Nyambura and others think harmful stereotypes have been around so long that many people in Tana River now believe them. She traces this back to the early days of Kenya’s independence, when President Jomo Kenyatta prioritised developing regions with rich agriculture, leaving drier areas like Tana River neglected. “This neglect,” Nyambura explains, “allowed damaging labels to stick—terms even used by aid groups and the media.” Over time, phrases like “unproductive and unskilled,” “conflict-prone,” “backward and isolated,” and “dependent on aid” have unfairly defined the region. Nyambura warns, “These narratives create a victim mentality, making people feel powerless to change their circumstances or challenge those in power.” 

Even journalists at Vox Radio sometimes reinforce these ideas. “It’s too easy to see Tanarians as victims instead of resilient people overcoming challenges,” says Nyambura. That’s why Vox Radio focuses on “solutions journalism,” which highlights how communities are solving their problems instead of only reporting the issues. “We need to listen to people, let them tell their stories, and showcase their strengths.”

Nyambura shared a story about Yoash, a Vox journalist whose farming show is helping change perceptions. One destructive narrative he challenges is the idea that pastoralists (from the Orma community) and farmers (from the Pokomo community) are enemies competing for resources. Yoash’s programs bring members of both groups together to discuss shared challenges and find solutions. He also highlights success stories, like a pastoralist couple (pictured above) who had set up a business of turning the parts of the animals that are usually discarded, like horns, bones and hoofs, into stunning ornaments and jewellery. After appearing on his show, they received many calls from listeners eager to learn more or buy their creations.

When Amplifying Voices initially set up Vox Radio in 2017 (formerly Amani FM), in partnership with the Amani Centre, its purpose was to build peace and disrupt the narrative of conflict that had plagued the region for many decades. With peace now taking root in Tana River County, the airwaves of Vox Radio are alive with a renewed sense of purpose and a new mission: to inspire Tana River’s communities to thrive – with a new narrative. One where farmers share sustainable practices, young entrepreneurs showcase their ideas, and elders envision a brighter future. Vox Radio has become more than a platform—it’s a symbol of hope, encouraging people to dream beyond peace and work toward lasting prosperity.

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“After four years of devastating drought and food insecurity, no-one was ready for this,” says Fatma. “Even the authorities were poorly prepared and only days before the flooding started, the President said that he anticipated that the rainy season would be short and not have much impact on farmers,” she added. Thankfully before the rains arrived, Vox Radio had already begun preparing communities, advising them what to do in the event of flooding.

Partnering with the county government and service providers such as the Kenya Red Cross, Vox team members have been reaching out to flood-affected communities, giving them a voice. “As we meet community members, we listen to their concerns and needs and we also engage with specialists who can answer their questions,” says Fatma.  “For example we have discovered that a lot of people have been traumatised by the floods, and so we have been helping people understand how to identify trauma and giving them ways to cope.”

Fatma Mzee accompanies the District County Commissioner and other officials during a food distribution to displaced communities.

Vox Radio Chairman, John Otunga who has also been supporting the team in their emergency response described how the Vox team responded when the scale of the disaster became apparent: “We realised the importance of reliable information and immediately took action. We rallied community leaders from the government, religious groups, and the broader network of development workers to share messages of hope, give direction, and reassure the affected communities. We also restructured our programming to address community concerns and facilitated community discussions. We placed a lot of emphasis on engagement with community leaders and health experts in our radio programmes, which has fostered a sense of connection and support. These platforms of dialogue have contributed to the unity and kindness we are witnessing in Tana River, even as people grapple with the aftermath of the floods. Leaders are showing more accountability, and slowly, hope is finding its way back into the hearts of our people.”

The authorities have also acknowledged the valuable role Vox Radio is playing, even in supporting their rescue efforts.  One family whose home had been submerged under water called the radio station to tell them of their situation, which alerted the authorities who were able to rescue them.

According to Fatma, the floods came at a terrible time for both pastoralists and crop farmers. “Most farmers had already planted their seeds, but these have been washed away,” she said.  “The pastoralists likewise had brought their livestock from the hinterlands to graze by the river, so many animals were swept away, and those remaining are now suffering from diseases caused by the Tstese Fly.”

Going forward John believes that as the flood waters start to recede, the radio station will have a critical role to play as the communities will face many challenges.  On top of the existing challenge of food insecurity, which has been exacerbated by the floods, there is now a threat of a cholera outbreak and mosquito-born diseases like Malaria.  There is also a risk to communities from wild animals, whose habitats have been washed away, which often brings them into direct contact with people.

