Restricted FIT/510-SRL-61 FIT/510-SRL-62 Technical Report

SRI LANKA Mahaweli Community Radio

Final Evaluation of the Mahaweli Community Radio Project

by M . Ashraf K.L. Svärre M . E . Allard

Serial N o . F M R / C I I / C O M / 9 0 / 2 3 6 ( D A N I D A )

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Paris, 1990

S R I L A N K A

FINAL EVALUATION OF THE MAHAWELI COMMUNITY RADIO PROJECT

Mahaweli Community Radio

by M. Ashraf K.L. Svärre M.E. Allard

Report prepared for the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco)

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

FIT/510-SRL-61 FIT/510-SRL-62 Technical Report(Ashraf/Svärre/Allard) FMR/CII/COM/90/236(DANIDA) 6 December 1990 © Unesco 1990 Printed in France

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

List of Photographs (ii) Abbreviations (iii) Summary (iv)

I INTRODUCTION 1

II PROJECT BACKGROUND 3

The Mahaweli Community Radio Project 3 Objectives of the Project 7 Activities and Outputs 8 Specific accomplishments 10

III EVALUATION OP THE PROJECT 13

Methodology 13 Field visits 13

IV OVERALL ASSESSMENT 19

Technical observations of the Unesco Engineering Consultant 19

Specific observations by the DANIDA Consultant 23

Observations of the representative of the Unesco Evaluation Unit 24

RECOMMENDATIONS 27

ANNEXES

I Tripartite Report 29

II List of Meetings and Participants 4 3

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List of Photographs

The MCR approach : Street Theatre Group

The Mahailluppalama Centre

GCR Community Radio

Kandy FM Simulcast

Unesco-Mallard FM transmitter

The Faults of human monkeys

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Abbreviations

AMARC

AM/FM

AMIC

CIDA

DANIDA

EEC

GCR

MASL

MCR

NORAD

TPR

SLBC

UNDP

Association mondiale des Radios Communautaires

Amplitude modulation/frequency modulation

Asian Mass Communication Research and Information Centre

Canadian International Development Agency

Danish International Development Agency

European Economic Community

Guirandurokotte Community Radio Station

Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka

Mahaweli Community Radio

Norwegian Agency for International Development

Tripartite Review

Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation

United Nations Development Programme

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fliwimayY

The Mahaweli Community Radio (MCR) Project was inaugurated in 1981 with the assistance of Unesco and DANIDA. The approximate budget for the ten-year period is $1.2 million.

The main purpose was to accelerate and facilitate the socio­economic improvement of the new settlers in the Mahaweli Development Plan1 through the sharing of settlers experiences using the radio as a medium of mass communication.

Objectives and outputs

The broad objectives of the Project from the point of view of provision of training, equipment, study tours and holding of regional seminars, have been attained.

The Project has evolved considerably during the past ten years, with far reaching multiplier effects. Concrete enquiries and requests are being made for more community radio stations from development agencies in Sri Lanka. International and bilateral agencies are providing assistance for further expansion of the concept. Neighbouring countries have expressed interest to adapt the MCR concept to better serve the purposes of development broadcasting in ways which may not be possible with single national transmitters. In the Unesco publication 1988 at Unesco - New Openings, a general survey of the Organization's activities for the Member States and public at large used the MCR success story to highlight the role of community involvement in communication development activities.

Maior Findinas

In spite of a number of years of disturbances in the country, the Project has evolved considerably - a demonstration of enthusiasm that was initially generated by the Unesco/DANIDA team and is still remembered and followed by the MCR team and villagers alike because of the established need to share information on development issues. The Project was fairly well designed and implemented.

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Such success stories do not remain success stories for long if the country is experiencing internal constraints. Unesco, in conjunction with the donor countries, should develop clear and effective methods to react or act during such emergency and contingency situations, to maintain the momentum and assist these countries to sustain their project results.

A multi-purpose irrigation project to provide resettlement of nearly one million people from different parts of the Island.

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Although the National Co-ordinator who replaced the previous one is effective, a more definitive policy should be elaborated for the nomination of a national coordinator, including consultation with UNDP and Unesco; provision should also be made for briefing on project and financial management.

The mission observed relative inactivity at the MCR Centre in Mahailluppaláma as well as general discouragement among the project team. - Some of this is due to the 1988-1989 civil disturbances and to the 'borrowing' of project equipment and jeeps by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC); some is due also to personnel difficulties and delay in the construction of studios. Proposals for rectifying this situation have been made and some have already been put into action.

Although a report was prepared by the National Coordinator, there were a number of more basic decisions that had to be taken by Government concerning the proposal for a new institutional structure, the Community Communication Centre. For this it was necessary to hold a number of meetings with the Ministry of state for Information and other concerned ministries. Given the number of MCR sites to be visited and their dispersal north and south in the country, the time allotted for the mission was extremely short, as well as for report writing in the country.

Recommendations

The recommendations made in the report stress the importance of the institutionalization of the MCR concept, through the creation of an independent autonomous Community Communication Centre within the Ministry of State for Information; and the establishment of a top level Working Group or Monitoring Board to ensure the continuity and completion of all activities foreseen by the end of 1990; to interact, liaise and take measures to overcome any factors impeding effective functioning of the programme. Unesco/UNDP, in formulating institution-building projects should develop indicators for (i) assessing progress on sustainability issues, especially during contingency situations; and (ii) effective feedback and follow-up by the Government and Unesco/UNDP.

510/SRL/61: Mahaweli Community Radio 510/SRL/62:

Technical Report

INTRODUCTION

1. The official evaluation took place from 29 January to 2 February 1990 in Sri Lanka.

2. The official evaluation team consisted of a representative of DANIDA (Ms. Karin-lis Svarre), a representative of Unesco (Ms. Mehir Ashraf, Central Evaluation Unit) , the Unesco consultant in electronic and broadcast engineering (Mr. Martin Allard) and a representative of Government (Mr. Hilton Pereira). The evaluation report was prepared by them and finalized by the Unesco Secretariat and approved by the evaluation team.

3. The following served as resource persons during the tripartite evaluation: the Unesco Desk Officer (Mr. Carlos A. Arnaldo) , the Project Co-ordinator (Mr. Hilton Pereira) , the UNDP Resident Representative (Mr. Matthew Kahane), a representative of the Ministry of State for Information and Broadcasting (Mr. Sumanasekera Banda), a representative of the Mahaweli Ministry, a representative of the Department of External Affairs, Ministry of Finance (Mrs. C. Amarasekera).

4. The detailed schedule prepared by the Project Co-ordinator was as follows. Opening of the tripartite review with a general meeting at the Mahaweli Community Radio office at the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation in Colombo; followed by field trips to the Mahailluppalama Centre near Anuradjapura and the Guirandurokotte FM station; a final review meeting in Colombo with the principal partners and resource persons, to summarize findings and propose recommendations and decisions.

5. The general terms of reference of the mission were as follows:

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The mission should evaluate the project activities and accomplishments against the expected results contained in the project document for Phase III.

i) The Mahaweli Community Radio will be established as a permanent and autonomous programme service within the corporate structure of SLBC.

ii) The MCR Centre in Mahailluppalama will serve SLBC as a specialized training unit for all forms of rural broadcasting including the MCR approach; as an audiovisual documentation resource centre on village life, music and folklore; and as a focal point for innovation and experimentation on community broadcasting.

