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Community Radio: Giving a Voice to the Voiceless
UNDP and Aid India

In June 2006, three new community radio stations will be created in Tamil Nadu, one of the most affected regions of India. After the success of one of the stations in Budhikote, a UNDP-led program will start these new stations with the help of Voices, a development communications NGO based in Bangalore. Technical support is being provided by Voices, and Aid India , another NGO, will be in charge of the program implementation at the ground level.

Community radio stations are run by volunteers. They are currently being trained in interviewing and reporting skills as well as other relevant tasks such as audio recording. In Budhikote, after a two-day hands-on training program, community volunteers quickly learned the radio technology. The radio stations will address various topics from disaster management, development related issues, medicinal plants, organic farming, to school or entertainment events, as well as counseling for victims of the tsunami. All of the work at the stations, including generation of content, is under the responsibility of the communities, which will be able to focus on their own needs, which are often overlooked by mainstream media.

For more information, see:
www.undp.org
www.aidindia.org.