technical Center for Agriculture and Rural Develop-ment (CTA)Niang,Thiendou (CTA, Netherlands)

24. The Ford Foundation for West AfricaOpoku-Mensah, Aida (The Ford Foundation, Office for WestAfrica, Nigeria)

25. JADE, A Network of African Journalists Specialized inMedia Production and Communication for DevelopmentOuattara, Souleymane (African Journalists for DevelopmentNetwork, JADE, Burkina Faso)

26. Presentation of the African Radio Drama AssociationPhido Alison Data and Khadijah Tuggar Khadijah (AfricanRadio Drama Association, ARDA, Nigeria)

27. A Kente Approach to Community Radio Training: Weav-ing Training into the Community Empowerment ProcessQuarmyne, Wilna W. (Radio Ada/Ghana Community Broad-casting Services, Ghana)

28. Research in the Field of Rural RadioRakotoarimanana, Julien (Rural Radio Network of Madagas-car, Madagascar)

29. Inter Press Service (IPS): Creating New Knowledge Part-nerships in Support of Rural Development in the Infor-mation AgeClaude Robinson (Inter Press Service, IPS, Mexico)

30. World Agricultural Information Center (WAICENT):Bridging the Digital Divide in Food SecurityRudgard, Stephen (WAICENT/FAOSTAT, FAO)

31. Impact of Radio Programmes in South Mali: Methodolo-gies and Practices for EvaluationSangaré, Oumar (Project: GCP/MLI/020/NET «Re-launch-ing Rural Radio in Mali»)

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32. Role of the Panos Institute for West Africa: Rural andLocal Radio Facing the Development of a Culture for Cit-izenship, Democracy and PeaceSenghor, Diana (Panos Institute for West Africa, IPAO, Senegal)

33. Farm Radio as a Medium for Market Information Dis-seminationShepherd, Andrew W. (Marketing and Rural Finance Service,FAO)

34. Improving Access to Rural Radio By “Hard-To-Reach”Women AudiencesSibanda, Jennifer (Federation of African Media Women-Southern African Development Community, FAMW-SADC,Zimbabwe)

35. Radio Broadcasting to Farmers: To Educate, Inform, andEntertainSlusarczyk, Edwin L. (Ag Radio Network Inc, USA)

36. Community Radio and Farming in South AfricaStone, Mosotho (National Community Radio Forum, SouthAfrica)

37. The Role Of Rural Radio Stations In Rural Development.Distribution Of Marketing Information. Experience OfThe Micro-Finance And Marketing ProjectMohamed Tounessi (International Fund for AgriculturalDevelopment, IFAD, Italy)

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ANNEX III

EVALUATION OF THE WORKSHOP BY THE

PARTICIPANTS

Forty persons (non FAO-members) attended the Workshop. Outof them, thirty-one, present on the last day, completed the ques-tionnaire. Therefore, the sample is representative.

1. PARTICIPANTS’ EXPECTATIONS REGARDING THEWORKSHOP

Before the Workshop, participants expected1

• To share experiences (according to 11 answers)• To create a network, to facilitate collaboration and partner-

ships (10 answers)• To learn about ICTs (6) • To learn on other topics (6)• To “discover” the other part of the World (5)• And/or to get to know more about rural radio (4).

2. PARTICIPANTS’ SATISFACTION

Most of the participants were very satisfied with the Workshopitself (71% of the participants declared themselves very satis-fied) as well as with the preparation of the Workshop (61 % ofvery satisfied). Main recommendation regards the program: Inthe future, there should be less presentations/papers, in orderto leave more time for questions, debates and discussions.

3. THE RESULTS OBTAINED: LESSONS LEARNT AND“TAKEN AWAY”

For most of the participants (74%), the results obtained conformedto their initial expectations and to the Workshop’s objectives.

North-Americans reported as a lesson learnt from the Workshop:“There is a big difference between farm radio in the USA andrural radio in Africa”. They are “curious” about African broad-

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1 Each participant may express several expectations.

casters, willing to help them, to support them. African broad-casters shared experiences with their continental colleagues(South-South cooperation) and are interested in financialresources available from the North (North-South cooperation).

