This is to invite you to participate in the first of the Global Dialogues on Community Media in the Post-Pandemic World on June 16 at 5.30 pm IST, with focus on the Struggles in South Asia. This 90-minute dialogue will take the form of a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Kanchan K. Malik (Professor & Faculty Fellow, UNESCO Chair on Community Media), with the following as panellists:

• AHM Bazlur Rahman, BNNRC, Bangladesh
• Subas Kathiwada, ACORAB, Nepal
• N.A. Shah Ansari, CRA, India
• Suman Basnet, AMARC Asia-Pacific

This deliberation is the first of a series of online Global Dialogues that the UNESCO Chair on Community Media is organizing, in partnership with UNESCO Regional Office in New Delhi, with practitioners, community radio advocates, network representatives, and academics from South Asia, South and Latin America, Africa, Australia, the United Kingdom, North America, and continental Europe. Some of the key issues on which panelists will deliberate include:

• What roles can community media play in crisis situations, such as the current pandemic?
• What are the possibilities and constraints for community media in the post-pandemic world?
• What is the continued relevance of community media in the age of digitization and digital media?
• What are the experiences of movements and networks in negotiating with governments on opening up third-sector media?
• Does the state of civil society across the world give rise to optimism about the future of community media?
• Is there a need for reform/transformation within the community media sector to adapt itself to the post-pandemic world?

All the dialogues will be on Zoom and will be broadcast live on the Chair’s Facebook page. For those who miss the discussion live, a recording will be made available later. Here is the information to join the dialogue:

Zoom Meeting ID: 969 1936 6675 Password: chair@01

Zoom Link – https://zoom.us/j/96919366675?pwd=U3RKd0VxeDE4R1ZjQVlVN2E2SDJrQT09

Facebook – https://fb.me/UNESCOChairOnCommunityMedia/

View this email in your browser PRESS RELEASE 11 May 2020 MEDIA ENQUIRIES media.team@unwomen.org UN Women delivers lifeline support to women’s and grassroots organizations for COVID-19 response [New York]—In addition to the dramatic health crisis, the COVID-19 global pandemic has presented grave new threats to the critical work and very existence of local civil society organizations working on the front lines of crises, making the need to mobilize support for their efforts more urgent than ever before. Women’s organizations and activists are already on the front lines of COVID-19 response and should be an integral part of COVID-19 response and recovery efforts. Recognizing the imperative that these organizations are appropriately funded, UN Women announced its support to the critical work of grassroots women’s organizations through two  innovative financing initiatives, the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF), to which UN Women provides board leadership and secretariat support, and the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women (UNTF EVAW). “From the start of this emergency, UN Women has been in close touch with grantees, civil society organizations and activists around the world to identify measures to mitigate the pandemic’s dire impact. These organizations make an extraordinary contribution to society, from response to widespread violence against women to the specific challenges that women and girls face in conflict settings. We must sustain them and meet their critical needs in these unprecedented times,” said UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. In partnership with the European Union and the Spotlight Initiative, the UNTF EVAW will allocate an additional USD 9 million to up to 44 civil society existing grantees in Sub-Saharan Africa to continue their essential work. The financial assistance will primarily focus on institutional strengthening, risk mitigation and survivor recovery in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the alarming high rates of increasing violence against women and girls. The new WPHF COVID-19 Emergency Response window will support civil society organizations with vital institutional and programmatic financing in 25 WPHF eligible countries facing conflict and crises in four regions across the globe. With over 5,000 funding proposals already submitted by local women’s organizations worldwide, this new instrument will drive urgently-needed new resources to grassroots women activists working to counter COVID-19 in their crises-affected communities. These additional funds are a recognition of the critical work of grassroots women’s organizations and activists around the world, and their key contribution to respond to the new challenges presented by COVID-19, leaving no one behind. For the latest updates and more, visit unwomen.org and follow our social media channels below! If you have received this email as a forward, sign up to our Press Mailing List here. View all UN Women News & Announcements here. UN Women 220 E 42nd St # 18 New York, NY 10017-5806 Add us to your address book   Copyright © 2020 UN Women, All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

