Broadcasting Women

The Advancement through Interactive Radio (AIR)project focuses on a new approach for increasing thestatus and empowerment of women in developingcommunities with wider application to the field ofInformation and Communication Technologies forDevelopment. AIR enables women who are the primaryeconomic driving force in community development totalk back to the community radio station in orderto better facilitate participation as well as demandand produce information that contributes to theiradvancement.Women are frequently excluded from the access to andbenefits of Information and CommunicationTechnologies for Development (ICTD) which negativelyimpacts both women's and community development.Community radio enhanced to provide the means forlisteners to communicate with broadcastersrepresents a potential way to address this exclusion.This research makes the case for further ICTDinterventions that are focused on women and communityradio while addressing key research questions aboutgender voice and empowerment.