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Broadcaster Discussion Group

Theme 7 – Planning for Future Collaboration and Evaluation

Hello everybody and thanks for participating during this discussion about "Planning future scripts" and "On-going collaboration". This session is now officially over! Our goal was to harvest feedback about proposed Farm Radio International scripts for 2005, and to gather ideas about other future topics. Because 2006 is designated as the Year of Desertification, Farm Radio International's program committee had suggested that it might be timely to include a series of scripts that deal with the prevention of desertification – in particular about soil conservation, water management and growing crops in drought. We also asked what kind of programming broadcasters would produce if they could do so with just the wave of a magic wand.

We heard first from Ms Data Phido of ARDA. She said that of the three topics suggested, Soil Conservation and Growing crops in drought were her priorities. She explained that "scripts on these topics will help radio stations in Northern Nigeria which broadcast to the rural areas to provide useful and life-saving information to farmers grappling with subsistence in arid zones. ARDA is setting up partnerships with some of these radio stations to develop materials (scripts, messages and programs) and share amongst themselves to broadcast specifically to farmers and other rural residents. So these are urgent topics I know will interest them from discussions we've had with them."

Wilna Quarmyne in Ghana reported that she had presented the magic wand question to two producers from community radio stations. Their response was that they would produce scripts that "valuate the role of women in rural farming communities. The different things they do to eke out water and conserve the soil and increase its productivity – and support their households singlehandedly besides."

Aaron Kah of Cameroon seconded that motion with an adamant message, as follows. "WHEN THE WOMAN IS EDUCATED THE NATION IS FREE, the farm is improved, there is high crop yield, and the living standards improve. ALSO the yoke of poverty is broken and illiteracy is overcome – above all disease is conquered. IN AFRICA THE WOMAN REPRESENTS THE FARM".

Again thanks for your participation. We will take your suggestions to the program committee and work to incorporate them into the next series of scripts and package themes. We hope to have contributions from you as well.

To finish, I'll leave you with one more quote from Data Phido.

"Lastly if I had a magic wand to birth great scripts, they would be entertaining as well as enlightening. They would be relevant, responsive, command attention, cater to the heart and the head, creative and fresh each time. They will be drama, song, adventure and evocative of heroism, peaceful communal life, respectful of traditional knowledge."

Best wishes,
Jennifer