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iii) MCR teams will be integrated into at least three regional SLBC stations to take responsibility for production and transmission of regular farm programmes and MCR programmes.

iv) MCR will have established at least three local FM community stations in selected areas of the Mahaweli region and will continue to use the basic MCR approach in the production of radio programmes.

v) The MCR Monitoring Board will continue to meet periodically and act increasingly as a joint committee to monitor, evaluate and guide the development of the Mahaweli Community Radio.

vi) These expected results should be seen in the context of the overall development objective and the immediate objectives of Phases I, II and III. Reference may also be made to other documents and reports, particularly the evaluation report on MCR published by AMIC.

6. The specific terms of reference of the mission were as follows:

In the context of the general terms of reference, the evaluation mission may wish to investigate more closely certain questions directly related to the project objectives:

i) The application of new technology: FM transmitters, FM solar powered radio, electronic data transfer.

ii) Innovations in production equipment designed by the field team: mixer module, portable studio, use of battery power.

iii) Breadth and scope of research, particularly with summative research done in co-operation with AMIC.

iv) Role of the Street Theatre Group as a means of communication of developmental messages; their integration into radio.

v) Value of music and folklore programmes, their use in development and community well-being.

vi) Special attention should be paid to the importance of MCR's independent state of affairs being institutionalized and ensured in the future, which was a main purpose of the final phase of this project, and particular attention should be paid to the proposal for a Community Communication Centre.

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II PROJECT BACKGROUND

7. Several surveys, research and evaluation were carried out in order to improve the quality of the programme production and efficiency in delivering the services to the community. This has been an ongoing review and ' feed-in-process• by outside expertise as well as the Mahaweli Community, the listeners as well as the producers of the programmes for broadcasting. About twenty four research publications and reports have been produced on the work of MCR.

8. The following information is extracted from these documents to record the evolution of the Project and present in one paper the overall achievements at the various stages of the Project implementation.

9. The Government of Sri Lanka's Accelerated Mahaweli Development Programme, a multi-purpose irrigation project was initiated in the late 1970s to provide resettlement of nearly one million people from different parts of the island on 312.000 acres of newly opened land.

10. Several Government Ministries were involved in the development of various infrastructures and provision of social services and training for income generating activities. Although mass communication, in terms of radio, was not initially a part of this development plan, a consultant from the Danish Tape Workshop, Mr Knud Ebbesen, and Mr S. Amunugama, then Secretary of State for Information and Broadcasting, actually proposed the community radio project alongside the Mahaweli Plan. Mr Ebbesen proposed that radio be used as a mass communication media to assist the farmers in settling in the new locations and to motivate them towards agricultural productivity and socio­economic development.

11. The proposed concept was to work in harmony and close co­operation with the Mahaweli authorities but was not to be part of, or responsible to, the Mahaweli authority in order to maintain strictest credibility as an information and development resource.

The Mahaweli Community Radio Project

12. In 1979, the Ministry of State for Information, which was then responsible for the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC), decided to introduce a new radio service to serve the settlers in the Mahaweli Development area. At the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, Unesco assisted in setting up the project whilst DANIDA agreed to provide the funds.

Photo 1 - The MCR Approach : Street Theatre Group

In System H, the north-central region of the Mahaweli, Gamini Wijewardane, Mahaweli Community Radio Producer created a spe­cial "Street Theatre Group" composed of farmers' sons and daughters. This presentation shows the wicked "logger"(Gamini) trying to convince the villagers to let him cut all the trees (young boys and girls dressed in saris with leaf motif and waving giant ferns). Villagers reacted in outrage against the "logger". The drama is presented live in the village and an edited taped version is broadcast on MCR. The impact of this communication form is that the villagers themselves present the message in their own idiom.

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13. The Mahaweli Community Radio (MCR) was officially inaugurated on 12 March 1981 originally as a single-phase experiment of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation with assistance from Unesco and DANIDA. The MCR has since moved into a second and a third phase.

Phase I : 1981-1983 $ 314,000 (excluding $ 80,000 provided to Radio Denmark for procurement of project equipment)

Phase II: 1984-1986 $ 286,589

Phase III: 1987-1989 $ 299,036 (extended to 1990)

Total: $ 899,625 (excluding overhead costs)

14. The MCR Programme approach has been designed to ensure the closest interaction with the rural listeners, involving them in direct participatory broadcasting providing a two-way communication process. The salient feature is the participation of the people in the planning recording and editing of programmes. These are recorded in their presence, in the village, by specially trained teams of producers sharing the rural way of life.

MCR Approach

15. The MCR technique is a radical departure from central and regional systems of programme production. The production staff is divided into teams. Each team comprises two producers, two technicians, a labourer and driver. The production schedule is in three stages.

a) The first stage is devoted to an initial visit to a particular selected village. During this visit the resources, economic conditions, agricultural activities and the structure of the population are examined and reported.

b) This information is brought back to the Radio Centre where it is analysed and the form of programmes and priorities are decided upon in consultation with the Controller of Programmes and other MCR members.

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cj A second visit is made to the same village and this time recordings are done. This visit is of four days' duration, during which time the MCR team camps out in the village. Very often the team selects a public place like a temple or school building to prevent being influenced by interested parties that would affect its independent character. The villagers are encouraged to express themselves freely and comment on the vital issues in the village to explain specific problems and to seek solutions to them. This leads to a dialogue between the villagers and the officials. This approach also acts as a catalyst to activate the officials to find solutions to the problems of villagers.

d) The final stage in this programme technique is the editing of the programme in the same village with the participation of the villagers themselves. During this visit, a Cultural Evening is also organized and the entire village community participates in it. This occasion helps to unearth new artistic talent in the village. It is also used as a forum to carry development messages to the village using other folk media such as dance and drama. Some of the traditional cultural music and songs collected at these cultural evenings are classified and brought out as research material.

Technical aspects

16. As Community Radio should operate on a low-cost principle, MCR has innovated a mobile-console to facilitate technical aspects in the implementation of the MCR concept and the programme producers are trained in the basic technical know-how in operational techniques and to participate and contribute to programme material. This approach has helped to strengthen the team spirit which is vital in the implementation of the MCR concept.

17. Launching the first ever Community Radio Station in the island, at Guirandurokotte in Mahaweli System "C", in 1986 was an important landmark in the history of Community Radio in Sri Lanka. This was sponsored by the Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka and the EEC in order to support development efforts and was inaugurated by the President of the Republic. The involvement of trained volunteers at the Guirandurokotte Community Radio Station (GCR) not only helped in reducing programme production costs of the station but also provided a means of building up close links with the listeners as the volunteers were selected from amongst the listeners themselves.

18. This Community Radio has also maintained its independence free of external influences that would adversely affect the credibility of its development messages.

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Objectives of the Project

Development objectives

19. The development objective is as follows :

to accelerate and facilitate the socio-economic improvement of the new settlers in the Mahaweli Development Plan through the rapid, timely and relevant sharing of settlers experiences using the radio as a medium of mass communication.

Immediate objectives

20. After a review of the project, field visits and discussions with the relevant ministries, the objectives as originally proposed in the Project document are revised as follows:

Phase I and II

to provide a built-in system for the sharing of development experiences among the new settlers through formation of a team of mobile radio producers and technicians; creation of programme formats and methods of field production and transmission; and incorporation of these mobile teams into the SLBC's regional stations;

to continue and expand the decentralized community radio activities in the Mahaweli region through the training and provision of appropriate equipment to mobile teams for programme production;

to strengthen the in-depth and built-in research on the impact of MCR radio programmes on villagers and settlers and develop feedback mechanism of these results into new programme production;

to strengthen the institutional links with SLBC, MASL and related rural development and broadcasting organizations;

to continue and consolidate the integrated rural broad­casting training within the framework of the SLBC training programmes and the rural training programmes of the Agricultural Training Institute; through research evaluation and regional seminars on MCR techniques for the sharing of experiences in neighbouring countries having similar projects;

to strengthen the present research and develop documentation facilities for relevant information storage on tapes and cassettes.