When returning home, participants will still be involved in theWorkshop: 100% of the participants declare that they will sharewhat they heard, exchanges they had, and have the documentsdistributed to their colleagues. According to 84% of the answers,participants will also put into practice what they heard at theworkshop

Here are some concrete actions participants will undertake.

• Report and share information with colleagues and with radiolisteners (12 quotations)I will produce radio programmes based on interviews withpersons attending workshop... I will produce at least 25 pro-grams from materials and notes gathered. I recorded 12interviews with broadcasters... My report will be distributedto all community radio stations in South Africa... I shall inte-grate quality scientific information into our programs forrural people

• Put into practice what they learnt (9 quotations)I have acquired fresh ideas on conducting training... To obtainquality scientific information... Use FAO multimedia informa-tion center on food security, early warning and marketprices.... Use ICTs to mitigate the effects of environmentaldegradation in fishing communities, by involving members ofthe listening communities themselves in the design f the pro-ject... Access info through the Internet and consult communi-ties at all levels

• Americans and Europeans offer their support (4 quotations),while African will try to raise funds and to convince partnersfrom the North (2).

4. WORKSHOP FOLLOW-UP: RECOMMENDATIONS BYTHE PARTICIPANTS

Participants expressed many expectations, ideas for follow-upand cooperation projects.

• For the very short term, receive participants’ details and con-clusions of the Workshop (5 requests). Afterwards, beinformed on works in progress, follow-up and decisions (5)

• Be informed on rural radio (6 requests), training opportuni-ties (4), ICTs (3) and food security (3)

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• Focus follow-up on a specific topic (8) to prevent Workshoppitfalls

• Build network and strengthen relationship between partici-pants (10) to favour cooperation and partnerships

• Include more people from the field (4) and plan some follow-up by country (2)

• Facilitate fund raising (5)Formulate American radios’ expectations for partnershipwith radios from the South... Explain how rural radio can besupported: process & resources.... Programmes exchanges,research findings and funding... Mailing list for info on fund-ing mechanisms & sustainability ideas for community orrural radios and assistance for developing community radioin Nigeria

• ... As well as North-South cooperation (6)Identify some radio stations in Africa and perhaps help themsecure equipment and program materials... Bridge betweenAfrica rural radios and the developed World rural radio for theexchange of technology and methodology for adaptation toAfrican needs

• Establish a Committee for follow-up as well as an actionplan (5)

• Give further responsibilities to FAO (10 quotations), so thatFAO continues to assert the importance of rural radio world-wide, and takes the leadership for conducting Workshop fol-low-up and action plan

• Organise an other workshop on progress in 1 or 2 years’time (2).

5. INFORMATION REQUESTED

Asked about their needs in terms of information, participantswant FAO to dedicate a website to rural radio, where they can:

• Find information on food and agriculture matters (7), espe-cially on food security, but also on post-harvest, agrometeo-rology, market prices, health and breeding

• Follow ideas and trends in terms of radio and programmes(7)

• Access extended information, that they can use and adapt tolocal situation (country and community)

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• Find all the materials distributed during the Workshop(papers and final report) as well as the follow-up (especiallyregarding funding of projects and training opportunities)

• Share information, have e-discussions and «chats» as a fol-low-up.

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ANNEX IV

LIST AND DETAILS OF PARTICIPANTS

Name Position and Details Country

ABBEY MENSAH Head, Rural Samuel Broadcasts Department, Ghana Broadcasting

Corporation PO Box 1633, Accra. Email: c/o FAOR/Ghana Ghana

ANGELI Liano Professor of Agricultural Economics and Policy ItalyDepartment of Agroforestry Economics and RuralEnvironment, Tuscia Univerity, Via SC de Lellis, snc 0100 Viterbo ItalyEmail: ANGELI@unitus.it

AKINGBULU Akin Executive Director, Institute for Media and Society 1a Akin Osiyemi Street, Off Allen Avenue,Box 16181,Ikeja, Lagos Nigeria. Email: imeso@hyperio.com Nigeria

BALOGOUN Marius Journalist, Head of Rural Radio Department, ORTB Tel: 229 94 29 67. Email: mbalagoun@hotmail.com Benin

