admin | February 15, 2024
Farm Radio International recently wrapped up its Radio for Development e-course. The e-course was offered in English and French with about 350 men and women broadcasters participating from 19 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This online learning opportunity ran from October 4 to December 8, 2023.
Participants followed eight modules over the course of 10 weeks. This was a facilitated e-course and took place on an interactive platform, with the help of WhatsApp groups set up to support learners.
Hosiana Margwe, a producer from Mega FM in Tanzania, says: “Before joining the e-course, there were a number of things I was not doing in my program, e.g., gender equality inclusion [and] audience research, to name just a few. I have now started incorporating what I have learned and I see a lot of changes; my eyes have been opened.”
The first module of the course allowed learners to get to know each other before diving into the lessons. Celina Maige from Radio Tumaini in Tanzania says: “I want to start by thanking my classmates from different countries because for me it is a great experience. I have never studied online. This was my first time and I have received enough cooperation, especially when they ask questions, or when they contribute to the topic at hand.”
Participants were excited about the audience research module. It sparked a lot of curiosity for many learners as most of them have never done it before. This was the first hands-on task they had to complete. Learners conducted audience research to know more about their audience and their needs in order to tailor programs to those needs and also to identify the deep-rooted issues affecting the community—the second task of the course.
As they submitted the first assignment, each learner was paired with a mentor who reviewed the assignment and provided feedback. A team of 42 African, American, Canadian, and European broadcasters with lots of experience helped mentor the learners. They guided the learners they were paired with throughout the course, providing comments on assignments.
Adebusola Olajimeji, a producer for Positive FM 102.5 (Radio Nigeria), says: “I really gained a lot from the e-course. It made me realize I needed to consider gender equality in any program production. It also opened my eyes to looking for deep-rooted issues in production. I particularly liked the involvement of our facilitators who attended to all concerns promptly and politely. They were instrumental to my success as I was able to cope even with my busy schedule. The course outlay was user-friendly, engaging, and interesting. I must also say my mentor was attentive and helpful. In all, it was a great experience for me.”
The course modules were designed to provide the building blocks for the final assignment: a radio for development episode that meets the needs of the audience. The final assignment required learners to use all the skills they had acquired during the course to develop a recorded radio program episode in their local languages using local music.
These episodes covered a wide variety of topics and included a variety of sounds, painting a true picture of rural radio programs across Africa. A total of 84 learners who completed all the exercises received a certificate of achievement for their efforts.
The 2023 Radio for Development ecourse was offered with funding from Global Affairs Canada as part of the “On-Air for Gender-Inclusive Nature-based Solutions” project.