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Phase III

- to consolidate the institutional gains made in Phases I and II, particularly through the strengthening of the Mahaweli Community Radio Centre in Mahailluppalama;

- to formulate the institutional framework of MCR as an autonomous programme service through a joint-committee review and forward its proposals to the Government of Sri Lanka;

- to re-inforce the MCR Centre in Mahailluppalama to serve SLBC as a specialized integrated training unit for all forms of rural broadcasting including the MCR approach; as a base for both audience research and impact research; as an audio­visual documentation resource centre on village life, music, and folklore; as a focal point for innovation and experimentation on new forms of community broadcasting;

- to consolidate the production techniques in co-operation with the regional SLBC stations for production and transmission of regular farm programmes and other MCR programmes;

- to strengthen the institutional links with SLBC, MASL and other related rural development and broadcasting organizations involved to share knowledge and carry out research on new forms of communications;

- to establish at least three local FM community stations in selected areas of the Mahaweli region and continue to use the basic MCR approach in the production of radio programmes ;

to encourage the establishment of an MCR Monitoring Board, as a joint committee, to periodically monitor, evaluate and guide the development of the Mahaweli Community Radio.

Activities and outputs

21. A review of the progress on the accomplishments of the major activities is as follows. It should be noted that Phase I and II were monitored by two Unesco consultants from Denmark, while Phase III was implemented solely by a national co-ordinator seconded from SLBC.

Phase I (1981-1983)

- MCR successfully established its new approach for radio in the development process of the Mahaweli areas. The new settlers in the Mahaweli Development Scheme, made use of the medium of radio to exchange ideas and experiences, while building up a two-way communication with the authorities;

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A corps of community radio producers, technicians and support personnel were trained to work in the villages of the Mahaweli region on a regular basis.

Phase II (1984-1986)

The MCR expanded programme production to cover a daily One-hour Rural Belt during the evening prime-time, over the three regional stations at Anuradhapura, Kandy and Matara, covering the North-central, Central and Southern areas of the island;

Twelve new producers and volunteers were trained at four training courses and two refresher courses for MCR programme staff were conducted and repeated in October 1987 and March 1989;

In 1986 two training seminars were held at Guixandurokotte and Ruhana for agricultural extension workers, unit managers and MCR programme and technical staff in collaboration with Farm Broadcasting Services of the Department of Agriculture;

Selected staff of the MCR team were provided study tours and participation at symposia abroad;

A three-day evaluation workshop was held at Nuwara Eliya in September 1986 for producers, technicians, organizers and directors involved with MCR to review the One-hour Rural Programme Belt and plan for future development of the programmes. Further, music research, baseline surveys, and evaluative studies were also carried out to identify the socio-economic and cultural characteristics of the listenership and to recommend ways where MCR can play a more effective role in community development;

Other noteworthy achievements during Phase II were the production of the MCR Handbook in English and Sinhala and the completion of a work plan to set up the MCR Centre at Mahailluppalama in Mahaweli System 'H'. The main Technical Achievement has been the innovation of a Mobile Console which facilitates the field recording and editing of the MCR which is a vital characteristic of the MCR approach. The mobile console was invented as a result of co-operation between local and foreign expertise. It has later on been developed into a more streamlined console used in other community radio projects in other developing countries.

Although a Tamil Programme production team and two more local radio stations were included in the general plan of activities they have not been set up due to the intermittent civil disturbances prevailing in the country.

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Phase III (1986-1990)

- The MCR Centre was shifted from Kandy to Mahailluppalama after the renovation of the «Maharaja Lodge1. Stage II, construction of the annex to provide full facilities for the integrated training in rural and community broadcasting has been considerably delayed, but due for completion in November 1990;

- The community radio activities are being implemented from five centres, i.e., the MCR Centre at Mahailluppalama, Community Radio Units at Kandy and Matara, the Guirandurokotte Community Radio (GCR) Station, and the most recent Kotmale Community Radio. All these transmit a One-hour Rural Broadcast and programme production, feed-back, evaluation and research is conducted on the basis of the MCR approach;

- The project provided training workshops and seminars for its staff at regular intervals. Two batches of volunteers have been trained for the GCR Station. Study tours were arranged for MCR producers and the National Coordinator. Several international development agencies such as CIDA and NORAD have sought the consultancy services of MCR to draw up community radio project proposals to support their development programmes;

- An Asian Regional Seminar and Workshop on Community Radio was sponsored in 1987 by SLBC and Unesco where experts from twelve countries and broadcasting organizations exchanged experiences. The Asian Community Broadcasters' Association was formed at this seminar and Sri Lanka was selected convenor for the first year;

A one day evaluation seminar was held in April 1988 on the MCR project to familiarize the participants with the needs, requirements and the resources available through community radio;

- Local research students and foreign students have conducted research studies of the MCR project as part fulfilment of their academic research during 1985-1989.

specific accomplishments

22. As community radio programmes are directed towards small identified groups it has been necessary and possible to design and structure programmes to suit the specific needs as well as the language, idiom, social and cultural traits within them.

- The major programme innovations were the •Street-Drama' technique experimented by the MCR Centre at Mahailluppalama and the 'School-on-the-Air" experimented at Guirandurokotte (GCR).

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'School-on-the-Air' is the most recent venture of Gurrandurokotte Community Radio. The programme was inaugurated in August 1988 and is funded through the Mahaweli Trust Fund by EEC while the Street Drama is funded with project funds to support the radio programmes. School-on-the-Air aims at employing mixed media in the form of print and video presentations to support the audio visual material.

On the other hand 'Street Drama' was an attempt to develop and exploit folk drama traditions which are popular with the villagers. Some of the themes undertaken under this experiment were conservation of the environment, health care and income generating ideas.

Several campaigns were carried out with the assistance of community radio at Mahailluppalama and GCR with the Agriculture Department and the Mahaweli Authority to promote planned agricultural activities. MCR participated at the Mahaweli Agro Exhibition (1988) held in Mahaweli System 'H', and operated a Special Community Radio Studio at the Exhibition Grounds, and transmitted a special broadcast during the exhibition.

A video documentary film "Barefoot Radio" on the Mahaweli Community Radio was produced. This along with the video film of the Regional Seminar and Workshop on MCR held in 1987, at Kandy, were favourably viewed and appreciated by several visitors to the MCR project.

Listeners' Clubs: Listeners' Clubs which were introduced to the target areas of Community Radio in 1985 functioned very successfully in bringing listeners closer to the service. The listeners produce their own audio-cassettes containing reactions and comments on MCR programmes and development services of the Mahaweli authorities. The selected cassettes are incorporated in the 'feedback' portion of the rural belt programme. Unfortunately, the unstable conditions affected the logistics of communicating with the listeners clubs through cassetted tapes to feed information and strengthen contacts with community radio.

Special Project: In 1986-1987, MCR sponsored the upliftment of a very poor village, Kokmaduwa in the North Western Province, by co-ordinating procedures to build houses for the villagers. This project displayed the persuasive force of MCR, in harnessing the unity, determination and self-help attitude of Listeners' Clubs in motivating a group in the community to better themselves.