BENNETT Nancy Executive director, Developing Countries Farm Radio NetworkToronto, Canada M4G 1C9Tel: 416.971.6333 ext29. Email: nancy.bennett@farmradio.net Canada

BERHANU Gassa Acting Head, Sidama Educational RadioSidama Yirgalam. Tel: 06-250601. Fax: 06-201607 Ethiopia

BIRAAHWA Sylvia Head – Farm and Environment Radio UgandaPOBox 2038 – Kampala. Tel: 00256 4134741 Uganda

BOULAHYA Executive Director, ACMAD NigerMohamed 2, avenue des Ministères, BP 13184 Niamey

Tel: 227 73 49 92 ou 227 72 31 60. Fax: 227.7236.27Email: sd@acmad.ne

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CAMPBELL David Email: mediae@africaonline.co.ke Kenya

COOPER Gary President, Southeast AgNet Radio Network United States§PO Box 130 Kenansville, Florida 34739 Email: gary@southeastagnet.com

CURTIS-HEIKEN Senior Radio Reporter/ Producer, USDA Radio United StatesBrenda Room 1614, South Ag.Building,

14th Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20250. Email: Brenda.Curtis@usda.gov

DA MATHA CIERRO Burkina FasoJacques Philippe Tel: 226 30 6686

Email: jpda.matha@fasonet.bf

GIRARD Bruce Delft University of Technology NetherlandsKloksteeg 17b, 2611 BL Delft, NetherlandsTel: 0031.15 2788548. Fax: 0031.15.2787925Email: bgirard@comunica.org or b.girard@tbm.tudelft.nl

HAMBLY O. Helen Researcher, International Service Netherlandsfor National Research (ISNAR), Laan van Nieuw Oost Indie, 2593 BM, La Hague Email: h.hambly@cgiar.org

HILL ANNA Presenter/producer, Farming Today, UnitedBBC4, 26 Jessopp Road, Norwich, KingdomNorfolk NR23QA. Email: anna.hill@bbc.co.uk

HUGHES Richard J. International Affairs Advisor, USDA, FAO Liaison United StatesService International Cooperation and Development Room 3015 South Ag.Building, 14th Independence Avenue, SW Washington DC 20250Tel: 202-690-0865Fax: 202 690-1841Email: HughesR@fas.usda.gov

HUGHES Stella UNESCO – Communication Division France1, rue Miollis, Paris 75015Tel: 33 1 45684041Fax: 33 1 45685585Email: S.Hughes@unesco.org

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ILBOUDO Joanna Director Bukina FasoUnion de l’audiovisuel libre du Burkina 04-BP-8050 OuagadougouTel: 0026 435156. Email: ataong@cenatrim.com

KAMLONGERA Chris Director, SADC-CDC ZimbabwePO Box 3730 HarareTel: 00263-4-722723/ 722734Fax: 00263-4-722713-795345Email: ckamlongera@fanr.sadc-co.zw

KEITA Moussa Secretary General, Union des radios Malitélévisions libres du Mali (URTEL), BP E1584, BamakoTel: 00223 202747Email: URTEL@cefib.com

KHADIJAH Tuggar Programme Associate NigeriaBloc 7, Flat 8, Alimosho Street, Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi Lagos

LAMBERT David P. Permanent Representative, ItalyUS Mission to the United Nations, Via Sardegna, 49 – 00187 RomeEmail: LambertD@fas.usda.gov

LAMONDE AIF FranceJean-Pierre Email: Jean-Pierre.Lamonde@francophonie.Org

LARSON Debra International Affairs Office, United StatesNational Weath Service, 1325 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910Tel: 301 713 1762, ext.175Fax: 301 587 4524Email: debra.larson@noaa.gov

LEBEAU Denis Chef du bureau de la coopération radiophonique FranceDirection générale de la coopération internationale et du développement/ Ministère des affaires étrangères. 244, bd St Germain – 75303 Paris Cedex 07 Email:DENIS.LEBEAU@diplomatie.fr

LY Sophie K. Secretary General CanadaAMARC – World Association of Community Radio BroadcastersEmail: sophie.ly@amarc.org or sophiely@hotmail.com