While thousands of people are now living in temporary camps, Fatma is thankful that many people are listening to Vox Radio.   “We have found that people in these IDP camps are very vulnerable, especially young people, and so we are running special mentorship programmes for boys and girls,” she said.  “Vox teams have been moving from camp-to-camp having conversations with young people about the risks that they face and about how they can keep safe.”

Meanwhile John says that Vox Radio’s commitment to serving the public during this crisis underscores the vital role that local media plays in times of disaster. “By leveraging its influence and reach, which is now almost county-wide, Vox Radio has not only disseminated critical information, but also fostered a sense of community resilience and unity, proving that even in the darkest times, the power of community-centred media can bring people together and help them rebuild.”

Photo credits: Kevin Odit (Nation Media Group) and Kulah Nzomo (Vox Radio)

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Amplifying Voices helped set up the Umoja (Unity) station in 2016 and when two of our team members visited there recently, they were blown away by the impact this station has had since then.  Visiting different communities in the region, they heard many stories of how Umoja FM has become a life-line and seen them through war, Ebola, a refugee crisis and the pandemic.

The funding will help:

• Rebuild the Umoja FM studio, which has been damaged by weather, war and termites – see below
• Develop a solar-powered FM relay station to reach more communities with little or no access to reliable information
• Purchase two motor-bikes to help the team reach inaccessible areas
• Support regular community-engagement across the region
• Conduct training and monitoring visits

If you would like to help the triathlon reach 100% of their target, please visit the team’s funding page: Triathlon for DRC

The current studio, which has been damaged by weather war and termites, will be replaced by this…

Thank you for your generosity

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Meanwhile the Minjilla station, which is solar-powered has given the team a new lease of life and has helped them become more environmentally and financially sustainable. As Fatma says: “In the old station we were on and off air, depending on if we had sufficient funds to pay the electricity bill, but now thanks to the solar power we never have to worry.”

An engineer installs the Solar Panels to provide power to Vox Radio

Alongside the radio station, plans are also progressing with the development of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) hub which will be co-located at the Vox Radio site.  The Vox team has just launched an exciting new programme in partnership with the Paradigm Initiative, known as L.I.F.E, an acronym that stands for Life Skills, ICTs, Financial Readiness, and Entrepreneurship. This programme offers free ICT skills to young people and women in Tana River County to give them digital literacy skills. Twenty excited students took their place yesterday for the first 10-week course, which was such an event that it even made the evening national news bulletin. John believes this and other ICT initiatives will be crucial to reducing poverty in Tana River, while improving community access to health and education services as well as creating new sources of income and employment.  “It will bridge the digital divide that has for years left the marginalised communities in Tana River and especially women and girls excluded from present-day opportunities,” he says.

Participants and Vox Radio team members at the inaugural ‘LIFE’, digital literacy skills workshop (photo: courtesy Vox Radio)

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“If the radio station was not there, we would feel insecure again!”

These words from a listener to Umoja FM were one of the many powerful testimonies we heard, as Johnny and I visited different communities in the chiefdom of Watalinga in the DRC’s conflict-affected region of North Kivu.  Story after story confirmed how this humble radio station has been a life-line to local communities, seeing them through war, a refugee crisis, an Ebola outbreak and the pandemic.  One listener told us: “Before Covid arrived in the DRC, Umoja had prepared us, so we knew how to protect ourselves.”

It’s been nearly 5 years since anyone from our team has been able to visit the radio station that Amplifying Voices helped set up in 2016, as part of an initiative to promote peace and development in this region. During that time all of our contact with the team has been through WhatsApp calls and text messages.  And despite many setbacks, including equipment failure, the team managed to stay on the air, continuing the community conversations.  Even the war couldn’t stop them.  As station manager Baraka told us, “When thousands were fleeing to Uganda because the rebels attacked the town, our team decided it was important to stay.  The army felt we were providing such an important service to the community that they even sent soldiers to defend our station.”

Accompaniment

An important part of Amplifying Voices’ work is to ‘walk alongside’ our partners as they support their communities, which are often facing challenging circumstances.  We call this “accompaniment” and while a lot of it takes place on-line, nothing beats face-to-face visits. Our recent visit to the DRC was a wonderful opportunity to build on our relationships with the local team as well as support them with training, technical advice and equipment.  As the Democratic Republic of Congo gears up for elections in December, an important part of our training workshop this visit was devoted to the role of Umoja FM in the run up to, during and after the election and especially how the station can contribute to a peaceful, democratic process. While training on conventional subjects like reporting, we placed an emphasis on ‘solutions journalism‘, which takes a different approach to conventional news reporting by focusing on how communities respond to and resolve social issues and problems themselves.