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III THE EVALUATION OF THE PROJECT

Methodology

23. The final evaluation of the Project was carried out from 29 January to 2 February 1990, with two initial meetings held in Colombo with the Ministers responsible and the senior Government officials who viewed the Project outputs as contributions to the long-term development goals of the country. Their interest and support to the proposal to make the MCR autonomous was encouraging and the continuing commitment of MASL to support the Project throughout the Development Plan was appreciated.

24. Before the final tripartite review meeting, it was decided to conduct field missions in order to determine the actual status of the Project. It is regretted that although initially agreed upon, no senior official from the Government joined the team. Of course, the National Co-ordinator and the Secretary of the Project were with the evaluation team to provide details and relevant information and it was revealed later that the National Co-ordinator was also the designated representative of the Government of Sri Lanka.

Field visits

25. The evaluation team visited the following sites of the Project:

The Mahailluppalama Centre

26. Although it was decided in 1985 to make the Centre a permanent base for MCR - with plans for renovation and extension of the building to house a studio, training units, laboratory and library - it was discouraging to find an unfinished building and empty rooms (as equipment and tapes, etc. were moved to a nearby regional centre of SLBC in Anuradhapura, for security reasons); and a staff of four, demoralized and seeking assistance, encouragement and advice. In spite of the difficulties, the MCR staff is operating, sporadically, in liaison with the regional SLBC station in Anuradhapura where some of the MCR equipment is located temporarily.

27. The construction of the building, an annex to the original Maharaja Lodge, to accommodate radio production studios, laboratory research and seminar rooms, was at a standstill due to legal technicalities, but was expedited after the intervention of a senior official of the Government at the request of the evaluation mission.

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Photo 3 - GCR Community Radio

Since Guirandurokotte Community Radio has an extremely small team of five, they have developed a strong volunteer group, trained them in various radio operations and have integrated them with the regular GCR team. A young lady volunteer (one of twenty!) has been assigned the responsibility of switching on the transmitter and providing the sign-on announcement. Others produce programmes and perform editng jobs, as well as feedback research.

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28. Guirandurokotte Community Radio was established in April 1986, after test transmission which commenced in October 1985. Setting up the station was sponsored by the Mahaweli Authority and the EEC. About 60 villages are reached by this service directly by the Mobile Team and other 30 villages in the surrounding regions benefit from the MCR programmes.

29. The evaluation team met the three producers, two technicians and four of the volunteers, who are all highly motivated and dynamic. A conducted tour of the equipment and 'School-on-the-Air' was organized and the mission was shown how the inventories are kept up to date and what revenue is being generated as a non­profit sponsorship programme, to air ^advertisements and announcements to gain some revenue and attract more listeners.

30. 'School-on-the-Air' is an attempt to utilize community radio to fill a void in knowledge and formal education in the listener communities. The programmes were structured in five areas of interest, viz, farming, health, applied science, English and a Quiz Programme. About four to six hundred letters are received by GCR in a month, with queries on specific topics or sharing of experiences.

31. The MCR Monitoring Board was created in 1985 to formalize the favourable and co-operative relations that developed between the MCR Project and the Mähaweli Authorities both at the ministerial level and in the field. Its main role is not only to monitor MCR activities but also to develop areas of co-operation between the MASL and MCR. It is this co-operation that resulted in the joint sponsoring of the Guirandurokotte FM station.

32. A cultural evening was also organized at another occasion and the entire village community participated with enthusiasm and performance of high calibre. Such occasions help to unearth new artistic talents in the village and give youth the opportunity to be creative and not lethargic. It is also used as a forum to carry development messages to the village using other folk media such as dance and drama. Some of the traditional cultural music and songs collected at these cultural evenings are classified and brought out as research material.

33. MCR programme service in the Kandy Community Radio was established in 1985 with access to a lot of supporting facilities at the regional SLBC station in Kandy. The members of the MCR produce programmes here and the evaluation team was informed of the proposed expansion by SLBC in the near future.

34. The Kotmale experience. The evaluation team's next visit was to the Kotmale Community Radio, which was launched early in 1989. This joint venture had the Mahaweli Authorities' (MASL) contribution of Rs2 lakhs, while UNDP/Unesco provided training, the Republic of Korea has donated sophisticated equipment for the use of the MCR team. The project tape recorders, transmitters, etc., are still being utilized by the MCR team to

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reach the villagers. The MCR programmes reach an area of 50 sq. miles and the enthusiasm among the producers and villagers is ongoing, in spite of the disturbances.

35. The status on the following community radio units was provided, but due to the lack of sufficient time, it was not possible to visit the sites:

Ruhuna Sevaya (Matara) Community Radio Unit was established in 1985, and was progressing satisfactorily till it was affected by the disturbances on .29 July 1987, when the Regional Station was burnt down. The Unit lost its Mobile Console in the fire. However, the MCR jeep and personnel who were in the field at that time were unharmed. Despite the damage, the Community Radio Unit attached to this Regional Station in the South, has maintained its programme service with commendable effort, and continuity, with the support of the listeners.

Welikande and Suriyawewa. These two community radio stations were included in the MCR Project and were to be located in Mahaweli System 'B' and Walawe Special Area. Progress on these two stations has been delayed due to the security situation; and, although a Tamil programme production team was included in the general plan of activities, it has not been set up due to constraints prevailing in the country.

36. Again, due to lack of time, a video documentary film 'Barefoot Radio' on the Mahaweli Community Radio, along with the video film of the Regional Seminar on the Workshop on MCR held in 1987, at Kandy, could not be viewed.

37. Another video documentary was undertaken at the final evaluation by the local 'Precision Productions Ltd1. This will provide information on the programme and its impact on villagers.

The MCR Approach

38. The daily 'One-hour rural programme belt', a many faceted programme allows for short lectures on various subjects, dialogues, village features, news, and folklore programmes. It provides information on education, agriculture, primary health care, marketing, storing and preservation. This programme integrates seven short programmes that are generally produced in the villages.

39. Further new programmes were introduced in 1985 following the first evaluation study carried out in 1984 (by Audience Research Division). However, recently, due to the security situation, the programme is experiencing a major setback which has affected field recordings and visits to the villages.

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40. MCR has innovated a mobile-console to facilitate technical aspects in the implementation of the MCR concept and the programme producers are trained in the basic technical know-how in operational techniques and to participate and contribute to programme material. This approach has helped to strengthen the team spirit which is vital in the implementation of the MCR concept.

41. The Community Radio programmes are transmitted on both FM and AM. However, as many settlers do not own FM receiving sets plans to promote a home-assembly industry of FM radios was proposed to the relevant government ministry. Due to unstable conditions and lack of counterpart resources, this activity has been dropped.

Collection of Folklore and Traditional Music

42. A most beneficial spin-off has been the collection on audio­tape of the folklore and traditional music of the regions visited by the MCR teams. It is remarkable that in the movement of the settlers from one area to another, they have brought with them the remembrances and cultural nuances of their homelands now submerged under the reservoirs. The new settlement areas now show a blend of cultural traditions and several examples of modern music based on traditional airs.

43. This work has been organized by the musicologist consultant from SLBC who prepared a handbook on the subject for the MCR producers.

Pre-tripartite meeting

44. On 2 February 1990, a meeting was held with the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and the senior officials of SLBC. The Minister expressed great interest and support for the project and this is strongly reflected in his decision to appoint a 'working committee' to oversee the follow-up and institutionalization of the MCR concept.

