By Chernor Alimamy Kamara
President of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLJA), Ahmed Sahid Nasralla has called on radio Journalists to effectively use radio to educate and sensitize voters, provide credible information to the public, and ensure peaceful national elections before, during and after 24th June 2023.
The SLAJ President in a press statement dated 13th February this year described World Radio Day as that day that UNESCO encourages the world to acknowledge and appreciate the role and importance of radio in people’s everyday lives, in the prevention of conflict and promoting peace and national cohesion, and the development of nations.
He noted that, Radio is still the dominant mass-medium in Africa in general; and Sierra Leone in particular, with the widest geographical reach, and the highest audiences.
He referenced Sierra Leone where he said the new media- particularly Facebook- accounts for more than 500 (five hundred) to 700,000 (seven hundred thousand) users. He said, though this number is increasing, it is still less than 10 percent of the country’s population, whereas radio accounts for 80% of listenership.
“It is evident that radio is still the most pervasive (and cheapest) medium of mass communication in Sierra Leone,” he said.
Nasralla quoted the Independent Media Commission (IMC) which he said stated that, there are 209 (two hundred and nine) registered radio stations in the country, including community radio stations.
He said that, SLAJ, IRN, IMC, and the Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) are putting together a number of training programs for radio journalists across the country on conflict and gender sensitive reporting, elections reporting, and strengthening the governance and management structures of community radio stations to focus on independent journalism in the interest of their communities.
He further said that, they are working together to position radio, especially community radios, in a way that it becomes the most credible source of information around the upcoming national elections. He explained that, when abandoned or neglected or mismanaged, radio can indeed fuel conflict in a country.
He therefore urged everyone to invest in radio and use it as a tool to inform, educate, mobilize participation, prevent conflict and promote peace and national cohesion by ensuring the elections are free, fair, transparent, and credible.
The SLAJ boss affirmed that, over the last three decades, they have seen the role played by radio in significant milestones in the country’s sociopolitical history; during the rebel war, the restoration of democratic governance, reconciliation and peace-building era. He added that, they have also witnessed the increase in democratic participation and the change of regime during peaceful elections, the Ebola outbreak, natural disasters, and the fight against COVID-19 amongst others.
“It should be noted that had it not been for the existence of radio, the gains made by our nation over this period would have been an arduous task, if not impossible,” he said.
He confirmed that, generating adequate resources to ensure sustainability has always been a challenge for the media industry, particularly for community radios. He said, they have plans underway to look into the concern to explore the possibilities of more government and private sector investment in the media.
Nasralla pointed out that, Gender mainstreaming is also an issue they are concerned about as an Association. He stated that, efforts to support and encourage more women folks to be involved in radio are yielding positive results as he said women are now becoming owners of radio stations.
He paid tribute to the ‘numerous’ men and women, and young people who are serving in the radio industry amidst challenges of inadequate resources; yet they are committed to ensuring that their audiences are kept informed with credible information. He congratulated them and hopes that they will continue to strive for excellence and keep serving diligently as they perform their professional role during the elections.
The year 2023 marks the Centenary of Radio in Africa.
The theme for this year’s commemoration is ‘RADIO and PEACE’.
Copyright © 2023 Politico Online (15/02/23)
