Issue #75

We are delighted that news of FRW reached the Forum des peoples, held recently in Bandiagara, Mali. We welcome nine new Malian subscribers who heard about us at this gathering: Ambroise Dakouo, from the NGO ARGA Mali; Moussa Kalapo, from the NGO AMIS-TIC; Bakary Coulibaly, from the NGO PAPDE; Fatoumata Kourouma, from Radio Patriote; Mahamadou Kassambara, from the NGO PROMETHEE; Moussa Dembele and Mahamadou Djoni, both from the NGO RENAPESS; and Waytane Ag Albaka and Halima Sanogo, both from Radio Tisdas. We also welcome Stéphanie Wolibwon, a student from Cameroon, and Ernest Kayanja, from Radio Simba in Uganda.

This week’s news section features a story from Southern Sudan. Correspondent David De Dau brings us an all too common story of a family who lost a son due to a landmine, and tells us about a women farmers’ group who say land free from mines is a right. Our second story is from Côte d’Ivoire, where women farmers are taking up the challenge to achieve national self-sufficiency in rice. Our final story gives notice of a serious fish disease in the Zambezi River and provides important information on how fish farmers can keep their waters safe.

In the Farm Radio International Action section, we’re pleased to unveil the official website of the Scriptwriting competition on smallholder farmer innovation in sub-Saharan Africa. And our Script of the Week offers a sneak preview of Farm Radio’s latest script package, which focuses on livestock health.

Happy reading!

-The Farm Radio Weekly Team

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African Farm News in Review

1. Sudan: Landmines threaten livelihoods (by David De Dau, for Farm Radio Weekly, in Southern Sudan)

2. Côte d’Ivoire: Farmers mobilize to deliver rice self-sufficiency (IPS, Abidjan.net)

3. Southern Africa: Fish disease threatens Zambezi River Basin (FAO)

Upcoming Events

-August 15, 2009 – Deadline to apply for fellowship to Good Governance and the Broadcast Journalist course

Radio Resource Bank

-Youth Radio for Peacebuilding: A Guide

Farm Radio Action

-Scriptwriting competition website launched

Farm Radio Script of the Week

-Adventures of Neddy: A community animal health worker helps a village manage Newcastle disease

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John Panchol Mac is a returning refugee. In 1991, he was living in Jonglei State, Southern Sudan, when the Bor massacre occurred. He and his family escaped to neighboring Uganda.

Mr. Mac spent fifteen years in a Ugandan camp for displaced persons. He looked forward to returning to his ancestral home, to continue with his traditional practice of farming. Before his displacement, Mr. Mac grew sorghum and okra on his small farm. He also reared domestic animals like goats, sheep, and cattle.

In November 2006, Mr. Mac got his wish. He and his elder son Majok Mac Deng returned home. They planned to prepare the ground for the arrival of the rest of their family members.

One clear morning, Mac went to graze his cattle while his son went to work on the farm. A few minutes later, Majok’s hoe hit metal under the ground. He had struck a landmine and was killed.

Southern Sudan is littered with landmines following two decades of civil war. Many people have been killed by landmines since the war ended. Mr. Jok Aring is a government official in Bor County. He says that the government is committed to the extraction of landmines in the area but cannot cover the whole area due to lack of funds. Mr. Aring added that there is a need to create more public awareness of the dangers of landmines.

Mrs. Ajok Mading is a spokesperson for women farmers in Jonglei State. Her group wants the government to do more. She explains that most of the victims of landmines are women, since culture and traditions dictate that women work on farms. The women farmers’ group advocates for women rights, including clearing of landmines in the area.

Mr. Jurkuch Barach is chairperson of the Southern Sudan Demining Authority. He says that his group is working closely with United Nations Mine Action organization to intensify demining in the states most affected by landmines: Jonglei, Western Equatoria, and Eastern Equatoria.

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One year ago, protesters took to the streets of Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. It was the height of the food crisis. Prices for staple foods had skyrocketed. Thousands of people brandished signs and chanted slogans such as “We are hungry, put an end to our suffering.”