The final tripartite meeting

45. The final tripartite review followed the meeting with the Minister of State for Information, a detailed account of which is provided in the report of the TPR (see Annex I) , with specific decisions and recommendations for the follow-up action during the final phase of the project and after its termination, taking the national context into account. In formulating institution-building projects, clear specification of indicators for assessing progress in sustainability is necessary. Although short-term priorities are well spelled out, the long-term needs of achieving institutional effectiveness require reflection and action from the Government of Sri Lanka, with further technical assistance and advice from Unesco/UNDP.

18

y/

"*^*n.-^à

Photo ^ - Kandy FM simulcast

At the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation regional station in Kandy, four Mahaweli Community Radio staff are integrated with the regular operations. They are responsible for the one-hour farm belt programme which is aired daily. A lady technician (above) shows the technical operations rack. Pro­grammes are transmitted on Medium Wave, and also on FM using the Unesco/Mallard 100 Watt transmitter.

19

IV OVERALL ASSESSMENT

46. Phase III of the project was due to be completed in December 1988. However, due to the major civil disturbances in the country, the project was extended to 1989 and later it was proposed that this be extended to the end of 1990 (within the budget ceiling approved for Phase III).

Technical observations of the Unesco Engineering Consultant

FM transmission

47. The 10 Watt and 100 Watt FM transmitters provided by Unesco and assembled by SLBC technicians have proved to be an effective and economical means of broadcasting to areas of the size required by community radio systems. On the whole, however, they have only been used to a limited extent so far. The Guirandurokotte station is the only site employing this complete technology successfully.

48. One of the Unesco 100 Watt transmitters is now being used to broadcast the national service from Kandy. This is outside the scope of community radio projects, although it indicates that the equipment is satisfactory. But it is still not yet being employed to the extent envisaged by the overall plans for community radio.

49. Part of this slowness to be accepted can be attributed to the inherent novelty of the techniques employed, which takes time to be accepted by traditionally-minded engineers. It may also be partly due to the reluctance to place transmitters in exposed sites during a time of national unrest. The view of transmitter sites as well-protected central locations is more acceptable in troubled times than dispersed local facilities which cannot be supervised.

Innovation by MCR Technical Staff

50. The nucleus of technicians who were originally assigned on a semi-permanent basis to the MCR Centre when it was at Kandy in 1981 showed a high degree of motivation and creativity. When the Unesco FM equipment was still being developed, the MCR technicians made a substantial contribution. In this work there was a very positive attitude of improvisation and innovation. For instance, the technicians who participated in the design of the 100 Watt power amplifier went on to design improvements and special antennas for it. When one unit was damaged they even used the remaining parts to re-design it as a smaller amplifier.

51. The portable recording consoles which they assembled were a true piece of appropriate technology which deserves to have applications far beyond the confines of Sri Lanka. But this type of work seems to have stopped since the technicians involved have

20

Photo 5 - Unesco Mallard FM Transmitter

In July of 1986, Guirandurokotte Community Radio was inaugura­ted by the President of the Republic, as the first FM commu­nity station in the country. The MCR technician shows the reading of the power meter of the 10 watt transmitter and 100 watt amplifier designed by Mallard Concepts under Unesco contract, and assembled by the MCR technicians themselves. The equipment has been in continuous operation since 1986

without any fault or interruption, with the exception of one week during the civil disturbances in 1989.

21

been re-assigned to work outside the MCR projects. Much valuable training is now wasted because the men who received it are no longer associated with community radio.

Solar FM Receivers

52. The single-chip FM receiver designs which were introduced can be considered a success on a technical level, but they have still not been exploited on a large scale. They are quite clearly taken seriously as a good method of converting the large number of AM-only sets in the country to AM/FM operation. This is going to be a necessary part of the strategy for all broadcasting in the country to progressively change to FM. SLBC as a national service organization does not have the relevant experience to promote the manufacture of these designs on a commercial basis, and it remains an open question as to how they should be exploited.

Electronic Data Transfer

53. One electronic mailbox has been in regular use at the national headquarters of MCR for three years. It has been a useful and cost-effective method of exchanging reports containing time-critical information with Unesco Paris. The plans to link the Colombo office with Mahailluppalama were delayed until recently by the non-availability of a telephone line there. Since this problem has now been solved and a second computer has been provided, there is no reason why this link should not be put into operation.

Specific observations concerning project sites

Maha i1luppa1ama

54. This centre has still not become properly established. There are many reasons for this, not least of which was the security situation, but that can only be part of the story. The serious difficulties with transport and accommodation have made it an unpopular place for technicians to work, and this has had a progressive effect upon the morale of the producers as well. There has not yet emerged any of the spirit of innovation and sense of pride in their work which was common in the early days of the project at Kandy.

Guirandurokotte

55. This community radio station is the current success story of the project. All of the equipment is well-maintained and operational. The station is dependent on a single Unesco 100 Watt FM transmitter for the link to its AM transmitter in Mahiyangana as well as direct transmission. There is an urgent need for a standby transmitter here. The achievements of this station must be attributed in part to its relative independence.

22

It is being run as a self-contained operation by a strongly motivated team, and has remained unaffected by disturbances in the area because it is perceived as a positive benefit to the community by all shades of political opinion. There is a fundamental lesson to be gained from this experience for all the other local radio projects. They should be truly locally based and integrated with the community.

KQtmals

56. This station has yet to be fully established, but it promises to be the best equipped of all due to the fortuitous donation of equipment by the Republic of Korea. The contrast with the other sites visited was stunning.

specific observations on the technical operations

Th? organisation of technical staff

57. The biggest lesson learnt in the whole project so far as the technicians are concerned is that they must be considered to be part of the community radio team and not just a general service to be called upon. The profound difference in attitude between the programme producers and the technicians can be attributed to the fact that the producers have a clear sense of purpose and commitment to the project. The technicians on the other hand have been regarded as a pooled resource, shared with the other needs of the national services. They should be permanently allocated to specific duties within the community radio project, and placed under the direct authority of the national co­ordinator.

The centre?l of project equipment

58. There are several simple measures which could be employed to ensure that equipment supplied for one specific project is recognized as such. It should be conspicuously and indelibly marked with an asset number which is recorded in a project inventory.

Combining of roles

59. There is a bigger issue which should be raised as a result of the obvious contrast between producers and technicians in this project. It is whether their duties should not in some way be combined. The level of technical knowledge required to handle front-line maintenance of tape recorders and simple audio equipment is well within the possibilities of a short training course for interested producers. The requirements of field production are for rounded and committed individuals with a broad range of relevant skills. This is quite a different situation from the normal structure of a national broadcasting service.

23

Specific observations by the DANIDA consultant

60. The MCR concept is built on the experiences of a Danish media-experiment: The Baandvaerkstedet, The Tape Workshop - a public access programme division of Radio Denmark. The Danish approach was adapted to suit the specific needs of a rural community radio service suitable to the conditions in Sri Lanka.

61. Transferring a successful concept from a developed country to developing countries has not always proved appropriate, but in the case of MCR it has turned out to be a success story.

62. Three important factors have contributed to the success:

i) Highly motivated production staff involved in the proj ect.

ii) Appropriate technology:

The equipment donated to the project has been carefully selected to serve its purpose in rural broadcasting. To use a parallel from the car industry, what is needed in rural broadcasting is a jeep and not a Rolls Royce. The MCR project has avoided the classic mistakes of other development projects where too sophisticated equipment has been donated - equipment which is difficult to maintain and repair.

iii) The strong positions held by the Unesco experts attached to the project at the initial stages (1981-86) . The experts had direct access to executive bodies above the SLBC and were not subservient to SLBC management.

