Rural women in Congolese village launch a community radio station

Community media has long beeng recognised by social movements and development agencies alike as one of the most efficient ways for grassroots groups to articulate their demands and struggles for a more just and egalitarian society.

From Africa to Latin America, from the Caribbean to Asia, groups of marginalised people – often ‘invisible’ in mainstream media - have used myriad community media in order to claim and demand their rights both as human beings and as citizens.And while sometimes, by their very nature, community initiatives may take time to become a concrete reality, in the end they do bear fruit as the inhabitants of this remote area in the Congolese province of Sud-Kivu well know.

Bubusa or ‘kabubuso’ in the Shi dialect describes a cry used exclusively by women and young girls to wake each other up when it is time to leave to work in a field in a distant village.The cry is also used when they need to go and fetch firewood or the fresh grass used on the floors of huts.As a celebratory chant, kabubuso is used for accompanying a marriage or for calling women to gather before going to church in a parish far from the village.

The call is a way of communicating that is clearly defined as a specific traditional means of communication among rural women and one that is widely accepted by all sectors of the community.Now the grassroots organization Sauti ya Mwanamke Kijijini (SAMWAKI) – a Swahili word meaning ‘the voice of rural women’ - have chosen Bubusa as the name of its radio station.

Launched in 2002, SAMWAKI is a women’s organization active in the rural areas of South Kivu. Its mission is to ensure that rural women are empowered by access to information, training and communication in a country that has seen endless generalized violence in the last years. In addition to the marginalisation resulting from extreme poverty, women in rural areas also face specific forms of violence. Women’s developmental efforts are constantly undermined and deep-rooted prejudices and excluding practices prevail.

SAMWAKI, a founding member of the Network of Community Radios and Television of Congo and the Association of Community Radios of Congo, began planning the radio project in 2003. A multi-stakeholder consultation process ensured that the beneficiaries of the project debated, discussed and planned how to use radio to promote and encourage rural development. A management structure, key themes and broadcast languages - Mashi, Swahili and French - were also agreed by the beneficiaries. After land for the station was donated by local authorities, the community embarked on the construction of new premises.

SAMWAKI’s vision is to turn Radio Babusa FM into a genuine space of encounter and exchange of information and experiences by and for rural women and young girls. The objective is to improve their knowledge and practices and, thereby, to improve their lives and those of their families and communities. The radio will be used to break the silence around issues such as the discrimination and marginalisation faced by rural women and to share and exchange visions and information that will empower village women to be active agents of sustainable development in their communities. It will be a tool for forging new alliances with other members and sectors of the community in order to seek commonly agreed solutions to the problems facing women in particular and the community in general.

For more information please contact: Ms Adeline Nsimire, Director SAMWAKI - Sauti ya Mwanamke Kijini, samwakiasbl@yahoo.fr or adelinesn@yahoo.fr