Mercy Corps - Wajir Community Radio Solar Power Systems Installations Contractor - Jobs in Kenya

As part of its climate information services activities under NRM component, BRACED program has been working with Wajir Community Radio, a local radio station whose target is to empower the marginalized and vulnerable members of the pastoralist community who are mostly disadvantaged especially over print material due to their illiteracy in order to enlighten and empower such members of the community with the information they require using a language they understand.

BRACED 1 has invested in the expansion of WCR helping it to achieve a listenership increment from 63% to 82% and reaching part of Marsabit, Isiolo, Mandera and Garissa Counties. This has had a positive impact on the pastoral community who has the radio as their only source of climate information services.

The BRACED-X project is engaging the community radio station in Wajir to develop community radio programmes in local languages related to project activities. The radio programmes are being used to enable public consultation and feedback on project activities carried out on the ground in Wajir: participatory resource mapping and a water governance study.

The radio programmes are a way for the country government to engage with citizens regarding community priorities for water and rangeland development and to feed into ongoing county level policy development on water and rangeland management/governance.

A series of radio programmes (six in total) have already been broadcast on the participatory resource mapping activities carried out across Wajir. The programmes were organised at the sub county level – one each for Wajir East, Wajir West, Wajir South, Wajir North, Tarbaj and Eldas.

Despite it being the only link and information bridge between the pastoral community and the government/duty bearers, the station has been suffering from power outage both at the station and at the transmitter which is located 6KMs from the station.

Occasioned by the frequent tradition of power outage in Wajir and the 2018 burning of the power control room of the KPLC offices, Wajir community Radio is currently unable to continue its broadcast as scheduled.

There is abrupt stoppage of information flow which made the listeners to miss vital information including those that are sponsored by the BRACED-X program.

This activity which involve solar power support of Wajir Community Radio is to remedy the situation and put in place an alternative source