63. From the outset of the project it seemed expedient that SLBC was the host of MCR, but as the project has progressed and expanded through stages I, II and III it has become clear that the MCR concept is too different from the traditional centre -oriented approach to broadcasting of SLBC and other large broadcasting organizations in the world. This difference in approach and philosophy to rural radio communication has over the years created frictions between SLBC management and the MCR project.

64. Frictions have arisen from disagreement on the use of donated equipment for the MCR project, e.g., vehicles which are essential for the field trips have been reallocated for other use.

65. Staff of the MCR have derived an additional income for visits to the villages to compensate for the hardships in the villages (about 30% of their monthly income) . The necessity for this incentive has not been understood by the SLBC management. On the whole SLBC has on several accounts found the MCR approach too 'costly'.

24

66. While the staff of the programme-side of MCR has been highly motivated, this has not always been the case of the technical side. The technicians refer to the SLBC centre in Colombo and this has in some instances led to lack of co-operation in the field.

67. A large organization like SLBC has many concerns of which MCR has only been a small part, but to make MCR sustainable it has been realized by all parties involved in the project that MCR is better served by the creation of an independent institution, a Community Communication Centre. To have observed the work of MCR in the field has been a heartening experience. The attitude of the production staff towards the rural people is respectful and empathetic. The broadcasters who work with MCR have come to realize their own potential as catalysts in development.

68. And there is no doubt that the people in the Mahaweli area who listen to and participate in the programmes of MCR/GCR see the MCR/GCR as THEIR radio. Hundreds of letters sent every week from the listeners testify to that.

Observations of the representative of the Unesco Evaluation unit

Impact on settlers/villagers in the Mahaweli area

69. With the project duration of almost ten years and the overall funding of $1.2 million, the previous surveys and current field visits have indicated that, on the whole, the Mahaweli Community Radio Project (MCR) has been a great success from the qualitative point of view of its impact on the settlers, the Mahaweli authorities and the development workers.

70. Although the MCR was inaugurated in 1981 as a single-phase experiment of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation with assistance from Unesco and DANIDA, the project has evolved considerably and moved into its second and third phase as a demonstration of enthusiasm that was generated initially by the Uhesco/DANIDA team and which still prevails among the MCR team, i.e. the producers, volunteers, villagers and the development workers alike.

71. Various surveys and evaluation reports reviewed and current interviews with the producers, volunteers and villagers, indicate that within and despite the socio-cultural limitations, the MCR project has created a tremendous impact and contributed towards changing peoples' attitude and producers regarding development activities. There is constant interaction between the villagers, the MCR team and Mahaweli development workers to enable the settlers and villagers to improve the living conditions in their community through a two-way communication process. This is the direct participation of the people in the planning, recording and editing of the programmes, in their presence, in the village, by

25

W m-ù,.. Û

^ ^ ¡ ï

Photo 6 - The faults of human monkeys!

The Street Theatre Group also tries to show human faults and qualities through humour. Here some forest monkeys make fun of human monkeys - who have no tails, and eat with spoons and forks, and walk on two legs. In isolated villages, many without electricity, the Street Drama is often the only form of entertainment.

26

specially trained teams of producers sharing the rural way of life. These programmes are updated through a built-in research and 'feed-in1 and • feed-forward' process by the listeners through letters and spot-cassette-recordings in the villages, on topics of relevant concern to them i.e. market news, building of infrastructures, sanitation and information on income generating activities.

72. The cultural shows, street dramas, along with community development programmes, have helped villagers to maintain their national cultural identity and brought the Mahaweli development workers, the MCR team and villagers together as partners in community development.

Impact on women and the environment

73. Due to the irrigation schemes and MASL rural community development projects and the MCR programmes on conservation of the environment, anti-littering, hygiene and sanitation, the living conditions of the villagers have improved along with the evidence of scenic green belts throughout the route. The women are both contributors (as co-producers or trained volunteers for the MCR programmes) and beneficiaries of the Community Radio programme on self-education, family planning and health-care, etc. There was a feeling of harmony and participation among those interviewed, both men and women, and an element of recognition - where a producer at Kotmale made reference and gave credit to his wife who is a co-producer of the programmes. The volunteers get the same pay without any discrepencies as a gender-issue.

The unexpected impact

Adaptation of the MCR approach

74. Previous surveys have indicated that, in Bangladesh, the MCR experience was used to develop and integrate the rural development project in the Noakhali District. Bhutan, being a very small landlocked country with few resources, sees no difference between the national and community broadcasting. However, Bhutan Broadcasting Service is initiating an integrated radio project that will incorporate many of the programming suggestions and mechanisms of MCR, adapted to their environment and resources.

75. The AMIC study also highlights that participants at the Unesco-SLBC Seminar-workshop on Community Radio in 1987 expressed positive response to the idea of transferring the MCR concept into another setting. The participants from India, Pakistan and Malaysia, with their large broadcasting organizations, might use community stations to better serve the purposes of development broadcasting in ways which may not be possible with single national transmitters.

27

Further proposals for Community Radio

76. The success of the MCR as an effective mode of communication has generated interest and a multiplier effect with several inquiries and requests for the development of more local community radio stations are being made by development agencies in Sri Lanka as well as by other international and bilateral agencies.

77. The Republic of Korea has already donated equipment for three local stations in Mahaweli regions; the European Economic Community has supported financially and in kind the community station in Guirandurokotte. Further requests have been received from the University of Peradeniya (for a campus radio), and the possibility of developing a community radio in the north eastern province with the assistance of NORAD.

78. These examples indicate that there is a growing interest and need for community radio, but that it must be co-ordinated and kept faithful to the original rural communication philosophy, such as is the case in MCR, if these future stations are to succeed.

V. RECOMMENDATIONS

79. The recommendations as formulated by the Evaluation Team are reflected in the decisions contained in the report of the Final Tripartite Review of the Project.

80. The Unesco Evaluation Unit further proposes the following:

the planning and monitoring unit for MASL should provide regular performance data and status reports to the government ministries and the bilateral and international donor agencies. The current reference to the MCR programmes is very brief. This feedback should be adequately developed in the immediate future, for concrete and systematic data provision to concerned ministries and donor agencies alike.

81. Whereas the project has evolved and had such a tremendous impact on the socio-cultural and economic well-being of a community, it is important that this be sustained with effective follow-up by all concerned after the project completion and external assistance has come to an end.

Positive reaction of the Government

8 2. The senior government officials in Colombo are very much aware that in spite of the local disturbances, the MCR team has managed to maintain the services on the air and that the villagers are very supportive of this; that the type of broad-

28

casting by MCR complements and assists other activities being promoted by the Mahaweli authorities.

83. The importance accorded by the very high officials to the final review of the MCR project by Unesco/DANIDA further confirms the Government's policy with regard to the MCR approach to broadcasting.

84. During the final review, the Unesco/DANIDA team was assured of the preliminary measures to establish an autonomous rural community communication centre in the national context by :

(a) giving the final accord for the completion of the construction work at the Mahailluppalama Centre (commenced in 1989 and disrupted later);

(b) establishing a 'working-committee1 to oversee the preparatory work necessary for procuring the Cabinet decisions, appropriate funding and developing overall procedures for the involvement and approval of the right ministries for the sustainability of the concept of MCR in the interest of the national socio-economic development;

(c) discussing measures for the effective follow-up and the sustainability of the project results through updating the delivery services according to the changing needs of the community with Unesco/UNDP providing technical backstopping.