The scene in Abidjan is much different today. In the commercial quarter of the city, sounds of transport vehicles mix with the clatter of the local train. Adrienne Gnadndé stands in the market. She extols the virtues of local rice to people passing by. This rice is made in Côte d’Ivoire, she says. It’s less expensive than imported rice and suits our taste.

Ms. Gnadndé is a member of the federation of food-producing cooperatives, or FENACOVICI. This national organization boasts more than 50,000 members. It was founded in 2001. Last year, FENACOVICI made Ivorian rice self-sufficiency their goal.

The organization made its first deliveries of rice to markets earlier this month. The local rice sells for 350 CFA per kilo (approximately 0.76 American dollars or 0.53 Euros). Imported rice is more expensive. It sells for between 400 and 600 CFA per kilo (about 0.87-1.30 American dollars or 0.61-0.91 Euros).

Colette Irié Lou is president of FENACOVICI. She says Ivoirians are taking up the challenge of feeding their own. She assures the public that what they have started, they will complete.

The government is supporting FENACOVICI as part of a plan to reduce dependency on imported food by increasing local rice production. Government funding pays for seeds, farm implements, and new rice processing facilities.
Martinien Gadou is an economist. He says that if domestic rice production continues to increase as scheduled, Côte d’Ivoire should be self-sufficient in rice within three years.

Now, Ms. Irié Lou is asking Ivoirians for their support. She asks them to have faith in FENACOVICI and purchase local rice.

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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is warning fishers and fish farmers of a disease outbreak in the Zambezi River Basin. Epizootic Ulcerative Syndrome (EUS) has been detected in Zambezi waters. It is sometimes called red spot disease because it causes red spots on fish. The spots may develop into deeper ulcers with white rims.EUS is one of the most serious fish diseases. It can cause high mortality, especially among young fish.

It is not possible to control the disease in open waters. However, fish farmers can take measures to prevent the disease from entering their farm. Ensure infected fish do not enter fish ponds. Remove dead fish and improve water quality.

Fish infected with EUS do not normally pose a risk to humans. However, fish with deep ulcers may carry dangerous pathogens. Therefore, they should be thoroughly cooked before eating.

The following websites provide more information on Epizootic Ulcerative Syndrome and photos of diseased fish:
-http://www.oie.int/eng/normes/fcode/en_chapitre_2.1.10.htm
-http://www.nt.gov.au/d/Content/File/p/Fishnote/FN01.pdf

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It’s estimated that five to 10 million landmines are manufactured each year. Already, more than 110 million are buried in the soil of some 70 countries, including an estimated 20 million in Africa. The enduring threat that landmines pose long after conflict has led to an international movement against them, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. In 1999, a global treaty banning the production and use of landmines came into force, but some countries, including the United States, Russia, and China, refused to sign.

This week’s story provides one example of farmers living with the threat of landmines years after a conflict has ended. We reported on the ongoing landmine problem in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in FRW #14 (March 2008): http://weekly.farmradio.org/2008/03/10/democratic-republic-of-the-congo-civil-war-landmines-threaten-returning-farmers-by-sylvie-bora-for-farm-radio-weekly-in-bukavu-democratic-republic-of-the-congo/.

For more information on landmines and efforts to reduce their impact, you may visit the following sites:
-The website of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, a network of more than 1,400 organizations in 90 countries: http://www.icbl.org/
-The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction: http://www.international.gc.ca/foreign_policy/mines/VII/VII_AA_i-en.asp
-An academic review of the economics of landmine clearance in farmlands:
http://ocw.mit.edu/NR/rdonlyres/Special-Programs/SP-776Spring-2007/1D6AA249-92E4-410B-8946-EE188F570863/0/06farmi_mine_uwa.pdf
-101 Great Ideas for Socio-Economic Reintegration of Mine Survivors: http://www.standingtallaustralia.org/pdfs/101GreatIdeas1.pdf

If you broadcast to an area that is threatened by landmines remaining from a past conflict, you might consider inviting the following guests to your studio for an on-air interview or panel discussion:
-A representative from a group working to reduce the threat of landmines, who can explain the steps farmers – and others – can take to identify and avoid landmines, and describe how to pinpoint landmine locations.
-A survivor of a landmine explosion, who can share his or her experience learning to live with amputation and exploring new livelihood options.

