Farm Radio Weekly

Here are some ideas for reporting on women farmers and rural women’s issues at any time of the year:

You may wish to interview an innovative woman farmer or entrepreneur about her experience preparing and marketing a new product – either for a news report or an on-air discussion:

-How did she come up with the idea for the product (or the idea to market a local product)?
-What kind of market research did she conduct?
-How does she package the product to make it attractive to customers? What else does she do to add value to her product?
-How did she determine the best price for her product?
-Did any partnerships or other types of support assist her to produce and market her product?
-How much money does she earn from her business? What role does this play in her family income?

You may wish to find and profile a women’s co-operative in your area:

-What sorts of products does the group produce? Do they use these products in their homes, sell them (or both)?
-What traditional materials and methods does the co-operative use? What new materials or methods have they learned about or discovered?
-Has the group been able to access training or funding programs to support their endeavours? What channels did they go through to obtain this support?
-What direct benefits have members of the co-operative experienced, such as improved income or better access products? Has the group been able to support women in the community at large (for example, with women’s health or women’s rights initiatives)?

You may wish to produce a call-in or text-in show in which callers answer the following questions regarding women’s land rights:

-Do you know women who have been evicted from their land? If yes, how were they expelled?
-Did the evicted women go to court to defend their right to land? If so, what was the outcome? If not, what happened to the women and their families?
-After the eviction, how did the women ensure their family’s food security? Did they have any support from their parents?
-If an evicted woman is living with HIV and AIDS, how does the community help her? Are there any organizations that have helped evicted women regain their land and/or livelihoods?

You may wish to host a program that offers women whose right to land and other assets has been violated a chance to tell their story. An interview with an advocacy organization could add value to this program. (Such an organization may also help you contact women who wish to share their story). Some points to investigate are:
-What are the customary practices regarding financial decisions in local households?
-What laws govern household finances, and how do customary practices compare with the law?
-What do women contribute to the household finances (e.g. what sort of work do they do)?
-What financial responsibilities to women have (e.g. to grow or purchase food, to pay school fees)?

Some questions for individual women:

-At what point were they excluded from financial decision making?
-What were the repercussions for the family of the woman being excluded from decision making?
-Did the woman try to negotiate with her husband for more control over the family finances and, if so, what was the result?
-What organizations or legal bodies could support the woman to improve her situation?