"This is a compilation of the presentations at the fome conference on "Media Assistance: Mind the Gap!" from September 30 – October 1, 2024, in Dortmund." (commbox)
"No News Is Bad News (NNIBN) was an excellent programme in terms of effort, on the part of Free Press Unlimited (FPU), the European Journalism Centre (EJC) and all their partners. The programme has supported courageous, committed, energetic and initiative-taking partners who have promoted rights to
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access to information, investigative journalism, gender equality, media literacy, content and reach in and for media dark areas, and more. The international programme has achieved some significant milestones around safety of journalists. Most of the partners report increased capacity, stronger organisations and progress on key quality, advocacy and gender goals. Many are more sustainable than before the programme started. FPU has become a learning organisation with strong skills in research, advocacy and M&E. Thanks toNNIBN, FPU has also become a leading advocacy organisation for media freedom that plays a big role in shaping international networks and initiatives.
However, as evaluators we face a conundrum – on the one hand almost all the activities went well, the partners are satisfied, the funders are happy and colleagues in other agencies are, generally, admiring of FPU and EJC. Yet on the other hand, we see few clear decisive impacts at the national level – i.e. ‘a diverse and professional media landscape’ – which is the ‘impact statement’ in the Theory of Change. So why is it difficult to say what it amounted to? Firstly, the programme was probably too thinly spread across too many countries (some with only one or two partners) to really show an impact at the media landscape level as a whole. Which means that the ultimate objective of the Theory of Change is still out of reach in most regions and countries in the programme. Secondly, advocacy and human rights work in general is a slow process, requires working in coalitions (which FPU/EJC do), often invisible, too, and that when there is a breakthrough it is hardly ever acknowledged." (Executive summary)
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"Radio stations across Africa are facing unprecedented threats to their sustainability due to weak media markets, limited advertising revenue and intense competition. A more pragmatic understanding of viability and more flexible donor strategies can help these outlets stay on air and maintain their
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independence. Station managers must continually balance editorial independence, financial sustainability, and their mission to serve the public. Addressing these three challenges is not always compatible, and trade-offs are often inevitable. Successful stations are able to harness viable funding modalities without selling out and capitalize on management and operations techniques to expand reach without compromising quality content. Marginal improvements in the flexibility of media donors and the media assistance community can foster greater viability and independence for small outlets in challenging context." (Key findings)
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"The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has commissioned iMedia Associates (iMedia) to conduct a Capitalisation Exercise (CapEx) of its media assistance, with the primary objective of examining its current programmes and bringing out lessons learned. As the second output of this CapE
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x, iMedia has carried out a review of what other donors are doing on media assistance. As agreed, it focuses on current media support by five donors/agencies: DFID (UK Aid), Sida (Sweden), UNESCO, UNDP and the Knight Foundation. We have chosen the five donors to reflect the diversity of donor-types, namely two large and influential Western donors (UK’s DFID and Swedish Sida), agencies in the UN system (UNDP and UNESCO) and a well-endowed US-based private foundation (Knight Foundation). This review of other donors also synthesises key findings from a literature review of the wider media assistance sector in order to identify good practice and situate SDC’s approach in relation to other donors. Our emphasis is on current programmes, policy documents and funding mechanisms." (Introduction)
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"This is a review of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation’s (SDC) media assistance by consultants from iMedia. The aim is to capitalise on SDC’s experience of media over the last 10 years. The objective is to examine the organisation’s current media assistance programmes and bring
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out lessons learned. NB: this is not an evaluation report but it does end with some conclusions and recommendations offered from iMedia’s independent perspective." (Executive summary)
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"The purpose of this report is to share the key findings of the VVD radio project in Southern Madagascar after six months of broadcasts in 2012, in particular to document the design and evolution of the pilot project; feedback the outcomes to participating stakeholders; inform the donor community ab
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out the impacts of the VVD project; and provide lessons and perspectives to assist a proposed scaling up process. The document focuses on the findings of a two month evaluation process which was also informed by regular monitoring and feedback in the field during the course of the project activities." (Executive summary)
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"This evaluation of Andrew Lees Trust’s Projet Radio (ALT/PR) in Southern Madagascar examines the impact of radio broadcasts on audience knowledge and attitudes relating to certain MDGs. It finds that the project is achieving some notable success in changing and enhancing knowledge and attitudes o