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During the 2008 food crisis, countries that import a large percentage of their food were among the hardest hit. The crisis moved some African governments, such Côte d’Ivoire’s, to invest in domestic agriculture to help ensure the local food supply. It also elevated public interest and concern about international trade policies that affect farmers and the food supply.

The following FRW news stories look at the issues of local food production and international trade:
-“Uganda: Imported rice levies encourage local production” (FRW #24, June 2008)
-“Tanzania: Farmers call on government to reject European trade deal” (FRW#64, May 2009)
-“Africa: Local food essential for HIV-positive people” (FRW #53, January 2009)
-“Africa: Food sovereignty is solution to ‘food crisis,’ says La Via Campesina” (FRW# 41, October 2008)
-“Africa: Local milk promoted in wake of Chinese milk contamination” (FRW #39, October 2008)
-“Ghana: Farmers say EPAs would destroy livelihoods” (FRW #39, October 2008)

You may also wish to raise awareness of how national and international policies affect the production of, and market for, food in your country, by researching questions such as:

-Does the government subsidize agricultural production in your country (for example, by providing inputs such as fertilizer at below market rate, or by purchasing food from farmers at above market rate)? When did this subsidy program begin and what was the government’s motivation for implementing it? What impact did this policy have on the number of farmers growing the subsidized crop and the total amount of the crop grown? What do farmers say about the subsidies and their impact on farming businesses?

-To what extent does your country rely on imported food? To what extent is imported food subsidized by exporting countries’ governments, and how does this affect local food prices? Does your government impose duties on any imported foods? Do farmers feel that the sale of imported foods affects their ability to sell crops locally and obtain a good price?

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The Radio Nederland Training Centre (RNTC) is a Dutch organization that describes itself as a centre of excellence in the field of media, development, and education. It sponsors broadcast professionals from developing countries to attend intensive training courses held in the Netherlands.

From February 1 to April 22, 2010, RNTC will offer a course on Good Governance and the Broadcast Journalist. The course aims to strengthen the capacity of broadcast journalists and the organizations they work for to research, investigate, and report on issues and events related to governance.

The deadline to apply for a fellowship, whereby the Dutch government pays for travel, accommodation, and the course fee, is August 15, 2009. For more information, go to: http://sites.rnw.nl/rntc/courses/ICBJ2010.php.

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Radio for Peacebuilding, Africa, a project of the United States-based NGO Search for Common Ground, has created a practical guide to producing radio programming by and for youth. It includes guidance for adults working with young people on radio programs for peacebuilding, and tools to help young producers participate in creating radio for peacebuilding. The guide covers the production process from developing partnerships and devising a program goal, through to determining a target audience and delivering messages.

This guide, and others produced by Radio for Peacebuilding, Africa, can be found online at: http://www.radiopeaceafrica.org/index.cfm?lang=en&context_id=3&context=manuals

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Scriptwriting competition on smallholder farmer innovation in sub-Saharan Africa is a great opportunity for you to connect with local farmers and share their successful techniques with a broader audience. All those who sign up for the competition are eligible for a free, online training course, and the chance to win a variety of prizes, ranging from digital audio recorders to training opportunities.

You may visit the scriptwriting competition website to get all the details: http://scriptcompetition.farmradio.org.

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This week’s script is a preview of Farm Radio International’s new script package, which focuses on livestock health. It’s a mini-drama featuring Neddy, a community animal health worker, or paravet, who we met in earlier scripts. As the script begins, Neddy is thinking about the dry season ahead, and the upcoming risk of Newcastle disease in chickens. Newcastle vaccine is sold only in large quantities – far too much for the few chickens that most of the villagers own. Will Neddy be able to convince others in his community to pay a small fee so that they can all vaccinate their chickens?

