Dimitra Project - Global

Dimitra’s work is guided by three important principles:

•     partnership - working closely with local partner organisations to highlight local knowledge;
•     participation - active participation of civil society organisations;
•     networking - supporting the exchange of good practices, ideas, and experiences.

What Dimitra does:

• collaborate with African partner organisations to raise awareness on gender and communication for development, in particular through the Dimitra community listeners clubs (discussed in more detail below);
• disseminate this information as largely as possible, using both new technologies and more “traditional” means of communication (newsletter, brochures, community radio, radio listeners’ clubs, etc.).  Dimitra’s bi-annual newsletter provides information about the activities of the project and its partner organisations, as well as articles on relevant topics. The newsletter is disseminated worldwide and is available in English and French on the Dimitra website. Click here to access edition of this newsletter. Dimitra also produced a series of video called “Impact of FAO-Dimitra Clubs: Empowering Rural People” to showcase the positive changes brought about by Dimitra Listening Clubs (see also Related Summaries below).
• support the organisation of workshops, conferences, and events on themes and issues determined by grassroots, women’s organisations in particular. Dimitra and its partners have organised a number of workshops on a range of themes related to gender, rural women and development in Africa, food security, access to land, women’s participation in decision-making, information and communication strategies, and the importance of collaborating with rural radio stations;
• facilitate the networking of grassroots organisations;
• strengthen the capacities of civil society organisations and the personnel of relevant ministries in the field of information, communication, gender, advocacy and networking; and
• promote the exchange of information between rural populations, grassroots organisations, NGOs, Ministries, and all other development actors, women and men alike.

Dimitra Radio and Listening Clubs

As part of the Dimitra strategy, particular attention is given to the link between women and men farmers’ organisations and community radios, which are an important development actor, especially in rural areas. In conjunction with community radio shows on rural development, which give voice to the experiences of rural communities and offer advice on rural development issues, the project  also supports community listening clubs. The approach of the listeners' clubs was first implemented in 2006 in South Kivu (DRC) by Dimitra and its local partner, NGO Samwaki, after a field survey had underlined that women farmers' access to information and communication was very limited and that there was a gap between community radio stations and rural women. The community listeners’ clubs are groups of women, men, and young people – mixed or not – who decide to organise themselves and meet regularly to discuss the challenges they face in their daily lives, and make decisions and take action to resolve their problems.  The clubs allow communities to share and build on experiences. Interaction is at the core of the approach, whether it be between listeners’ club members or with other listeners’ clubs, community radios, government services, or other development partners.  They function as a tool and a process for dialogue for individuals and groups and have proved to be an efficient means for isolated rural communities to access information and engage in participatory communication, therefore becoming stepping stones for action.

Today, there are 9 federations of clubs in South Kivu, each with up to 900 members (of whom more than half are women), with a total of 8000 members. Five community radio stations are involved. In 2009, the activities were extended to the Province of Katanga (DRC) with the support of REFED-Katanga, and the approach was adapted and replicated the same year in two regions of Niger. Since their creation, the clubs in Niger have grown constantly and have generated the same enthusiasm among the populations: there are 500 listeners clubs, with 8000 members from 5000 households for a total of 28 000 people who are indirect beneficiaries, and over 5200 women leaders. Nine rural community radios are involved (For more information about the clubs, see Related Summaries below.)

Women's Empowerment, Gender, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Agriculture, Networking and Information Exchange.