Gender equality campaign: Breaking the bias

Theme pack

Every person plays an important role in society and in sustainable development, including women and girls! Whether it’s at the household or community level, whether it’s generating income, supporting good health, or adapting to climate change. When we are all treated as equal and can access the same opportunities and information, everybody benefits. Over the month of March, we’d like to encourage you to broadcast a program or segment on gender equality, as part of a campaign for gender equality. Let’s share the successes of women in contributing to improved lives and livelihoods in leadership, business, agriculture, and beyond. Let’s imagine a world without bias and stereotypes. How can we get there? What barriers prevent women and girls from contributing to and leading in society, and how can men and boys support women in building a sustainable tomorrow?

Read more from UN Women on the theme of International Women’s Day 2022: “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”

And read about the #BreakTheBias campaign taking place on social media: https://www.internationalwomensday.com/

To support you in participating in this campaign, we are organizing a 4-week online discussion starting Feb. 21. Join us here: http://discussion.farmradio.fm/c/gender-equality/21

We also encourage you to take our online learning module about gender equality and your farmer program. This will help you think about how to ensure your program equally engages both women and men in your audience.

About the radio campaign

We have many resources that you can use to plan a segment or program on an important gender equality topic or on women who are breaking the bias. These are listed below. Here are some ways that you can use these resources:

1) Air radio spots between or during any radio program. This is a great way for your listeners to hear that you are a champion for gender equality. Find the radio spots here in English, French, Baoulé, and (hopefully another language). Make sure to say that you support gender equality and “breaking the bias” against women and girls.

2) Interview a woman leader in your community about how she has achieved success. As an example, read our Barza Wire story of women political leaders in Burkina Faso.

3) Gender-based violence is an important topic and a significant barrier for women and, therefore, the wellbeing of communities. It’s important to address this sensitive topic appropriately, so read our Broadcaster how-to guide on addressing sensitive issues. Using actors, you can broadcast our drama called “Lockdown rage” about gender-based violence during COVID-19. Or interview community organizations working to support women who have experienced gender-based violence. Make sure you tell your audience how they can access these services if they or a neighbour has experienced gender-based violence.

4) Talk about one of the deep-rooted issues facing rural women, including access to land or finance. Women face discrimination when trying to access loans and land titles. Explore these barriers and the experiences of women in your community. We have backgrounders on the rights of rural women in several countries that will help you develop good interview questions for women farmers and subject-matter specialists. We also have a backgrounder on women’s land rights in Africa.

5) Profile a woman in a uncommon roles. In some places, it’s rare to see a woman in politics, science, engineering, or running a business. By showcasing women in non-traditional roles, you can inspire young people to strive for the lives that they really want. Read our Stars from the Field stories, which profile Ghanaian women in nontraditional jobs and their advice for girls following in their footsteps.

There are many ways you can join this radio campaign, including a variety of formats you can use and a variety of radio programs at your station that can participate. However you participate, tell your audience: “Our station is a champion for gender equality. Let’s break the bias and support women.”

And tell us that you participated! Tell us about each program, segment or radio spot you broadcast about gender equality during the month of March. Fill out this short form for each program / segment: https://forms.gle/nxfF3j1B9qbMorzdA

Share the episode recording with your networking officer or with radio@farmradio.org.

Each form you fill out will give you one entry into our draw for prizes. We will offer a total of 12 prizes of $50 CA.