To review past scripts featuring Neddy, follow these links:
- Protect your livestock in times of emergency (Package 64, Script 3, July 2002)
-The adventures of Neddy the paravet: The value of indigenous veterinary practices (Package 63, Script 7, April 2002)
-The adventures of Neddy the paravet: Fodder trees provide nutritious livestock feed all year (Package 63, Script 8, April 2002)

Scripts from Farm Radio International Package 88 will be posted online and mailed to broadcast partners in the coming weeks.

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Notes to broadcaster

Chickens are a type of livestock that are very easy to keep because they can feed by grazing freely on foods that are readily available. In other words, they are free range. Also, chickens reproduce easily. But they are susceptible to a major disease which has no cure: Newcastle disease. Though it does not have a cure, there is a vaccine for the disease. Farmers fail to regularly vaccinate their chickens because of lack of knowledge or because the vaccine is expensive. Often, the drug is sold in large bottles which can treat several hundred chickens. This is very expensive for farmers who have only a few chickens. And that is why community vaccination for chickens by community animal health workers is a great idea.

In many areas, there is a shortage of veterinary doctors. Paraveterarians, also called community animal health workers or veterinary volunteers, help to provide services where there is no veterinarian. They are volunteers who do not receive any salary, but earn a living by charging small labour fees for their services. They are trained to diagnose and treat many livestock diseases, and to refer other diseases to veterinarians. Farmers often buy livestock medicines and provide transport for the community animal health worker to and from their farm.

In this script, the community animal health worker tells the villagers that the vaccine for Newcastle disease is available only in doses for large numbers of chickens, such as 300 or more. In some African countries, vaccines with smaller numbers of doses can be purchased. Also, in some African countries such as Zambia, Mozambique and Ghana, vaccines are available which do not have to be kept in the freezer. Research the situation in your country.

This script is a mini-drama which highlights the need to vaccinate chickens against Newcastle disease and the benefits of having a community animal health worker in your community. Two ways to use this script are by simply adapting this drama for your audience or using it as inspiration to produce your own mini-drama on livestock diseases in your area.

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Narrator: In many African countries, including Malawi, the majority of farmers have at least one chicken. These chickens are local breeds which graze freely. In other words, they are free range chickens. An outbreak of Newcastle disease can easily kill all the chickens in the village. Newcastle is preventable with vaccination. So why are many farmers not buying the vaccine for their chickens? Stand by to find out.

FX: Sound of hitting metal with a small hammer.

Wife: My husband Neddy, why are you mending the bicycle at this late hour? Where do you want to go this late?

Neddy: Oh! My wife… I am going nowhere today. I am just preparing for tomorrow. You know summer is approaching….

Wife: (With a smile) I thought it was another sick cow. Since you became a community animal health worker, you are always on the go.

Neddy: Are you happy now, my wife?

Wife: Oh yes. Why not?

Neddy: That is what being a community animal health worker is all about. Don’t we earn a living with it, my wife?

Wife: I know. But people need to give you some rest time. They call you all the time. Even in the middle of night! Come here! A cow did this, a pig has that problem…. There’s no time to rest.

Neddy: So you care for me that much?

Wife: Yes I do, my dear.

They both laugh.

Wife: But Neddy, I heard you saying something about summer approaching. What is the connection between the approaching summer and you going to town tomorrow?

Neddy: You know that summer is the dry season. But do you also know that it’s during summer when we lose those chickens which have multiplied during the rainy season to Newcastle disease?

Wife: Yes, I know.

Neddy: Right now is a good time to vaccinate our chickens – before Newcastle comes. It is close to three months since we vaccinated the chickens in this village and the surrounding ones.

Wife: Okay. So you want to buy vaccine for our chickens?

Neddy: No! Not for our chickens only, but…

Wife: (Angrily interrupts him) But what? Do you want to face the same embarrassment as before? Have you forgotten how people said that you were vaccinating village chickens only for the money?

