AFGHANISTAN
On September 10th 2010, The Voice of America launched “Karwan” (Caravan), a bilingual (Dari and Pashto) television program designed to educate and inform young Afghans. This thirty minute magazine-style weekly program targets younger viewers by employing a more mobile and modern format.
Reporting on stories in both Afghanistan and America, the show covers a wide variety of topics, from civil society, rule of law and women’s issues to softer topics like cultural events, sports and the arts.
The host, Daoud Sediqi, serves as the program’s tour guide, presenting the material through a youthful perspective. Karwan is very interactive with its audience on five platforms: Facebook, Karwan website, Email, YouTube and the Karwan blog.
ANGOLA
“Angola Fala So” is a weekly international 30 minute call-in show broadcast every Friday at 18:00 to 18:30 local time.
The program examines a variety of topics from the role of an independent judiciary to press freedom in a democracy to the role of women in today’s societies.
During the show, callers either telephone Washington (collect) or send texts and emails with their questions. The show’s anchor calls back those who submit text messages/emails, seeking listener comments during the show.
BURUNDI
“Ejo Bite” (How About the Future). Was a 30 minute program aimed at young refugees from Rwanda and Burundi (ages 12-16), helping to provide moral relief, engaging them in authentic reconciliation and, providing a life-line of information and hope.
The program also fostered education of young people as educational opportunities rose, profiling people who were making a difference to their families, refugee camps and their communities.
The program included a radio drama series of 52 programs on themes and issues of concern to young refugees.
HAITI
The Creole Service of the Latin America Division provides weekly reports on critical health issues in Creole language.
The successful health features have a large audience not only in Haiti but also in the rest of the French speaking Caribbean including Guadeloupe, Martinique and Point-a-Pitre.
A variety of issues relevant to the audience from Avian and Swine Influenza to Cholera and Dysentery as well as the effects of natural disasters on animal and human health are explained in plain language by experts from International Organizations, the Ministry of Health and a large network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
NIGERIA
With very successful reporting centers in Abuja and Kano the Hausa Service of the Africa Division provides weekly reports about critical health issues to the largest audience in the African continent.
“Hausa Health” programming brings together audiences and experts to discuss issues such as HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Polio as well as mother to child transmission of various diseases.
The program also set up round tables and town hall meetings around each one of the health topics discussed with large audiences in attendance.
MOZAMBIQUE
“Vida Sem Medo” (Life without Fear”) is part of the very popular Portuguese program “Your Health Your Future” broadcast weekly to Mozambique. The primary focus of the broadcast is to address issues around HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis.
The 30 minute show is aired on weekends and consists of two parts: a call-in show with a local host and medical doctor receiving and answering questions related to the set topics and stringer’s reports/features from across the country about community-based health programs and their impact at the local level on prevention and treatment of all the health topics.
SUDAN
“Sudan in Focus” is a daily (M-F) multi-media English news program focusing on news and events in southern Sudan and the region. The program is co-hosted from a bureau in Juba, the future capital of the soon-to-be-independent Republic of South Sudan, and Washington, DC. Reporting focuses on the transition to independence, including issues of democratization, development, and health. Two Town Hall/Public Debate meetings have been held in Juba, with a third one scheduled for late June.
Sudan in Focus is heard at 7:30 PM on FM stations in Juba, Yambio, Yei, and Maridi, and is working on agreements with other stations interested in running the show, including the Voice Of The People. The program is also broadcast on shortwave and can be heard throughout the region, including northern Sudan. The program’s Khartoum based stringer reports that dozens of people have called him to let him know they hear his reports on VOA and another stringer says that on a reporting trip to Northern Bahr el Ghazal State people told him Sudan in Focus is “doing great work.”
ZIMBABWE
“Studio 7” is a daily newscast that brings to a large audience in Zimbabwe news, information and special reports in three languages: English, Shona and Ndebele. The show is broadcast in SW, FM and Satellite as well as SMS headline news to mobile devices. The website has thousands of daily hits proven the popularity and impact of their content.
A loyal listenership is kept abreast of social and political changes, health issues, economic and trade topics as well as social, cultural and sport events within Zimbabwe throughout a large Diaspora in Africa and other countries around the world.