View this email in your browser COVID-19 Gender Update For the latest updates on COVID-19 and gender equality, visit UN Women’s dedicated In Focus pages:   Global | Africa | Arab States | Asia Pacific | Europe & Central Asia  TOP PICKS HeForShe launches #HeForSheAtHome campaign Gender inequalities, particularly for women in the home, are becoming increasingly apparent during the pandemic. UN Women’s HeForShe initiative has launched the #HeForSheAtHome campaign to inspire men to help balance the burden in their households. In sharing these stories of positive male role models from all over the world, we hope to inspire many more to do their fair share.  Learn more: HeForShe website | News release     FROM THE FRONT LINE From where I stand: “The fact that domestic violence is not a criminal offence in Kazakhstan is hurting women during COVID-19 crisis” From where I stand: “I want to hug my daughter and take care of my parents, but this sacrifice needs to be made to keep them and others safe” Roses in the battlefield: Rural women farmers join the fight against COVID-19 in China Watch this space for more stories.  WHAT YOU CAN DO Video: 4 key actions to include women’s needs in the COVID-19 response  (Also available in: Español | Français) HIGHLIGHTS Publication: Promoting positive gender roles in marketing and advertising  In an effort to address the impacts of COVID-19, companies are developing a number of socially beneficial communications for the public. It is essential that these communications avoid harmful stereotypes and seek to depict positive and progressive gender portrayals. Produced by UN Women and UNICEF, this publication provides key considerations for businesses producing communications in the context of the pandemic. Read more » Related link: Unstereotype Alliance  A call to action for the private sector The private sector has a responsibility to use its power, influence and resources to protect the rights and physical and mental well-being of employees, as well as to ensure long-term business recovery efforts restore economic stability. During this time of upheaval, the Women’s Empowerment Principles are a great resource for the private sector to help them protect the most vulnerable groups. Read more » Data dive: What do we know, what do we need to know? Disaggregated data will be critical to capture the pandemic’s full impacts. Even as new data and evidence is being gathered, clues about the differential impact for women and men are already clear from existing gender research, as well as through lessons from previous crises. Together, these provide a guide to what evidence needs to be collected now. Read more » Handbook: Gender in humanitarian action This IASC handbook sets out the rationale for integrating gender equality into humanitarian action and provides practical guidance for doing so across sectors. The main objective is to support humanitarian actors in reaching all people affected by crisis. Read more » Branding: COVID-19 response logo and stamps The UN and TBWA Global paired up to create a COVID-19 response logo with a creative commons license that can be used by everyone on its own or coupled with your own organization’s logo. Six icons were also created to depict six actions (personal hygiene, physical distancing, know your symptoms, spread kindness, solidarity, myth-busting) based on key WHO and UN messaging. More: Logo | Stamps Related links: UN open brief to the creative community on COVID-19: Share the latest crowdsourced content  Watch this space for more highlights.  SOCIAL MEDIA We are in this together. We will get through this together.   Stay informed on the latest updates on the #coronavirus pandemic. Share messages of solidarity with the global community impacted by #COVID19 by using messages from UN Women’s social media package, now available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic and Russian.   SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER DONATE UN Women 220 E 42nd St # 18 New York, NY 10017-5806 Add us to your address book   Copyright © 2020 UN Women, All rights reserved. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Auf unseren letztwöchigen persönlichen Aufruf, uns Stimmen aus der Quarantäne bzw. dem Ausnahmezustand zu schicken, haben uns schon einige Nachrichten aus der ganzen Welt erreicht – egal ob Tasmanien oder Finnland, USA oder Spanien: Die Krise verbindet und wir finden ähnliche Wege, damit umzugehen. Ein paar Stimmen waren am Donnerstag im Infomagazin FROzine zu hören, bzw. hier: https://www.fro.at/corona-wir-die-welt-ist-ein-dorf/

Wir erneuern unseren Aufruf und fragen diesmal nach:

Wie hilfst du in der Corona-Krise, welche positiven Momente hast du erlebt?
Wo hast du Hilfe in Anspruch genommen?

Verschiedene Initiativen und Plattformen zur Nachbarschaftshilfe in Zeiten von Corona gibt es mittlerweile, wir wollen eure Stories hören. Schickt uns eine Voice-Nachricht entweder per WhatsApp oder Signal an 0660 7172771.

Umfassende Berichterstattung auf Augenhöhe zur Corona-Krise – abseits der täglichen Pressekonferenzen der Bundesregierung – gibt es Montag bis Freitag auf Radio FRO:

12:00 – 12:30 Frequently Asked Questions
Das tägliche Corona-Update aus dem Freien Radio für ganz Österreich, produziert von Radio Helsinki/Graz.