Neddy: I do remember that very well my wife, but you know…

Wife: (Interrupting) Know what? Do not argue further. Tomorrow when you go to town, buy vaccine for our ten chickens. That’s all!

Neddy: No. You know there are no small bottles for 10 chickens. One store sells vaccine for 1000 chickens at MK850 and another store sells vaccine for 300 chickens at MK600. So…

Wife: (Interrupting) So buy the one for 300 chickens, use it for our 10 chickens and throw away the rest.

Neddy: We will lose money. It means we will be vaccinating our chickens for MK60 each instead of MK10, which I can charge and make a profit.

Wife: So it’s true what people are saying – that you are doing it for business?

Neddy: My wife, remember what encouraged me to volunteer to learn veterinary skills. Was it not to end animal health problems in this village? I thought our dream was to save our village from livestock diseases and problems which are preventable?

Wife: Yes, I remember and for that reason I allow you to do it as you planned.

Neddy: That is my wife now speaking.

They both laugh.

Scene transition. Music in, then hold under below.

Narrator: Neddy knows very well that to buy a large bottle of vaccine for just a few chickens is to lose money. Have you ever tried to involve your neighbour in vaccinating your chickens? It is complicated! What about trying to involve the whole village for a small fee? Did you ever try to involve the whole community in preventing Newcastle disease?

Scene music up and crossfade into below.

Narrator: Neddy knows that since he vaccinated the chickens three months ago there has been no news of Newcastle disease, not even in the villages which did not vaccinate their chickens. Will the villagers allow him to vaccinate their chickens this time? The people have been called to the chief’s court and are waiting to hear why they have been called.

FX: The crowd at the chief’s court

Village head: People. Silence, please. Silence, please.

Mwale: (He is drunk and slowly sings and dances as he approaches the court off mic) Ayo! Ayo! Ayo! Give a full glass of beer!

FX: People laugh

Wife: (Whispering) My brother Mwale shames me. Always drunk. How much more does he shame his wife?

Mrs. Kwenda: Yes, your brother is always drunk. But on the other hand, your brother Mwale is hard working. If only he could reduce his alcohol intake then he would prosper.

Wife: You are right.

Village head: Mr. Mwale! Mr. Mwale!

Mwale: Chief!

Village head: I am saying silence, please!

Mwale: (Softly) Ok chief, ok. I will sit close to my in-law Neddy. But first tell us why you have called us…. We want to go home. We have other…important things to do…we are drinking.

Some people laugh. Some murmur in support and others against Mwale.

Village head: Mwale! Silence. Remember you must pay if you misbehave in my court.

Mwale: Sorry, chief. Sorry, chief.

Village head: (Breathes a sigh of relief and changes subject) This meeting was called by our local veterinary volunteer, our own son, the man who has enabled many of us to have wonderful cross breed dairy cows through artificial insemination with his magic hands. Let’s welcome Mr. Neddy.

People: (Chanting and whistling) Neddy! Neddy!

Neddy: (Speaks while people are still making noise) Thank you, chief, for that honour.

Mwale: Get straight to the point and don’t delay us any longer.

Mrs. Kwenda: (At the top of her voice) Quiet! Quiet! (Total silence) Let us hear what our community animal health worker has brought us. (Silence)

Neddy: (Clearing his throat) As you know, three months have passed since we vaccinated our chickens, and the dangerous summer is approaching when Newcastle disease can again infect our chickens.

All: Yes.

Neddy: It’s time to vaccinate our chickens again.

Mr. Kwenda: When do you intend to vaccinate our chickens?

Neddy: Mmm…Today is Saturday. To give you time to collect money, when do you think we should do this, Mr. Kwenda?

Mr. Kwenda: Tuesday morning next week.

Neddy: Agreed everybody? Tuesday next week!

All: Yes.

Neddy: Do not let your chickens go free on Tuesday until they are vaccinated.

All: Yes

Mwale: How much per chicken this time?