After completing a community-centred media workshop, the Umoja FM team proudly display their certificates of participation

Extending the Reach

During our visit we upgraded the radio transmitter. To confirm this was having an effect, we took the opportunity to visit some remote communities who feel disconnected from the wider community as they have little access to reliable information and no mobile phone connectivity.  When we arrived in one village, Kichanga, we were ushered in to join a community meeting led by the local chief, discussing their need for a school and a medical clinic. They were delighted that they can now hear Umoja FM in the village instead of taking their radios out to the high ground. Umoja presenter Sammy interviewed the chief, telling him that his voice would be on the radio that evening to amplify the voice of his village. We are still working with Umoja team to extend the radio signal to other villages who can’t yet receive it.

Umoja FM presenter, Sammy interviews local chief for the evening programme

New Studio Building

Besides the importance of extending the reach of the station to communities that are underserved by radio, the Umoja FM studio is itself facing major challenges. This old wattle and daub building, has been in existence for more than a decade, but it has finally succumbed to damage from termites, weather and war. To that end, Amplifying Voices in partnership with FEBC Australia, has committed to helping our local partner ESADER to build a new building. Albert, the President of ESADER says: “The construction of a new studio building to replace the existing one, will enable Umoja FM to operate sustainably into the future and is part of an ongoing process to help the radio station to increase its reach to communities that have little or no access to radio or other media.”

Construction of the new building is planned to begin in October.

The current Umoja FM studio affected by years of termite, weather and war damage

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Umoja FM broadcasts in the midst of Virunga national park

“Umoja” means unity, and in the years since we helped set the station up in 2016, the wonderful team that runs Umoja FM have been a constant voice of hope and peace, throughout conflict, the ebola crisis, the pandemic and a refugee crisis.

These events were also a barrrier, preventing us visiting the project. While we have been in regular touch with the team through WhatsApp and helped replace key pieces of equipment, nothing helps strengthen relationship than being together. In an evaluation last year we heard from community members about the value of Umoja FM during some very tough times. This trip gives us the opportunity to meet some of these people, as well as the voices that make Umoja FM what it is, and hear their stories in person.

For our part, we have been asked to provide refresher training for the team members. After so many years, our own team has changed – this will be Johnny’s first visit to Nobili. The Umoja team has changed too. Some people that I trained previously have moved on and there are several new team members. As the community faces upcoming elections, reliable, trustworthy and transparent dialogue within and between communities becomes all the more essential for peace, so this is our training emphasis, with workshops focusing on conflict-sensitive journalism and responsible election coverage.

We also hope to move forward with the important work of planning a relay station to Kikingi. The village is located in the Virunga National Park which is heavily forested and there is a mountain which prevents Kikingi’s residents from receiving the Umoja FM signal. The village has no roads or electricity. The community feels marginalised and has been under constant threat of attack from armed groups hiding in the national park. Kikingi community found a place just outside the village where a weak radio signal can be heard, and they set up a hut for listener groups. However, they have continually sought a better solution so Kikingi villagers can hear the Umoja FM broadcasts in their homes or workplaces. In principle, a station relay should be quite straightforward to set up. However in this remote and difficult to access location, with so much instability and threat from armed groups, the solution needs to be something that local people can maintain and repair through local technicians with parts they can access locally.

As we re-engage with each of these communities, local action groups and other key stakeholders, we are inspired by those who have been here the whole time, living through the crises and yet still ready to put themselves out for sake of their neighbours. We want our support to be something that further equips, without harming that spirit of resilience and local initiative that has sustained Umoja FM so far.

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In a remote tribal village in Maharashtra a remarkable story is unfolding. It started with one village.  After a year, another one joined in.  Before too long there were thirty others, with new ones asking to join. None of the communities in these villages had ever met, but somehow they knew each other well, for they shared a common story – of challenge and adversity. But they were also connected through the Adivasi Voices Project, a  joint venture between local NGO, Seva and Amplifying Voices.

Sharing stories, coming together

For over a year these village communities have been listening to each other’s stories on speakerboxes, learning from each other and from experts too.  With support from the Seva team, people shared their stories, about overcoming addiction, escaping the trap of bonded labour, or how to start a kitchen garden. The communities not only inspired each other that change is possible, they also shared how.

Since before the pandemic many people from these communities had been asking Seva to set up a face-to-face meeting with other villages in the district, and so for the first time, last week, five communities came together, hosted by the village of Umburne.

“It was like meeting long-lost friends ,” said Ram, “we had so much to talk about, but most importantly we talked about the programmes we loved the most and the changes that have happened in our villages since we had the speakerboxes.”

