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After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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The Drum Beat 619 - Policy Blogs: Two African Perspectives

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Issue #
619
Date

 

 

Have you ever asked yourselves questions like these:

  • External Support: Useful? Effective?

or

  • What Role Should the Media Play in Determining the Content of Campaign Advertisements?

This issue of The Drum Beat shares excerpts from two Communication Initiative bloggers working in Africa who have asked themselves these very questions and then contributed their voices to The CI's Policy Blogs area.

First, we hear from Dr. Sue Goldstein, Programme Director for Soul City: Institute for Health and Development Communication in South Africa, on the issue of the effectiveness and value of external support.

Then, Noelina Nabwire, a communications and knowledge management specialist currently based in Kenya who works in countries in the Horn of Africa, explores questions related to the role of the media in relation to campaign advertising.

Excerpts from each blog follow. Please do click the links to read the full blogs. And, whilst there, please rate the blog and respond with your critical review, comments, ideas, and questions. 

 

 

I.    EXCERPTS FROM SUE GOLDSTEIN'S BLOG, WITH ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLES, FOLLOW:
Click here for the full blog [You may need to join the Polio Network group - log in, click your username, then Account settings and networks]

"Sitting in a room with armed guards permanently outside, I contemplate the nature of communication for development to eradicate polio and the role of monitoring and evaluation in the process. Surrounded in the trip by committed, enthusiastic people working to achieve the polio eradication elimination targets in Pakistan (and the world) it is heartening that such teams are willing to work in dangerous areas (of course many live in such areas without choice). There seems to be so much that the world of development and social change communication can learn from this massive effort. Such as how closely the services and communication teams work together at all levels (not always smoothly); such as the intense focus on the end point and the clarity of the aim of all the work – reaching every last child with polio vaccination; such as the intense monitoring of the reach and the social mapping in every Union Council, literally down to every house; such as the massive international persuasive effort to advocate for eradication, and ensure funding for the last massive effort; such as the critical advocacy and negotiation teams constantly working at gaining access for vaccination teams to enter areas to reach unvaccinated children."

3 CI illustrative summaries:

"How could we as an external team with little contextual experience add value to this effort? This was a thought constantly in my mind as we learned about the programme. But, I am told by the very people whose work I am here to review that an outside eye can be useful in finding blind spots and/or asking questions filtered by a different set of experiences. I can accept this but find myself respecting their resolve to leave no stone unturned in the struggle to find enough small gains to achieve eradication. This is even more remarkable when considering the willingness to listen to an outsider only marginally familiar with the complex, dangerous and difficult situations they work in daily."

3 CI illustrative summaries:

"...The process of getting research understood, used and integrated into health communication is often taken for granted but it is not as easy as it seems. Starting at the formative stage how the data is collected and analysed is important to understand..."


3 CI illustrative summaries:

"...The questions need to be guided by a model or theory of change so that the research can unearth the critical areas to focus on. The questions need to be guided by the true desire to listen and hear other perspectives."

See The CI's:

"...[T]he usefulness of information brought from external evaluators can be measured to some degree by the value it is given by those in the programme and by the impact it has on supporting the programme to achieve its goal..."

See The CI's:

 

 

To read this full article and to comment on and debate Sue's perspectives, please click here (You may need to join the Polio Network group - log in, click your username, then Account settings and networks).

The above blog is the first of an occasional series of reflections from people in different roles and places who are linked through their work to eradicate polio. Please read the series and contribute your thoughts! If you have any questions about registering or commenting, just contact Chris Morry cmorry@comminit.com

 

 

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II.    EXCERPTS FROM NOELINA NABWIRE'S BLOG, WITH ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLES, FOLLOW:
Click here for the full blog

"That the media is an essential tool in any functioning democracy is not in doubt. What are the motives behind the various contents contained in the media? This question of motives becomes more pronounced during the electioneering period as is the case in Kenya....

Has the media in Kenya considered analyzing the content of campaign adverts to gauge their motives apart from selling the politicians' and political parties' manifestos? Could the content of these campaign adverts generate some sort of indicators that could be used to sound alarm bells on whether they are promoting peace and harmonious coexistence or fuelling violence? This is critical given that adverts enable individuals and groups to say what they want to say the way they would want their audiences to receive the information.

While appreciating that the media need advertisement revenue to be in business, is it right for any media to agree to print and/or broadcast adverts that promote propaganda, ethnic hatred, disunity and outright lies? In such a case, can the media have the guts to either refuse to take on the advert or inform the author to change the language to promote peace and harmonious living in the country? This will enable the media to contribute to national, regional and international peace and security..."

9 CI illustrative summaries:

 

 

To read this full article, to comment on and debate Noelina's perspectives, and/or to learn more, please:

 

 

Please do submit your own blog(s) on themes and ideas on which you have ideas that you wish to share. If you are registered (through a free process) with The CI, please click here or send your text to Julie Levy at jlevy@comminit.com Julie can also answer questions you may have.

You can review other blogs submitted, click here.

 

 

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This issue of The Drum Beat was written by Kier Olsen DeVries.

 

 

The Editor of The Drum Beat is Kier Olsen DeVries.

Please send additional project, evaluation, strategic thinking, and materials information on communication for development at any time. Send to drumbeat@comminit.com

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