Neddy: Because many people have chickens in this village, I have reduced the fee from K10 each to K5 just to serve you, my people. That is a 50% discount.

FX: (Everyone is happy and shouts) Neddy! Neddy!

Mwale: (Protests) That’s too much, that’s too much.

Neddy: K5 is on the low side. How much do you spend on beer? The normal charge in all the surrounding villages is K10 per chicken.

Mrs. Kwenda: Why do you charge differently? Why less for many chickens?

Neddy: Thank you, Mrs. Kwenda, for that question. Remember when I told you that I buy that vaccine with my own money and that I charge you just enough to recover that money and my labour? If there are only a very few chickens, then I have to raise the price per chicken to recover my money.

Mwale: You are lying. Can’t you keep the remaining medicine to vaccinate another village?

Neddy: No! Once the bottle is opened, I have to use the contents within two to four hours or it expires and becomes useless.

Mwale: Do not come to my home.

Neddy: I always repeat this to you: you can buy an expensive bottle of vaccine for 300 chickens if you have that much money. Like Mr. Mwale – I think he wants to buy his own.

Mrs. Kwenda: We have understood you. Come Tuesday, leave those who do not want the vaccine. We have a few chickens. Why spend a lot of money for two chickens instead of K10 for the same number?

Neddy: So it’s Tuesday, everybody.

All: Yes.

Mwale: My in-law Neddy, I have said that I don’t want you to come to my house. I will chase you away with dogs if you come.

Village head: (Shouting) You can go back to your homes. But remember Tuesday morning. K5 per chicken.

All: (Off mic) Yes.

Mwale: Neddy, Neddy, don’t come to my house. I repeat. At my house do not come.

Neddy: Do not embarrass me, Mr. Mwale. Let’s discuss that as we go. (To the village headman) Thank you, chief. I will see you on Tuesday morning.

Village head: (Off mic) Don’t forget my chickens, Neddy. I will be away at a seminar but please come. You will find everything in order. Your cousins and their mother will help you.

Neddy: Don’t worry, chief. I will take care of that. (Silence, then to Mwale) So you, Mwale. Why is it that it’s you, my in-law, who always gives me problems?

Mwale: You cheat us.

Neddy: You think so? Have you ever seen Newcastle disease in this village since the vaccination project started?

Mwale: Neither have I seen it in all the villages where I have gone to drink beer for the past eight months. Even in the villages where they did not allow you to vaccinate their chickens.

Neddy: This time they have asked me to vaccinate their chickens too.

Mwale: (Laughing) Ha ha! Ha! My in-law, you have managed to cheat them too?

Neddy: Mwale, please hear me. This is the most important time to vaccinate our chickens, because summer is approaching.

Mwale: Cheat only those who do not have any better use for their money. Not me.

Neddy: (Angry and tired) Ok! You think everyone is ignorant but you are clever. Agreed! I will not come to your house to vaccinate your chickens. Bye.

Mwale: (Off mic) That’s my in-law. Don’t come please, Neddy.

Music. Hold under below.

Narrator: Tuesday came. Neddy vaccinated everyone’s chicken except for those belonging to Mr. Mwale. Some people in neighbouring villages allowed him to vaccinate their chickens, but some did not. One month passed without any rumour of Newcastle disease. Does this mean that those people who did not vaccinate their chickens were right?

Music. Fade out as FX fade in.

FX: Rooster in the morning.

FX: Heavy knocking. Hold under below

Wife: (Waking up her husband) Neddy! Neddy! Wake up. Someone is knocking at the door.

Neddy: (Waking up and shouting) Who is there so early?

Mwale: It’s me, your in-law. Please open. (Sound of a sick hen.)

Neddy: What do you want with your chickens?

Wife: Neddy. Just wake up. Can’t you hear it’s my brother? (To Mwale) Wait, brother, he is coming.

Opening and closing of the door.

Neddy: (Angry) What are you doing with your sick chickens at my house at this time in the morning? Do you want to infect my chickens?

Mwale: Oh, in-law – just by the sound you knew my chickens were sick?

