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Senior Arts Reporter

Zimbabwe will today join the world in commemorating World Radio Day (WRD), which will be celebrated under the global theme “New World, New Radio” and the three global sub themes: evolution, innovation and connection.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of WRD and 110 years of radio.

On WRD, UNESCO calls on everyone — audiences, radio broadcasters and audio-visual professionals — to celebrate radio and its values and to promote reliable information as a common good.

In eastern and southern Africa, Zimbabwe will host a sub-regional indaba, a virtual event to commemorate the 2021 WRD on the 12th of February from 11am-1pm.

The topic for the indaba is, “Opportunities and challenges for radio amidst the Covid-19 pandemic”, targeting commercial, public and community radio representatives from eastern and southern Africa.

The indaba will also provide a platform for media stakeholders to share experiences.

The objectives include bringing together media stakeholders from eastern and southern Africa.

Some of the participants in today’s Webnair discussion include Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Nick Mangwana, UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa director Professor Hubert Gijzen, Kenya Community Media board chair Patrick Ochieng, Uganda Mama FM board chair Patricia Kevin Litho, Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (ZUJ) president Michael Chideme and secretary general, Southern Africa Editors’ Forum (SAEF) Jossy Joss.

Minister Mutsvangwa is expected to give a keynote address before the launch of the Felicien Ncheye African Award for Community Media Sustainability.

The African Community Media Sustainability Award is named after Felicien Ncheye, who was one of the pioneers of community radio in Tanzania.

He served for a long time as the manager of Sengerema Multi-purpose Community Telecentre, one of the first two community radios in Tanzania.

Under his leadership, Sengerema Multipurpose Telecentre was a model in the efforts for community radio sustainability in the region being a Telecentre, a multi-media library, provision of Community Internet Providers Services (ISP), and various income generating activities at the multi-purpose Centre.

Ncheye died on March 28 2017 at Muhimbili Hospital in Dar es Salaam at the age of 63.

The award in his memory will serve to inspire and encourage community media to strive towards all forms of sustainability (social, financial, institutional and technological).