The role of community radio programs in addressing urban environmental challenges in informal settlements, a case study of nyalenda informal settlement in kisumu city, kenya

Abstract

Radio initiatives as part of broader communication for development strategies have been used by international organizations such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) among others since the late 1960s. Therefore, many people continue to rely on mass media for information education and entertainment hence through this behaviour change can be achieved. One of the major challenges in urban centres and more specifically in Kisumu City is the population pressure leading to informal settlement prowl and environmental degradation. This directly leads to unsustainable environmental resource management; the situation has been heightened by limited access to the information on the integrated resource base management. Rapid population growth in Nyalenda is responsible for many physical, socio-economic and environmental changes. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of community radio programs in addressing urban environmental challenges in informal settlements with specific reference to Nyalenda Informal Settlement in Kisumu City, Kisumu County, Kenya. The specific objectives were to establish the status of community involvement in developing radio environmental programs addressing urban environmental problems in Nyalenda, to examine the relevance of the environmental programs aired by the Community-based Stations to the existing urban environmental problems in Nyalenda and finally to assess the perception of Nyalenda residents towards the environmental management programs aired by the three community-based radio stations. The study used descriptive research design. The target population was approximately 10,000 households in Nyalenda Informal Settlement from which a sample size of 323 households was derived using the Fischer’s formula. Household questionnaires were used to collect quantitative data from the household heads (respondents). Qualitative data was collected using focus group discussion (FGD) and Key informant (KII). Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in form of texts, frequency tables, pie-charts and graphs. Qualitative data was organized into themes and sub-themes analysed through context analysis. The study established that most of the listeners are never involved in programing and content development by the stations as only 12% of the respondents had actively taken part in developing the radio programs. On the relevance of the radio programs to the existing environmental problems in Nyalenda, the study established that 39% of the environmental programs aired by the three stations focused on solid waste management, 28% were on water and sanitation while 19% addressed sewage disposal. This clearly showed the relevance between the programs and the environmental problems. The study on perception of the radio programs by Nyalenda residents established that Majority of the respondents (75%) felt that the environmental management programs were very relevant in addressing the existing challenges being witnessed in the study area. 67% of the respondents strongly agreed that the radio provided them with new information on environmental conservation. 66% of the respondents strongly agreed that the radio programs had a positive influence in their activities. The radio programs had actually influenced a number of the respondents to initiate various environmental management activities within their residential areas with 70% of the households applying water treatment methods learnt from the radio while 63% had taken up active roles in improving their waste disposal. 58% of the respondents were actively participating in clean up exercises while 28% indicated they had enhanced their rain water harvesting techniques. This study recommends the adoption of community-based radios in championing for environmental conservation across the country.