Effective interaction and co-operation between Unesco and UNDP

85. Sri Lanka, where Unesco has no field representative nor a resident expert to monitor the progress, the interaction between UNDP and Unesco - with UNDP effectively following-up through necessary administrative action and field review visits and feedback - is an example of positive interagency co-ordination and co-operation that should be considered and adopted in other countries having a similar set-up.

29

ANNEX I

Unesco - Danida

REPORT OF THE TRIPARTITE REVIEW OF THE UNESCO/DANIDA PROJECT MAHAWELI COMMUNITY RADIO

Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation Colombo, Sri Lanka 2 February 1990

I. INTRODUCTION

1. The Tripartite Review began on 29 January with a series of meetings, first with the Hon. Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, the Secretary of the Ministry, the Chairman and Director General of Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, Deputy Director for Finance and Administration of SLBC, the National Coordinator of the Project Mahaweli Community Radio, the Project Secretary. This meeting set the tone for the review work and provided the general canvas of government policies and decisions, particularly as concerns the eventual institutionalization of the project under the proposed Community Communication Centre.

2. This was followed by a separate meeting with the Hon. Minister of Lands, Irrigation, Mahaweli Development and the Upliftment of the Kandyan Peasant, and the Secretary of this Ministry. This encounter was extremely important as it occasioned the renewed pledge of this Ministry to support all community radio stations in the Mahaweli region through the procurement of land, provision of buildings and equipment. In addition, within the funds available. some of the recurrent operational costs of the stations would also be borne by the Ministry for defined periods of time.

30

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

II. FIELD VISITS

3. From 30 January to 1 February, the Tripartite mission visited selected sites of the project:

The principal project office in Mahailluppalama which also lodges the studio complex, research and training facilities.

The regional SLBC station in Anuradjapura where MCR teams work in liaison with the Mahailluppalama- complex.

The regional SLBC station in Kandy where members of the MCR are posted to produce rural programmes.

The community station of Guirandurokotte which is an autonomous community station run entirely by MCR.

The community station of Kotmale, also an autonomous station run by MCR.

4. There was insufficient time to visit the last regional station in Matara (in the south), where another small team of MCR producers and technicians have been placed for integration in the that regional station's work. An office is also maintained at SLBC for liaison with the network and officials of the Corporation.

III. PRELIMINARY MEETING

5. On 2 February, the Tripartite Review was held in two parts. A first meeting was held with the Hon. Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, the Secretary of the Ministry, the Chairman and Director General of SLBC, the Deputy Director General for Finance and Administration of SLBC, the National Project Coordinator, the Project Secretary. This meeting, held at the Ministry of State reviewed proposal for the creation of a Community Com­munication Centre in order to arrive at decisions concerning its institutional structure and operation. The propositions have been formulated for formal acceptance by the Tripartite review and are recapitulated as part of Section V, Decisions of the Tripartite Review.

6. The Minister of State expressed his deep interest in the new Community Communication Centre and agreed to oversee the working group to be designated in order to carry out the

31

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

work required. He gave instructions to clear the contract for the building works at Mahailluppalama and requested that the Secretary of the Ministry should formulate propositions for the new Centre into a legal document for enactment.

IV. THE TRIPARTITE MEETING

7. The formal Tripartite review was held on 2 February at Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. The Review was chaired by the Secretary of State for Information and Broadcasting, Mr Sumanasekera Banda. Present were Mr M. Kahane, Resident Representative of UNDP; Dr Asoka Kasturiarchachi, Programme Officer, UNDP; Mrs C. Aniarasekera, Additional Director External resources Department; Mrs S. Sumanasekera, Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs and Information; Mr Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator of the project: Mrs Agnes Mendis, Secretary of the Project; Mr Martin Allard, Unesco consultant in electronic and broadcast engineering; Ms Karen-lis Svarre, representative of Danida; Mr Carlos A.Arnaldo, Unesco Field Project Officer; Ms Mehir Ashraf, Unesco Central Evaluation Unit.

8. The Chairman opened the meeting by welcoming the members of the Tripartite Review; the agenda was approved with a slight modification.

Presentation of the Project

9. Mr Hilton Pereira presented the latest status of the project, stressing particularly the difficulties in con­tinuing production and programming in all regional and community stations because of the civil disturbances which forced a closedown of some regional stations and most field activities of the project during a greater part of 1989. The regional station of Matara was burned, though the Mahaweli Community Radio jeep and mobile equipment were spared. Only the Guirandurokotte station was able to maintain continuous operations except for one week in July 1989.

10. For security reasons, the equipment of Mahaillup­palama was transferred to the Anuradjapura regional station and operations were continued from there. The proposed stations in Welikanda and Suriyawewa were not established because of the civil disturbances in those regions. Similarly, for these and some administrative delays, the construction work on Mahailluppalama studio complex was stopped after the walls were constructed.

32

ANNEX I (Confñ)

11. The Mahaweli Authority has maintained continued support to the community stations and handed over to MCR a consignment of equipment valued at $ 368,091 for three community stations. This equipment donated by the Government of the Republic of Korea is now kept at the Kotmale station, which was set up at the beginning of 1989 and had made test transmissions in preparation for regular broadcasting.

12. It had been planned that MCR together with the Asia Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) co-organize a regional workshop on community radio. Because of the civil disturbance, the participation of MCR had to be cancelled and AIBD held this workshop on their own, with the participation of the National Coordinator. The workshop was well attended by broadcasters from the region and the experiments strongly recommended for application in various Asian countries, particularly Bhutan, India, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia. Internationally, the project has come to be well known both in Sri Lanka and in the Asian region.

13. There have been a number of requests for assistance to set up new stations: in Batticaloa, vith the assistance of NORAD; in Kurunegala; at a site to be selected in System B, with the assistance of CIDA; and a campus community station at the University of Peradeniya, Kandy.

14. In closing, the National Coordinator paid tribute to Mr E.S.T. Fernando, the previous National Coordinator for his innovative work in community radio. He stressed the need of continuing the project until the end of 1990 (using only the funds in trust already deposited) so that all activities could be implemented and the proper institutional structure be well placed to continue the work after DANIDA/Unesco financing has ceased.

Achievements and Impact

15. The National Coordinator, assisted by the Field Project Officer reviewed the achievements and impact of the project as measured against the objectives of Phase III.

A. Continuation and strengthening of the insti­tutional framework of MCR as an autonomous programme service within the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation; strengthening of the links with SLBC, MASL and related rural development and broadcasting organizations.

33

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

16. Up to now MCR has been established as a programme service of SLBC by an executive decision of the Board of Directors of Sri Lanka in 1985. Since then, preparations have been made for a Ministerial decision to create a Community Communication Centre which shall be the new institution to carry on the work of the project. These were finalized at .a meeting held just before the Review meeting; the Secretary of State for Information and Broadcasting will prepare the legal papers to enact this Ministerial decision. The Additional Director of External Resources suggested that if the Centre were to be an inter-ministerial activity and susceptible of being financed by several ministries, this would entail a Cabinet level decision.

17. The MCR Monitoring Board which has been inactive during the 1989 civil disturbances will be reconvened to follow up the decisions of this tripartite review. MCR has cooperated with the Asia Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) on community radio courses, and with the Association Mondiale des Radio Communautaires (AMARC). It is expected to maintain and strengthen these links in the future.

B. Continuation and improvement of in-depth research, particularly on the impact of MCR pro­grammes; reproduction of resumes of basic findings.