Neddy: Look at the greenish yellow diarrhea. The heads are swollen. This is Newcastle disease.

Mwale: They are dying. Please, my in-law, help me. Give them medicine.

Neddy: What?

Mwale: Neddy, I am sorry, but my chickens are all sick and dying.

Neddy: I am sorry too, my in-law. But I cannot help you.

Mwale: (Apologetic) Why brother, why…?

Neddy: Have you forgotten how you embarrassed me in front of the whole village?

Mwale: (Kneeling down and pleading) I am sorry, I am sorry, father. (Editor’s note: Mwale is calling Neddy “father” because he is trying to give him all kinds of respect to get what he wants) Sister, help me. Tell your husband I am sorry. Should I kneel down?

Neddy: No! No! Do not kneel down. I just can’t help you.

Mwale: (Almost crying) No? Neddy, please help me. This is the only investment that I have. Help me, please.

Neddy: Why didn’t you think like this when I was vaccinating the chickens?

Mwale: I do not know what bewitched me.

Neddy: (Laughs in sorrow) Honestly, Mr. Mwale, if only Newcastle disease had a cure, I would help you. But there is no cure, only a vaccine.

Mwale: Then just vaccinate them please.

Neddy: It’s too late – we do not vaccinate sick chickens. And I do not keep any vaccine because I do not have a freezer to keep it.

Mwale: You are lying. We know you do not have a freezer in your house, but… How do you keep the vaccine that you gave to people’s chickens?

Neddy: Remember I always book people in advance before the vaccination day?

Mwale: Yes, why?

Neddy: I get the vaccine a day before the vaccination day. I borrow a cooler box in which we put ice blocks.

Mwale: Why do you keep the vaccine in a cool place?

Neddy: If you keep the vaccine warm, it expires. That is why we throw away whatever is left over.

Mwale: I think I have learned it the hard way. I shall never repeat this mistake again.

Neddy: You better not repeat it, my in-law.

Mwale: From today onwards I shall always vaccinate my chickens in season or not in season.

Neddy: That’s my in-law. Imagine how much you will have to spend to buy new chickens.

Mwale: You are right. I will be forced to spend money buying other chickens.

Neddy: Ok. Now that you know the goodness of the vaccine, give me the K750 you wanted to spend on one chicken, and I will give you three six-week-old chicks for K250 each from my Mikolongwe. (Editor’s note: This breed, also known as Black Australorp, is very good for both meat and eggs, and has better resistance to disease than other exotic breeds. Broadcasters can substitute a breed known to have these advantages in their area.)

Mwale: The children of those big hybrid cocks of yours?

Neddy: Yes.

Mwale: Thank you for the offer. I do not have money at the moment. I will do some piece work in people’s gardens. I will stop drinking beer until I purchase those chicks.

Neddy: (Laughing) Ha! Ha! Just don’t kill those chickens again, my in-law.

Mwale: (Off mic) I know. I will not kill them again, my good in-law. Come and marry a second sister as a sign of your good behavior. (Editor’s note: This is a joke. In Malawi, people used to give their son in-laws a second daughter to marry if they showed good behaviour and prosperity. These days, people just make fun of that old custom.)

Neddy: (Laughing) Ha! Ha!

Narrator: You have been listening to the adventures of Neddy the community animal health worker. Remember that if you have just a few chickens, you and your friends can share the cost of vaccinating your chickens against Newcastle disease. Another point to remember is that the vaccine is always kept in a freezing place. Once the bottle is opened, you can not use it again on another day. Lastly, do not forget that Newcastle disease has no cure. You can only vaccinate the chickens before they catch the disease.

On behalf of the Story Workshop, who are the producers of this program, I am Gladson Makowa. Let’s meet again next week at the same time.

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Acknowledgements
Contributed by: Gladson Makowa, The Story Workshop, Blantyre, Malawi, a Farm Radio International broadcasting partner.
Reviewed by: Dilip Bhandari, veterinarian, Heifer International.

Program undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada provided through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)

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