17:00 – 17:30 (Di-Do) Corona Information
Gut recherchierte und wichtige Antworten auf brennende Fragen rund um den Covid-19 Ausnahmezustand von Radio Orange/Wien. Informationen auf Deutsch, Englisch, Arabisch, Farsi und Somali.

18:00 – 19:00 sowie Whlg. um 6:00, 13:00 FROzine
Das werktägliche Infomagazin FROzine (sowie freitags #Stimmlagen) von Radio FRO berichtet über die Auswirkungen der Corona-Krise auf Gesellschaft, Arbeit, Wirtschaft, Demokratie, Kultur etc. 

Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication(BNNRC) has been mobilizing all community radios for developing and broadcasting awareness building programs on COVID-19: Coronavirus contamination to protect lives and livelihoods since March 1, 2020 in Bangladesh.

Programmatic interventions in response to COVID-19:

The COVID -19 demands cooperation among government, CSOs, local business communities, multi-stakeholders. BNNRC are continuing work 24×7 to reach rural communities in Bangladesh with life-changing information through the community radio. It’s not easy to get information to the hard-to-reach at the best of times, and we will continue to strive to make sure the needs of these communities are not forgotten. To that note, we’ll be continuing to share stories of our work, and the work of community broadcasters and rural people, while also supporting communities in getting the information they need about COVID-19.

In this perspective, BNNRC has been working on COVID -19 covering with the following issues:

 1. Animate CSOs, Government, health service providers and communities for reinforcing collective action.

2. Keeping community people’s daily life normal and livelihood function

3. Mobilize further cooperation among government, CSOs, local market and communities’             responses

Actively distributing information and resources, including scripts and backgrounders, about how to plan and produce effective COVID-19 radio programming; Creating or activating spaces, such as social media groups, to give radio broadcasters a place to learn from each other about best practices in COVID-19 community radio programming; Developing connections between broadcasters and health authorities in government, and civil society to ensure accurate information goes out and myths are debunked; Reminding community broadcasters of the steps they can take to stay healthy; Commending community broadcasters and other journalists for being on the front line and continuing to work in these conditions.

Future outlook and recommendations:

Community Radios stations, as one of the source of information, helping to raise awareness on COVID- 19 and reinforcing Behavior Change Communication (BCC) by CSOs, Government, health officials and locally elected bodies (LEB).

Community Radio stations are building awareness to change attitudes among community people at different points in their daily lives. Community Radio stations, as a platform for those who involve in COVID -19 responses to update rural communities. They are also providing a channel for two-way communication with community people where listeners are sending SMS or call in with questions.

Community Radio stations have been coordinating with the District and Upazila level Coronavirus Prevention Committees. Community Radio stations have assigned one broadcaster in each radio stations as the focal person to coordinate COVID – 19 programs.

Community Radio stations are broadcasting programs on COVID -19 in local languages or dialects. Community Radio stations are producing contents which speaks directly to localized issues and concerns, and features trusted local people in a way that nationally or regionally produced content cannot.

Challenges & Way forward

The rapid social distancing & Quarantine/ Isolation have caused massive pressure on the community radio sector extremely due to short notice. Fundraising process have been cancelled and revenues such as advertising income are drying up overnight resulting in immediate cash flow problems, cuts in grant-funded projects & many community radio stations have few or no cash reserve to tide them over situations like this.

There are things Government can do to help community radio stations to survive in this crisis so they can continue to serve communities.

(a) Upazilas and Districts administration (Local Government) could buy airtime from Community Radio stations.

(b) To substantially establish the Community Radio Trust Fund by Ministry of Information

© To establish a COVID-19 contents fund to support high quality and accurate local COVID-19 news reporting and the production of program or series of program that increase rural people understanding and contribute to psychological support during the present health emergency.

Implications:

It is really working and having a very positive effect at the rural communities. Community Radio stations help to reduce the panic of COVID – 19 gradually by broadcasting awareness programs. Now the community people are taking precautionary measures to prevent contamination of COVID – 19.  People now understand more about the COVID – 19. Community Radio stations have already been established a well-trusted source of information for rural people of Bangladesh.

AHM Bazlur Rahman, Chief Executive Officer of  Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication(BNNRC)| bnnrcbd@gmail.com | +8801711881647 | www.bnnrc.net