Poll Comments - Community Radio to Address Poverty

This poll was conducted September 28 - October 25, 2002:

Community radio is an effective way to address poverty.

Do you agree? Disagree? Unsure?

AGREE

"Comm radio is a means for information gathering, public reporting and locally controlled programming. It is a tool for the poor, and is relatively cheap and accessible. It is one tool but like most tools will not work on its own." [Australia]

"In many parts of Africa, Zambia in particular, radio is the one of the best ways to get information across to rural people..in the abscence of telephone..no Internet and satelites can be quite costly..." [Zambia]

"Radio is still the cheapest way to reach out to communities in the developing countries. Poverty alleviation messages and proposals for action can be conveyed to targeted populations through radio." [India]

"Information is critical for development; the more access people have to information at village level the more informed choices they will be able to make. I belive the Radio is a communication medium with a wide reach and diverse audience." [Kenya]

"Community radio- first step to provide exchange forum on poverty issues, ideas on how to address it and options/channels to pursue in addressing poverty." [Kenya]

"There is vary rarely anything other than radio for communication in poverty-stricken areas and difficulties in access to knowledge for those in rural places." [Senegal]

"Community Radio can spread information to help people get education awareness and places for trining which can then ebale them to get employment." [India]

"The poor most often live in communities that have no electricity so radio becomes their only source of information. Women especially, listen to the radio for information on health issues: reproductive health and child health. In Yemen, e.g. it's the strongest medium for acquiring knowledge on family planning." [Jordan/USA]

"Critical tool for two-way communication, especially for non-literate or neo-literate communities. Very cheap and effective tool to reach out to rural women in India." [India]

"It depends on the country. Just because there are a high number of radios in a country do not mean the people have the money to have batteries. There are many other ways to address poverty and this is just one way. The uses of indigenous mass communications methods is an important area that is seldome used or understood." [USA]

"I have a number of patients from the low income group who attend my out patient clinics with queries on TB and family planning following radio programmes on the FM in Delhi." [India]

"In countries like India where illiteracy rate is still disturbing, the community radio seems to be the only effective way for bringing in much-desired socio-economic change by disseminating basic and value-added information thus making them empowered." [India]

"I think the community radio is a very effective way to address poverty because it is the same community that produces the contents on basis of your own experience." [ ]

"Information dissemination and sharing effectively lets people know of new opportunities and how to tap them for development purposes." [USA/Ugandan]

"It has lot of influence on poor communities." [India]

"Community radio is an excellent tool to disperse information on how you can improve your life/livelihood for many different reasons that I will nor argue here. However measures has to be taken that allow the people concerned to act on their lives. Communication on its own cannot aliviate poverty it can be part of the steps taken to improve the lives of the less fortunate!!!" [Mozambique]

"Radio is the fastest, cheapest, and a very personal way to communicate with large number of people. For development it is most effective and efficient communication tool, also remembering that many communities are semi/illiterate and/or oral cultures. Radio allows people to speak to each other, in an intimate voice, about lots of things its hard to talk about face to face, and in their own language and style - using their own voice. One of the reasons I believe so many development projects fail, or do not achieve all their objectives, is because they do not incorporate effective communication as a key element of the program/project strategy. Part of the reason for this is that, even where it is written into the project plan, people with real communication/radio broadcast skills are employed on the project- it's simpley not taken seriously by aid beaurocrats or properly budgeted for - too many aid beaurocrats feel more comfortable handing out food parcels or similiar, than! paying for people to talk to each other - even though tis may be the most effective development tool." [Australia]

"Community radio is and has been the most effective way to address poverty, because it is the most participatory media. The examples are abundant. Only in Latin America, more than fice thousand community radio stations have been created in the last 50 years. WE have networks of many kinds, and production centres. Participation of communities in their radio stations is high, and this communication tool has contributed in developmnet, social organization, and the democratization process." [Bolivia]

"Well managed and operated community radio is far the best tool to diffuse local content to communities and in the local language. It helps also to share indegenous knowledge in all development issues:personal and community health, education, farming etc. Community Radio gives voice to communities ensuring their real participation in the development process." [Senegal]