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n topics including HIV/AIDS, family planning, mother and child health, environmental issues, social and administrative issues and gender inequality. Radio is also having a positive impact on uptake of health services, enrolment in literacy classes, construction of environmentally-friendly woodstoves, tree-planting, agricultural yields, and awareness of strategies for poverty reduction through incomegeneration and community associations. This evaluation looks at ALT/PR’s methods and organisation and finds many advantages to its particular three-way process of working. This involves radio stations, communities and local service-providers in a mutually advantageous partnership for the production, distribution and broadcasting of radio programmes. The provision of radio-sets to listening groups appears to be a very successful strategy, and our surveys show a high level of commitment and enthusiasm on the part of listeners, especially women. The ability of radio to scale-up and extend the on-the-ground work of local service-providers emerges quite clearly. Our study also looks at challenges that ALT/PR has tackled and, in some cases, is still facing. These are challenges involving management and networking in what is a particularly poor and disadvantaged area. The project still faces issues relating to ensuring its radio programmes are consistently and truly participative. Demand for its services is high and there is a risk of staff becoming over-stretched, particularly for senior management. ALT/PR is demonstrably cost effective and has a good local reputation, but fundraising continues to be a time-consuming preoccupation. ALT/PR is already tackling the major long-term challenge of sustaining the networking mechanism it has set up, and we highlight some encouraging signs of sustainability." (Abstract)
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"This is a practical guide to producing the kind of radio programmes which will make listeners stop and think about HIV/AIDS and how they can help reduce the risk of infection. In 1998 AIDS killed 1.4 million people and left 6 million orphans in Eastern and Southern Africa alone. Lack of information
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is a key reason behind the spread of the disease. RADIO AND HIV/AIDS is an attempt to make a difference by providing a practical and inexpensive communications methodology for media and HIV/AIDS workers. It is illustrated with examples of successful HIV/AIDS radio programming from many parts of the world. The handbook will also be of interest to NGO managers, policy makers and communications advisors in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention and health education in general. RADIO AND HIV/AIDS: MAKING A DIFFERENCE uses a step by step approach, and includes sections on planning, researching, designing, producing and evaluating radio programmes. It also has a section on training in the use of mass media for awareness raising, and includes advice on how to approach funders for small grants. It advocates a participatory approach to communications, in which the listeners can voice their needs in the initial research stage, take an important part in the programmes and finally have an input into their evaluation." (Back cover)
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"[Esta publicación] es una guía práctica para producir el tipo de programas de radio que hará a los oyentes pararse a pensar en el VIH-SIDA y en cómo pueden ayudar a reducir el riesgo de infección. En 1998, el SIDA mató a 1,4 millones de personas y dejó huérfanos a seis millones de niños e
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n los países del oeste y sur de África. La falta de información es una de las principales causas de la propagación de la enfermedad. RADIO Y VIH-SIDA es un intento de marcar la diferencia mediante una metodología de comunicaciones práctica y económica dirigida a los medios de comunicación y al personal sanitario del campo del VIH-SIDA. Está ilustrada con ejemplos de programas de radio sobre el VIH-SIDA que han tenido éxito en varios lugares del mundo. El manual también será de interés para directivos de ONG, políticos y asesores de comunicaciones en el ámbito de la prevención del VIH-SIDA y de la educación sanitaria en general. En RADIO Y VIH-SIDA: CÓMO MARCAR LA DIFERENCIA se expone un acercamiento gradual al problema, y se incluyen secciones sobre planificación, investigación, diseño, producción y evaluación de programas de radio. También contiene una sección sobre capacitación en el uso de medios de comunicación de masas para despertar la conciencia de los oyentes, y ofrece consejos sobre como dirigirse a financieros para conseguir pequeñas subvenciones. Aboga por un acercamiento participativo a las comunicaciones, mediante el cual, los oyentes, desde la etapa de documentación inicial, puedan expresar sus necesidades, participar notablemente en los programas y contribuir en definitiva a la evaluación con sus comentarios." (Cubierta del libro)
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"School teachers, teacher trainers and development workers know that visual aids help people to learn and remember, but when time is short and resources few, visual aids may seem to be a luxury they cannot afford. This book shows that you can make visual aids quickly and easily, using low-cost mater
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ials, which are simple to find or improvise, wherever you are in the world. All the techniques described in this book have been adapted and developed by Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) volunteers and the national colleagues, working in schools and development projects throughout Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific. How to Make and Use Visual Aids draws together know-how and tips from this firsthand experience in situations where resources are limited. The book is designed to be used by teachers, teacher trainers a development workers from any skill background. How to Make Use Visual Aids can readily be used by people with little or no experience of making or using visual aids. It can also extend the range and ambition of experienced users by providing them with ideas, practical tips and new ways of thinking about visual aids." (Introduction)
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