I s s u e  4 6   -   M o n t h ,  2 0 0 3


Management Capacity for Strengthened Impact
Assessing Qualitative CR Impact
A Longterm CR Partnership Strategy
CC Tete Off for a New Start
Mid Term Review of Media Project



Management Capacity for Strengthened Impact
A high number of print media does not necessarily mean that these have a thorough impact on the media landscape in a given country. This is true in many African countries – and also in Mozambique. Among the core reasons identified - there and here - is the lack of the needed general managerial systems, experience and capacity:
A good and dynamic journalist can get a group of colleagues together and start a newspaper. To begin with this is all that is needed. But as the excitement of a new beginning wears off, the lack of adequate capacity in getting funds together for sustainability, the lack of experience in getting the newspaper effectively distributed to all potential readers, and the lack of experience with keeping an editorial and graphic line in place, which threaten the longer term sustainability.
The media project therefore April 9 launched the start of an important component with an aim to strengthen the management capacity of five selected print media, primarily outside of Maputo. This launch took place after more than two years of planning, consultations with important stakeholders in Mozambique, as well as contacts with institutions in the Southern African region, soliciting best practices and successful management capacitation schemes.
The result of this background work was the design of a management capacitation methodology, based in a participatory planning process, where the individual medium is guided by coaches through a participatory planning exercise. The result of this is a strategic plan, which identifies the direction in which the medium wants to develop, and it takes a critical look at the present situation: the internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as the external positive as well as negative dynamics in respect to getting the medium thoroughly consolidated. Based on this diagnostic exercise, involving all professional and administrative staff, a development plan is designed. This plan includes both on-the-job training activities, possible formal training interventions needed, identification of crucial equipment needed and the preparation of different sets of internal regulations, work flows, and other organizational structures in support of a long term, calm continued development process.
The management capacitation process will run until the end of the year, and involves three crucial phases: familiarization, strategic planning. implementation. The media involved have been identified through a lengthy consultative and analytical process, and the result is that the five media pre-selected based on the extensive set of selection criteria are: Amanhecer and Faisca based in Niassa, Wampula Fax of Nampula, and Demos and Vertical based in Maputo.

 
Assessing Qualitative CR Impact
In July 2002 the Media Project received a first consultant report, outlining a methodology for assessing the qualitative impact of our community radio work. The follow-up to this report was foreseen to take place some 9 months later, which is now. We have therefore contracted Nelia Taimo to work with us – on and off – until the end of the year, ensuring the implementation of an ambitious, yet realistic set of applied research tools in the eight community radios UNESCO has helped start from scratch.
The tools developed will measure impact of the radio and the reality in which it functions in a variety of areas. The primary of these are: (i) How and from where do different groups in the community receive information? (ii) How do people see their community? Do they like to live there? Have there been any changes in this? What are they particularly proud of in their community, and how do they see solutions to the major problems identified? (iii) What are the most important health problems identified in the community? What about HIV/AIDS? Do people see themselves in a position to change anything in this area? (iv) How is the radio seen as changing things in the community- with concrete examples, and finally (v) Has there been an increase in people´s way of involving themselves in the community life – due to the arrival of the community radio?
Besides from this assessment of the eventual social change in the community itself, a structur-ed assessment of the life and organization within the radio station itself will be carried out, with a view to assessing actual community control and involvement, and sustainability.


A Longterm CR Partnership Strategy
Sustainability can be seen as requiring (i) strategic direction and planning, (ii) capacity to attract resources from a variety of partners, (iii) and ability to manage the resources effectively.
In view of our work to strengthen the sustain-ability of the project´s community radio partners, we have therefore developed an extensive partnership strategy, including both national and international partners. We hope to host a seminar with the international partners during the month of May or June, while we work to implement the national part of it.


CC Tete Off for a New Start
While the Communication Centre in Tete has been showing an incredible level of creativity and motivation, as well as a certain level of – for here and now – self-sustainability, a more long term sustainability has always been the big challenge.
During an intense and very focused General Assembly on March 14, the first important steps to actually meet these challenges were taken in two different ways: first of all a number of pertinent activities for sustainability were identified and included in the strategic plan discussed, and secondly the development of a joint, Tete-monthly will be realized within the coming months. Working groups were formed to take the realization of the important plans forward.


Mid Term Review of Media Project
From our own world:
The media project hosted its phase II mid term evaluation team March 24-April 4. It was a constructive experience to be part of, and interesting to see the factors focused upon by the review team (Peter Erichs of Sweden for UNDP and Botelho Moniz on behalf of Government).
In the debriefing meetings with both Government partners and donors the following core points were highlighted: The project was seen as consolidated since phase I, fulfilling the objectives - and working with methodologies facilitating profound change with partner institutions. Very positive steps seen towards consolidation and sustainability were reported.
The team referred to concrete impact of the project witnessed both in Maputo and through its field visits to three of the community radios started by the project (both within the radio and in the community it serves), the communication centres, the three RM realities/delegations visited and the training discussed in meetings with journalists in Maputo and elsewhere
The project was furthermore seen as very dynamic and as having a good capacity to adapt to the diverse realities where it is working with-out loosing perspective and sight of objectives. The tripartite structure above the project (Government, Donors, UNDP) will analyse the final review report and meet during the first weeks of May to agree on steps to take for the future, including the development of a possible final phase III.


Media Development Project c/o UNESCO, P.O.Box 1397 Maputo, Mozambique
Tel. + 258.1. 498752/ 490840 Fax +258.1.498717
E-mail: unesco@mediamoz.com