"Its part of the vision of Oke-Ogun Community Development Agenda 2000 Plus - if we want information to be widely available it needs to be in the Local language Yoruba, and in spoken not written form in order to reach the many people who cannot read." [UK]

"When the voicelesses voice it changes the world." [ ]

"Community Radio provides a platform for community to participate in the reconstruction and development of their own society. It provides information that could be of help to the developmental initiatives in the community.Communities are also able to engage (in a two way flow) those involved in poverty relief initiatives, therefore providing ideas on the best way of tackling the poverty challenge. Community Radio is the best medium of communication that relates to relevant issues of a particular community using their own language." [South Africa]

"YES! but with some essential requirements: a focus that includes and empowers rural women; based on sound radio station and program management practices (needs assessment; good record-keeping; participatory program development based on locally relevant content; evaluation and good financial, physical & human resource management." [Netherlands]

"Most industrialising countries are grappling with the problem of abject poverty. Community radio programs are better placed to empower such disdvantaged communities with development issues. Most remote areas are not covered on the national transmission grid, while most community based radios stations can provide to a solution to this. An example of a radio program that is making such a change is the Africare community Radio program in Zambia targeting rural communities." [Zambia]

"We have long advocated the use of inexpensive radio as a means to afford communities a local voice and to give people an opportunity to pick up useful communication skills." [India]

"Radio is still the most wide spread form of communications and information dissemination around the world, particularly in developing countries. It is a means to inform people on all issues relevant to their lives, including those that can help them improve their lives." [ ]

"There has to be access for the poor not only to say they are poor but to let them gain a voice or power over an area of their lives. This requires call in capasity as well as phones out there. This means that the radio persons must be flexible. Not caught in the vise of a clenched mind as many in this country are. NPR is an excellent example of process addicted administration." [USA]

"It is a medium/tool through which the voices of the poor and the marginalised can be made audible to the otherwise insensitive government and the 'globalised' market." [India]

"Community Radio can arouse the consciousness of the people on the problems facing them like poverty. It can also force the Govt. To adopt pro-poor policies and also pave the way for right to information." [India]

"Community radio, ideally, enables communities to make decisions on the collection, production and dissemination of information, it enables them to 'voice their concerns' and dialogue on issues that affect their lives. This proves that community radios is an effective way in addressing poverty." [Ethiopia]

"It overcomes barriers of literacy, lack of telephony, distance and encourages local capacity building in the form of the local radio station." [ ]

"PLEASE COME AND SEE THE IMPACT OF COMMUNITY RADIOS IN THE POOREST COUNTRY - NIGER and you will be convinced that community radio has been the missing link/tool in all the poverty alleviation programmes....MS BOULAHYA DG ACMAD < SD@ACMAD.NE >" [Africa]

"Radio reaches poor and illiterate population communities, and is often present where television isn't." [USA]

"Definitely radio is very effective. A lot of experiences in Latin America confirm the power of community and popular radio in a lot of senses:

- radio is the most potentially participatory medium

- radio is low cost (production and consumption)

- community (popular) radio has its roots in the community, which guarantees that communcation processes take the local and regional reality as a starting point: problems, languages, linguistics, culture, media-habits etc.

In Latin America we can identify two big motors of the Community Radio Movement: Amarc (world association for community radio, 400 members) and Aler (Latin American Association for educational Radio - 107 members).

Main problems are:

- legislations don't consider real spaces for community radios

- financial sustainment

The last ten years a continental tendency in networking is observed, because of the necessity to construct common projects that can combine local with national and continental incidences." [Bolivia]

"The issues of poverty are being addressed by many methods but community radio is also easy to access for communities of rural areas as well." [Pakistan]

"The location of community radio itself ensures that it has first hand experience of the poverty around the community, it something they feel, see, and hear everyday." [RSA]

"Because it is cheap, oral (can reach illiterate), fast, affordable for many communities, easy to install and to operate, flexible (can be used just as radio and as a part of media-mixed-models enhancing its performance - radio+internet, radio+print media), and the most important thing: radio is a part of the people's cultural heritage ." [Canada]