Village-to-village transfer

Seva team leader, Shilpa described the gathering as being like a celebration of learning. As story after story was shared, Shilpa said she was so surprised to see how much faster change had come to the villages which had most recently received the speakerboxes, compared to those who had them at the beginning.  “They have adopted new ideas, attitudes and practices much more quickly than the first villages we started working in,” she said.  “Of course the communities have learned from the interviews with experts, but what has been most powerful is that the communities have been learning from each other,” she added, describing it as a “village-to-village transfer.”

Community members from five adivasi villages in Maharashtra share how stories and content on the speakerboxes have impacted their lives

The content on the speakerboxes is coordinated by the Seva team, however each programme is rooted in the heart of the village and the communities are involved in their design and creation.  Experts too are involved when important learning or information needs to be shared. The most popular programmes in all the villages, however were the dramas, which reflect village life and issues they all face. One lady, Trimbak, chuckled as she recounted how the family arguments she heard in the dramas were just like the arguments in her family.” Dattu, who was able to recite the dialogues in the dramas, said the programmes were in their language and exactly depicted their lives and situations.  Tulshi shared how the programme on early marriages had sparked a big conversation in his village, because they hadn’t allow girls to get an education above 4th standard. “But all that has changed,” he said, “Our entire village have decided that all our children should have an opportunity to have secondary education as well.”

After food and dancing the villagers said their farewells, agreeing that this should become a regular event and that more villages should be included in future.

For us, we have been reminded that lasting, sustainable change happens at the grassroots level. And that when change, no matter how small comes to one community, it can cause ripples of change in other communities.  Some of these ripples will intersect with other ripples to create waves which result in momentum and lasting impact.

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It’s not every day you get to hang out with local heroes, but that was the joy my colleague Kevin from FEBC Australia and I had recently when we visited the Vox Radio team in eastern Kenya’s Tana Delta. After the end of one of the most peaceful elections ever in Kenya, Vox Radio was awarded a certificate of recognition as “heroes” for the amazing role they played in spreading peace in Tana River County. And their recognition is well-deserved, as since 2017, this young team has been working tirelessly to engage with every community in the region, promoting dialogue, listening to fears, challenging hate speech and misinformation. Everywhere we went, from government offices to small villages, we were told that Vox Radio had played a significant role, not just in bringing harmony between rival groups, but in promoting health and development and championing those whose voices were rarely heard.

“Vox Radio has been instrumental in bringing peace to Tana Delta.”

Hon Ali Wario, MP tells Jon about the value of Vox Radio

Even the local MP for the region is impressed.  In a meeting at his parliamentary office in Nairobi, Honourable Ali Wario, told me that Vox Radio had been instrumental in bringing peace to the region.  Recalling the massacre in Tana River ten years ago, Hon Wario said the county was in such a different place now, and that Vox Radio had played a big part in changing the atmosphere by promoting understanding between the different communities.  He added that the station had also been a big help during the pandemic with its educational and health programmes.

During our visit we met different communities who told us how Vox Radio spoke with their voice.  We also heard however, how difficult life had become. Drought has ravaged livestock, crops and livelihoods. With dramatic increases in costs due to the war in Ukraine, many said they didn’t know how they would manage going forward. In one village a school had sent all their children home saying they could not attend as they weren’t able to pay school fees, which was devastating news to the families, adding to Tana River’s education crisis.  The county already lags far behind the rest of Kenya, having among the lowest transition rates between primary and secondary schools and the lowest literacy level nationally.

This was brought home to us during our visit to a school in Tana Delta, where 13 teachers are responsible for the education of 900 students. The head teacher Mole Hashako Yako, listed a range of challenges from providing enough food and water each day for children, to education resources and classroom furniture.  And yet she believes that access to quality education is one of the most effective ways to enable communities to break the cycle of under-development and dependency.

To that end, it was a delight for us to finalise an agreement with the Amani Centre (community-based organisation) to establish a new information communication technology (ICT) hub in the rapidly expanding town of Minjilla on the LAPSSET corridor.  At the centre of this community-led initiative will be Vox Radio, which will move to Minjilla in January 2023.  Mrs Hashako Yako believes this ICT hub, integrated with the work of Vox Radio could revolutionise the learning for resource-deprived schools like hers.  During the Covid-19 pandemic, Vox Radio proved the value of radio in education through their ‘school of the air‘. With partners such as Elimu and their innovative digital learning resources, we believe this centre will revolutionise education, health and development in Tana River County for years to come.

John Green (Amani Centre Chair) with Jon and Kevin Keegan (CEO of FEBC Australia) and the signed agreement to establish the new ICT Hub

Featured photo: Fatma Mzee receives the “Heroes Award” on behalf of Vox Radio
(Picture courtesy of Vox Radio)

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