Pro-people Media (English)

A Million Dollar Idea

-Vinaya Kasajoo

An old man, who had nothing financial to give to his local community radio, contributed an idea, which proved to be a milestone for the sustainability of the radio and at the same time enhanced community ownership and involvement in the station.

Last year, Community Radio Madanpokhara (CRM) honored 75-year-old Tuk Lal Khati for his long lasting and valuable contribution. He was awarded with a letter of appreciation and a radio set. Tuk Lal’s million-dollar idea is now generating a substantial amount of money for CRM.

Community Radio Madanpokhara is one of Nepal’s first community radio stations. Officially, Madanpokhara Village Development Committee (VDC) is the license holder of the station, but in practice it is owned, controlled and managed by the community.

The station uses different methods to mobilize community members’ involvement in the programming and policies of the station. One way is to organize meetings to motivate villagers to speak about the radio programmes and to give the opportunity to criticise, evaluate and advise the station. At one such meeting in the Bandipokhara VDC, Som Nath Aryal, the facilitator, requested the meeting participants to suggest how the people could contribute to the station.

Dozens of suggestions poured in from different people. At one corner an old man was leaning over his staff and listening quietly. When Som Nath requested the old man, Tuk Lal Khati, to give his suggestion Tuk Lal declined, saying that many suggestions have already come from educated people. How could an old and uneducated man like him give a useful suggestion?

At that point Som Nath started to tell Tuk Lal a story about an old lady whose one sentence had changed the destiny of a businessman. Before he could finish his story the old man stood up suddenly and spoke in a commanding voice: "Since the radio station has become our mind, heart and mouth we must help it with all means – mind, money and labour – till it speaks our voice. However, I do not have money to give to the station. But I have an idea, which can be useful for generating income for the station. Let every household set aside a handful of rice from their daily consumption and give it to the station".

Som Nath put Tuk Lal’s suggestion to CRM’s board of directors who called a meeting of representatives of 23 villages in CRM’s listening area. The meeting appreciated the idea and decided to apply it immediately in their respective villages through the network of local listeners’ clubs.

In the following two months, listeners’ clubs collected the rice and equivalent money from households in villages across the station’s listening area. They kept some portion of the funds raised for their own local activities and sent 25-80 percent of the collected amount to the station. In total CRM received over Nepali Rupees. 50,000 (approximately USD 650).

Funds raised through villagers’ donation of rice now represent a significant percentage of CRM’s budget. After mobilizing over 90 local listeners clubs as part of the campaign, the amount is expected to cross USD 4000 annually.

The contribution of the people in cash and kind has benefited the station and the radio listeners clubs in various ways. It has improved the sustainability of the station in long run. It has also contributed to increasing the listeners’ sense of ownership and responsibility over the radio station. They now feel that they have more authority in decision-making about programming and policy of the station. At the same time, the radio clubs have also been able to expand and strengthen their social, cultural and advocacy activities.

At a time of increasing media commercialisation and globalisation, Tuk Lal’s simple idea for Community Radio Madanpokhara shows us a practical way to increase local participation in and sustainability of local community radio.

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