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MADE Patricia Director GeneralIPS Inter Press Service

NIANG Thiendou CTA – Technical Center for Agriculture Netherlandsand Rural Cooperation (ACP-EU)Postbus 380, 6700 AJ WageningenTel: 0031 317467164Email: Niang@cta.nl

OPOKU-MENSAH Program Officer, Media, Arts and Culture NigeriaAida The Ford Foundation, Office for West Africa

Aib Plaza, Level 6,Akin. Adesola Street, Victoria Island, LagosEmail: A.OPOKU.MENSAH@FORDFOUND.ORG

OUATTARA Système francophone d’information JADE Burkina FasoSoulaymane Email: jade@liptinfor.bf

PHIDO Alison Data Project Coordinator, African Radio NigeriaDrama Association 22 Adeola Hopewell Street, Victoria Island, LagosTel/Fax: 00234 1 4702176/ 4705399. Email: ardafolk@nigol.net.ng

PINA Jorge Correspondent of IPS in Italy ItalyVia Panisperna 207, 00184 RomeTel 06 4827112Fax 06 4817877Email: jorgep@mclink.it

QUARMYNE Wilna Deputy Executive Director GhanaRadio Ada (Ghana Community Broadcasting Services) PO Box KA 9482,Accra, Tel: 00233 21 500907 or 233-21-500032Fax: 00233-21-500032Email: RadioAda@Ghana.com

RAKOTOARIMANA Secretary general, Réseau des radios rurales MadagascarJulien de Madagascar, IREDEC,

BP 188 Antsarabe Tel/Fax: 00261 20448764Email: iradec@simicro.mg

SANGARE Oumar Coordonnateur projet GCP/MLI/020/NET MaliTel: 00223 210510. Email: c/o FAOR

SCHUMACHER Gus Former U.S. Under Secretary of Agriculture United States

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SENGHOR Diana Director, SenegalInstitut Panos Afrique de l’Ouest (IPAO) 6, rue du Dr CalmetteBP 21132 – Dakar-PontyTel: 221-822 1666 ou 8220084.Fax: 221 8221761 IPAO Email: secretaire@sentoo.sn ou panos@panos.sn

SIBANDA Jennifer Regional Director – FAMW-SADC ZimbabwePO Box BE 793, Belvedere, HarareTel: 263-4-753076Fax: 263-4-753269Email: jsibanda@internet.co.zw

SLUSARCZYK President, Ag Radio Network Inc United StatesEdwin L. PO Box 437 Utica, NY 13503

Email: AgRadioNet@aol.com

SPOSATO Steve Economist, USAID United States Email: Ssposato@Etats-Unisid.gov

STONE Mosotho Radio producer South AfricaNational Community Radio ForumNo. 1, Leyds Street, First Floor, Cosatu House, Braamfontein, 2017 South AfricaEmail: mosothos@yahoo.comTel: 0027-11-403-3436

ZIMMERMAN Chuck General Manager, United StatesFarm Director Brownfield Network, 505 Hobbs Rd, Jefferson City, MO 65109 Email: czimmerman@learfield.com

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FAO Representatives FAOVia delle Terme di Caracalla 00100 Rome Tel: +39 06 57051. Internet: http://www.fao.orgItaly

Extension, Education and Communication Service (SDRE)CROWDER LoyVanDEL CASTELLO RiccardoILBOUDO Jean-PierreKESTENBAUM EvelyneROUAH CarineTARDIOLI SandraZULBERTI Ester

Information Division (GII)COWAN SharonLee KAMBIRIGI LilianePARSONS Nick

Environment and Natural Resources Service (SDRN)GOMMES RenéTICHELER Jeroen

Agro-Industries and Post-Harvest Management Service(AGSI)MAZAUD François

Food Security and Agricultural Projects Analysis Service(ESAF) HUDDLESTON Barbara

World Agricultural Information Centre (WAICENT)ACHIA Remigio RUDGARD Stephen

Marketing and Rural Finance Service (AGSM)SHEPHERD Andrew

Global Information and Early Warning Service (ESCG)JOST Stéphane

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