St. Lucia’s First Community Radio Station, 88.5 Soufriere FM, Is Officially Launched.
“Research and personal experiences has demonstrated that if you want to get communities involved in sustainable development, which affects their lives, you must provide them with access to information that will help them. You must provide them with an opportunity to participate in the democratic processes that affect them and in making decisions that affect their lives, and one of the ways they can do that is to be able to get knowledge and information. And in this regard UNESCO has been supporting community radio stations all across the world,” stated Director of UNESCO for the Caribbean, Dr. Kwame Boafo, in his keynote address to mark the official launch of St. Lucia’s first community radio station, 88.5 Soufriere FM, last week Thursday.
Dr. Boafa was at the time addressing other UNESCO representatives; the parliamentary representative; directors, management and staff of the Soufriere Foundation; school principals; sponsors; advertisers; volunteers; programme hosts; well wishers and listeners who had gathered at Sulphur Springs Park, Soufriere, to celebrate the official launch of the radio station. In a short but memorable ceremony invitees and residents were treated to amongst others, performances from the community’s own, singer Selwyna Charles and cultural group Soufriere Action Theatre (SAT).
The journey began in 2006, when well-known St. Lucian media consultant, Mr. Jerry George, submitted a proposal to UNESCO for funding of a radio station against the backdrop of a survey among 108 residents of different communities in Soufriere. The survey revealed that 80% of respondents cited very poor coverage of their community by the mainstream media as the reason for the need for a community station and 91% welcomed the idea of a radio station. Having been responsible for starting over 100 community radio stations in Africa, Asia, South America and the Caribbean, UNESCO welcomed the idea and identified the Soufriere Foundation as the ideal implementing agency for the project. The Soufriere Foundation, welcomed the idea of the community radio station, co-funded the purchase of the equipment and is presently running and meeting its operational costs.
On September 1, 2010, 88.5 Soufriere FM “Your Voice, Your Light” started broadcasting to residents and in so doing joined the community of other UNESCO funded Caribbean community radio stations such as Garafuna Radio in St. Vincent; Free FM, Jet FM 88.7 and Roots FM in Jamaica; Radio Paiwomak in Guyana; Toco Radio in Trinidad; Bequia Community High School Radio in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; and GED in Barbados.
88.5 Soufriere FM is a lively, entertaining and educational radio station. As a community radio it is non-commercial and run by volunteers. It promotes community access and participation as its core principles and its key objectives are to:
· provide a voice to the marginalized of the community
· educate the citizenry
· identify, raise awareness and solve community development issues
· promote democracy and good governance
Within weeks of having started broadcasting, 88.5 become the station of choice of Soufriere and Choiseul residents. It is also well-listened to in Canaries and Vieux Fort.
During his turn at the podium, the Parliamentary Representative, Honourable Harold Dalson, had a few words of advice for the station management. “I want to state four or five areas where I think this station can be relevant. We need to recognize that we have cultural diversity in the community. We need to understand the socio-economic diversity of this community so we need to look at language barriers that some people may have and if we have to resort to our Creole language so be it. Religious diversity is something that has to be recognized and political diversity is something that is critical especially given the guava season that we’re in and all I ask is that we are fair and free.”
Radio St. Lucia, Radio Caribbean and Radio 100 all provided their assistance in one way or another to enable the station to get off the ground.
St. Lucia’s only community radio station can be listened to online at www.885soufriere.fm.
