Radio Scripts Focus on Climate Change Adaptation Strategies for African Farmers

A broadcaster from Radio Salus in Rwanda has won the grand prize in a continent-wide scriptwriting competition on climate change adaptation strategies for African farmers, while 14 other radio broadcasters and producers also won prizes for their entries.

In October 2007, Farm Radio International, in collaboration with the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), launched African Farmers’ Strategies for Coping with Climate Change, a radio scriptwriting competition for African radio organizations.

The competition was timely, as smallholder farmers in Africa are already experiencing the impact of climate change. Weather patterns are changing, extreme weather events becoming more common, and the threat of food shortages, crop failures, and growing deserts are real and immediate.
 
While African farmers are developing and adapting coping strategies on their own, they need new information about farming methods that minimize the negative impact of climate change. A major challenge is providing such information to large numbers of people at low cost. Radio broadcasts can help address this challenge because they are spoken-word, often in local languages. Because radio builds on Africa’s oral culture, it is not constrained by illiteracy. The technologies for broadcasting and receiving broadcasts are widely available and affordable in rural areas.
 
Contestants were invited to submit a radio script on themes related to local adaptation to climate change. Fifty-one entries were received from 20 countries across sub-Saharan Africa. Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda impressed the international panel of judges with his script on managing rainwater to prevent soil erosion and provide water for crops. This is an important adaptation practice for farmers who face extremely heavy rains on some occasions and droughts on others. Other winners focused on a variety of topics, including the importance of manure, water-conserving irrigation practices, drought-tolerant rice, preventing deforestation, and livestock management.

All 15 winners will receive digital audio recorders, which will assist them with their work, for example by enabling them to produce programs in the field highlighting the voices of local farmers. Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda will receive a farm radio training/internship sponsored by the German Organization for Technical Cooperation (GTZ). Winners will also work with Farm Radio International’s managing editor, using feedback received from contest judges, to improve and finalize their scripts. The winning scripts will then be published in French and English and distributed by CTA and Farm Radio International to approximately 500 radio organizations across sub-Saharan Africa. They will then be transformed into a wide variety of programs and shared with rural audiences.

The winners and script titles are:

• Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda: Rainfall retention protects soil
• Pius Sawa Murefu from Radio Sapientia in Uganda: Sekedo, a drought resistant sorghum for Karamoja
• Gladson Makowa from The Story Workshop in Malawi: Effect of manure in crops during erratic rain season
• Frederic Takang from Abakwa FM in Cameroon: Endangered Raphiales: An environmental threat, a danger for the culture and the economy of the grassfields
• Adama Zongo from Radio Rurale du Burkina in Burkina Faso: Organic manure at your fingertips
• Mariama Sy Coulibaly from Afia FM in Senegal: Fissel farmers don’t pick up straw after harvesting, a method that protects land from heat
• Kwabena Agyei from Classic FM in Ghana: A tale of two changes and movements: Mangoes to the Rescue
• Sachia Ngutsav from Radio Benue in Nigeria: Forests Shall Heal the Land Again
• Lamine Togola from Radio Fanaka in Mali: Natural phenomena and their consequences on the life of rural communities
• Savitri Mohapatra from WARDA in Benin: Growing NERICA is a farming solution for coping with climate change
• Rachael Awuor from Ugunja Community Resource Centre in Kenya: Getting ready to meet different weather patterns
• Dominic Mutua from Radio Mangelete in Kenya: Drip Irrigation
• Félix Houinsou from Radio Immaculée Conception in Benin: How to modify production systems in Africa to cope with climate change
• Joshua Kyalimpa from Opsett Media/Africa Farm Radio Bureau in Uganda: New Rice Variety for Africa to save Wetlands
• Andrew Mahiyu from NASFAM in Malawi: Livestock Management Practices

For more information about the competition contact:
Blythe McKay, Development Communication Coordinator, Farm Radio International
bmckay@farmradio.org or 613-761-3652.

GTZ is sponsoring a grand prize for the writer of the best entry to the Climate Change Scriptwriting Competition: a chance to participate in a capacity-building training program for farm radio broadcasters organized by DCFRN beginning in August 2008. The internship award, valued at 4500 Euros, will enable the winner to improve his/her skills in producing radio programs with and for smallholder farmers. The training will be offered in English or French and involve an on-site component in Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi or Mali (the winner will travel to the country closest to his/her location). After the on-site training the intern will participate in a distance education module which will take place over several months that will build his/her capacity in rural radio program production. 

Dear radio broadcasters,

We’ll send you by electronic mail  the word or PDF version of the 2 documents which will help you to prepare your script as soon as possible. Check your mail box in the coming week.

Best regards

The Radio scriptwriting tips and the Climate change info kit have been posted on this web site under the page named ‘Resources’

Developing Countries Farm Radio Network (DCFRN) and CTA are excited to launch a scriptwriting competition entitled African Farmers’ Strategies for Coping with Climate Change!

The competition is open to African radio organizations, including broadcasters, production organizations, NGOs with a radio project, farmers’ associations with a radio show, etc.

Competitors are invited to submit a radio script on one of the following themes related to local adaptation to climate change:

• · Water and soil management
• · Cropping strategies emphasizing drought-resistant plants
• · Livestock management practices
• · Fisheries and Agroforestry
• · Other (for original topics related to coping with climate change and not listed above)

To assist radio practitioners with producing the radio scripts, a climate change resource kit and a guide to writing radio scripts will be prepared and distributed to interested African radio practitioners. Professional coaching and mentoring on scriptwriting will be provided to participants throughout the process via this website.

Any of the following script formats can be used:

• · interviews
• · spots
• · discussion between two hosts
• · drama (with different characters)
• · a story (told by one or two narrators)

Participants are encouraged to include an audio file with their script; however, this is not a requirement.

The script is to be prepared with input from local people (especially farmers). It must be between 500-2000 words, include background notes about the topic and production notes for broadcasters, and include references to information sources used to prepare the script (e.g., farmers, agricultural institutions, NGOs, documents, etc.). Entries must be received no later than March 15, 2008.

The scripts will be reviewed by an international panel of judges. The top 15 entries will receive high quality digital audio recorders. The winners will be announced in May 2008 and will be profiled on the competition website. The winning scripts will be published and distributed by CTA and DCFRN. All entrants will receive feedback on their scripts.

If you would like to receive more information and to participate, please sign up!