MediaSahel: young people and partner radio stations lead discussions on Dianké’s themes
Related project
MediaSahelFollowing on from last August’s training sessions, young people and media outlets have launched a series of discussions and citizenship activities in 20 municipalities of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, in order to address themes that were covered by the Dianké podcast series.
Young people and radio presenters gathered over the summer to ready themselves for the broadcast of Dianké in Fula, Hausa and Maninka. With additional coaching from the team at the Senegalese NGO, RAES, the young “flagbearers”1 of the MediaSahel project from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger improved their ability to speak in public, develop action plans and lead public discussions. Since then, 14 radio stations have begun to broadcast the show (5 each in Mali and Niger and 4 in Burkina Faso) and the young people involved are now travelling around their regions to carry out their planned work to raise awareness of the themes covered by the podcast series.
Dianké exposes the problems in society that cripple our development, all while putting the woman herself front and centre. She is the one who motivates us to realise our dreams – to turn our country of Burkina Faso into a safe haven where we can live well. Thanks to these shows, we will have a higher level of overall awareness, explains a young “flagbearer” from Burkina Faso.
1 The young “flagbearers” are a group of around 25 young people from each country. They come from the MediaSahel project’s key regions and have been actively involved in various activities in association with the radio partner stations since the project’s inception. The project also provides them with varied support.
Young people keen to make a difference
In Burkina Faso, young people from the Sahel region have embarked on an awareness-raising tour in order to get people in the community to understand the impact that early marriage has on the development of girls and young women, particularly those living in internal displacement camps.<:p>
Large-scale discussions among groups gathering together to drink traditional tea, known locally as “grins”, are organised in other regions of the country such as those in the east and in Hauts Bassins. During these gatherings, tea-drinkers talk about public participation and the involvement of young people and women in decision-making forums.
Public ambassadors have been appointed from 18 districts of the capital of Ouagadougou. Their duties include the promotion of the values of citizenship within the areas they represent. Until late October, similar actions will be undertaken in 13 regions of Mali and Niger.
Getting radio stations involved to spread messages to more people
In addition to broadcasting the series, the 14 partner radio stations are organising discussions that address the themes covered by each episode. For the organisers involved, this helps messages reach a wider public. The community broadcasts that follow the podcast serial broaden the knowledge of the listeners and help the message to be understood more effectively, stresses Abdoulaye M, a host on Radio Dileram in Diffa, Niger, one of the partner radio stations.
The result of a fruitful partnership between RAES and CFI, the radio series Dianké has been translated into French and was broadcast in August 2020 by RFI and 15 other project partner radio stations. Since last September, 14 radio stations have been broadcasting versions of the show in various national languages: Fula in Burkina Faso, Hausa in Niger, and Maninka and Fula in Mali.
