West Africa Regional Radio Soap Opera

The programme organisers use edutainment and infotainment in an effort to make issue-based information and programming entertaining and engaging.

The character development and pacing of the programmes reflect a strategy of forging emotional ties to audience members. The idea, and hope, is that such ties can influence values and behaviours more forcefully than the purely cognitive information provided in documentaries. “The dramas allow time for the audience to form bonds with the characters and allow characters to evolve in their thinking and behaviour with regard to various issues at a gradual and believable pace in response to problems that have been well illustrated in the story line.” This type of thinking is based on the social learning theory of Stanford University psychologist Albert Bandura, which holds that "vicarious learning from others is a powerful teacher of attitudes and behavior. Next to peer and parental role models, role models from the mass media are of particular importance in shaping cultural attitudes and behavior.”

One of the project organisers, First Voice International (FVI), trained and equipped more than 150 community radio stations in the 3 countries to use WorldSpace satellite radios and to re-broadcast content. Broadcast of the radio dramas began in November 2004, and all the participating stations air the programmes in their respective communities.

Children, Rights.