"Communication is important for peope at grassroot level to understand, share experiences and offer suggestions on solutions probably in a langage they know and understand, community radio would be an effective way of reaching as many of the the people as possible especially if it incorporates an element of feedback." [Kenya]

"If there is space to participate on the programming and policy. Participation is a process of empowerment and this process facilates the sharing of knowledge and skill." [Nepal]

"I have heard several programs aired on poverty eradication and believe the people in communities listen and try to take the advice given. Usually the presenters give the people a chance to ask question and advice in relation to their situations which are addressed or answered and this helps alot more people in addition the community visitations than just the latter. Besides whereas many cannot read the papers or books, many sure are able to listen. In the project I work with in Uganda, this has been very effective in teaching care givers to improve their behavior in relation the child care." [Uganda]

"I agree, but it should be noted that for community radio to address poverty, it should have good management, who knows the needs of that particular community. Its effectiveness depends on the direction and mission it has. Community involvement though not easy to achieve in other stations, is the key to communitys radio's ability to address poverty and any other aspect of each community." [RSA]

"Community radio is useful cos broadcasts are in local languages; so does not exclude marginalised groups. It is also the best medium to not only publicise development issues such as micro credit financing but it helps NGO's,CBO's and local authorities to campaing and educate on urgent and vital health matters." [UK]

DISAGREE [top]

"Though it is among other ways of addrsssing poverty, you will need a multifaced approach to address poverty." [Zambia]

"Where as radio is an excellent media to inform people about developmental issues, action taking towards those development issues by rural people is usually done after interpersonal discussion, sharing of that type of development issue. This is more so where social realtions and roles are still according to cultures, traditional institutions, on specific issues. However it appears like people can take action radio messages that are of alarming nature or entertainment." [Uganda]

"Community radio is dangerously close to advocacy; information that develops narrow minds and promotes institutionalised thought." [ ]

"Community radio is a tool and only a tool that can help in getting information out to the community in addressing poverty issues but radio alone will not alievate poverty." [ ]

UNSURE [top]

"I agree that community radio can be useful/helpful for many things, including outreach to people who cannot read and write (e.g., health education campaigns, etc.) However, it should be kept in mind that the radio inherently excludes deaf and many hard of hearing people. It should NOT be assumed that any important information transmitted by radio will necessarily be "passed on" to deaf/hard of hearing people by friends and relatives. Very often, it will NOT. Other means of communication still need to be used to ensure that deaf and hard of hearing people have equal access to the same or equivalent information. This is an important issue because deaf and hard of hearing people, and people with disabilities in general, are very often the last people to learn important information (e.g. how to prevent HIV) or about important opportunities that could help them escape poverty. People with disabilities in general are too often viewed as "burdens on their families" or "non-contributing economic drains on families and society" when, in fact, many of them are very rich in talent and potential that could be used to help reduce poverty not only for themselves but also for their nondisabled peers. They should not be left out of poverty reduction programs or information campaigns. Go ahead and use the radio if it helps, but ALWAYS supplement this with other means of communication, for example identifying someone fluent in the local signed language who could make an announcement in person at local associations or clubs for deaf people, etc." [USA]

"Resources, capital and training are much more effective ways to address poverty. People can not see the face of poverty on the radio. People can not see examples of what they can do to help themselves on the radio. People can not see what they can do to help others on the radio. Radio is good, but it has it's limitations. Mainly it's success is not easily measured. But it is more important to use what you have as effectively as possible rather than do nothing. So radio beats a blank." [USA]

"The question posed do not give much details that would allow fuller discussion of the issue of poverty. Poverty is multidimentional, multifaceted issue. It is acknowledged that radio by virtue of its wider reach can potentially address many ills of development in society including poverty. Poverty resulting from lack of knowledge on specific health or social issue perhaps could be facilated with well designed information packages. Aspects of poverty relating to policy interventions and behavioural change could hardly be addressed by radio programmes. However, I must also stress that the potential of radio to address many issues of development is not in doubt here." [Ghana]