18. Research has been ongoing as feedback analysis under­taken by SLBC or independent research groups; producers have also been trained to analyze feedback letters and readjust programmes in conformity with the aspirations of the listeners. The organization of listeners' clubs has resulted in the regular sending of feedback information on cassettes to the MCR producers. In 1987 MCR cooperated with the Asian Mass Communication Research and Documentation Centre (AMIC in Singapore for a summative research on MCR as a whole. This has been published by AMIC. It would be useful in future to foresee a staff post of Director of Research to ensure continuity in this important field of work; facilities should also be provided for cataloguing and documentation, possibly micro-computers.

C. Continuation and consolidation of integrated rural broadcasting training within the framework of the SLBC training programmes and rural training programmes of the Agricultural Training Institute, including middle management and a regional seminar on MCR techniques.

19. Cooperation on training courses with SLBC and the Agricultural Training Institute has been less than expected. On the other hand, MCR organized a regional workshop on community radio in 1987, and participated in the AIBD

34

ANNEX I (Cont'd!

regional course in 1989. Plans are being made for a third regional course in 1990, within the funds available. MCR has sent trainees to Chiengmai Hilltribes station in Thailand, ESCAP seminar on farm broadcasting in Bangkok, AIBD radio production course in Kuala Lumpur, study tour for six MCR producers to visit radio and research institutions in the Philippines, participation in the AMARC assemblies in Vancouver and Nicaragua. When the new Communication Centre is set in operation, it would be beneficial to provide a staff post for the Director of Training.

D. 3uilding up of research and documentation facilities, including methods for classifying and retrieving information on villages, especially tapes on music and folklore.

20. Work has been continuous in this field, with the help of two international consultants and the SLBC musicologist Mr C. de S. Kulatillake. All music tapes have been identified and classified. Shelving, cabinets and filing trays should also be provided for facile access to these documents. A proper reference library should be foreseen in the new annex of the Communication Centre. Efforts should also be focussed on preparing music tapes for sale and distribution, and the revival of 'music bars.1 A full time documentalist should be foreseen for the new Centre.

E. Consolidation of production techniques in cooperation with the Anuradjapura regional station and other regional stations where MCR personnel will be assigned.

21. MCR teams have been integrated into the stations of Anuradjapura, Kandy and Matara. Integration has been generally smooth, with the teams working on the rural belt programmes Cone hour daily). Because of the civil disturbances, operations have been cut back. Once they are set in motion again, there will be need of- reassignment of jeeps and recording equipment. The Mahailluppalama Centre, however, needs a strong technical team directly under the Controller, particularly when the new Centre will be completed.

F. Experimentation with new forms of community communication including the setting up of three additional local FM stations in selected valleys of the Mahaweii region.

22. The first station was established in Guiranduro-kotte in 1986 and was inaugurated by the President of the Republic; the Unesco/Mallard FM transmitters has been in operation without interruption or major fault since then. A

35

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

second station was established in 1989 in Kotmale (where the very first MCR programmes were produced) and continuous programming will commence after test transmissions next month. Further expansion of community stations was stopped because of the civil disturbances, but plans are completed for Welikanda (this area is part Sinhala and part Tamil and abuts the Tamil province) and Suriyawewa. The Welikanda station will be the first to programme in both Sinhala and Tamil and will be the test case for an eventual station in Batticoloa and/or Trincomalee, Several other requests have also been received for community stations. MCR also began a small newsletter for the Asian region, which should be continued, funds permitting. These requests for and offers of assistance, and the general trend worldwide to shift to FM transmission have brought out the need to coordinate inter­national assistance in this field, in order to avoid overlap and ensure standardization of equipment and operations for all community stations..

Observations by the Evaluation Team

the Danida Representative

23. From the field visits and from a review of the feed­back mail received at various stations, it is evident that the people consider Mahaweli Community Radio as their radio, the people's radio. For many it has become a sort of ombudsman, a voice of the people which can reach decision­makers concerning, rural problems: roads, food, water and basic services. This was particularly true of the local stations in Guirandurokotte and Kotmale which also appear to be the future model for community radio in Sri Lanka.

24. To ensure a successful community radio, it is necessary to have all the necessary equipment and vehicles available for operations at all times for each station.' While it is understandable that during the civil distur­bances, some curtailment's in the movement of vehicles and activities in the field had to be imposed, it is strongly urged that all equipment be available for operations always. An inventory should be prepared showing location, status and use of all items purchased by the project. It is also important to complete the studio complex at Mahailluppalama, now some four years delayed, as this is to be the base for all training and research activities. The recent initiatives of the Ministry in this direction are greatly appreciated.

24. In view of the number of new proposals for community radio in Sri Lanka, it is becoming even more urgent to coordinate international assistance in this domain. This is not only to ensure compatibility of equipment and to facilitate training and maintenance, more important, it is

36

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

to guarantee that the new stations are set up in conformity with the basic philosophy of rural communication already clearly demonstrated by the Mahaweli Community Radio. We see this role of coordination being performed at present by the Mahaweli Community Radio, and later by the new Community Communication Centre.

Unesco Central Evaluation.

Z5- The broad objectives of the project from the point of view of training, equipment, study tours and the holding of local and regional seminars have been attained.

26. Although the Mahaweli Community Radio was inaugurated in 1981 as a single-phase experiment of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation with assistance from Unesco and Danida, the project has evolved considerably and moved into its second and third phase as a demonstration of enthusiasm that was generated initially by the Unesco/Danida team and which still prevails among the MCR team, the producers, technicians, volunteers, villagers and the development workers alike.

27. The success of MCR as an effective mode of com­munication has generated interest and evoked a multiplier effect with inquiries and requests for more community radio stations being made by development agencies in Sri Lanka and international and bilateral aid agencies, such as NORAD and CIDA. A prime example of this is the Kotmale Community Radio which was launched early in 1989. This joint venture comprised a contribution of Rs 200,000 from the Mahaweli Authority for land, building and some recurrent costs; and sophisticated production and transmission equipment from the Government of the Republic of Korea. The MCR team also uses the portable recording equipment of the Unesco/Danida project to. reach the villagers.

28. Whereas the project has evolved and had such a tre­mendous impact on the socio-cultural and economic well-being of a community, it is important that this be sustained with effective follow-up by all concerned after the project is completed and external assistance has come to an end.

29. The importance accorded by the very high officials to the final review of the MCR project by Unesco/Danida, further confirms the Government's interest with regard to the MCR approach to broadcasting through:

a. the Government discussing in depth the preliminary measures to establish an autonomous rural Community Communication Centre in the national context;

37

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

b. giving the final accord for the completion of the construction work at the Mahailluppalama Centre;

c. proposing mechanisms for the establishment of a working group to oversee the preparatory work necessary for procuring the required government decisions, appropriate funding and developing overall procedures for the involvement and approval of the right ministries for the sustainability of the concept of MCR in the interest of the national socio­economic development.

30. In Sri Lanka, where Unesco has no field representa­tive nor a resident expert to monitor the progress, the interaction between UNDP and Unesco is an example of positive inter-agency cooperation.

31. There is need for an ex-post evaluation, in co­operation with the Government, in order to determine the effectiveness and impact of the project; this would also provide a process of accountability by Unesco to Member States regarding the lasting results of their assistance as partners in development.

38

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

V. DECISIONS OF THE TRIPARTITE REVIEW

2ff. Ln. accordance with agreements previously reached with officials of the Ministry of State for Information and Broadcasting, and in the context of the findings of the Tripartite Mission during the field visits, the following decisions were reached:

Institutionalization

A. There shall be created within the Ministry of State for Information and Broadcasting a new institution to be called the Community Communication Centre which shall be based at the Mahailluppalama facility. It shall be independent of SLBC, Rupavahini and ITN, though its work shall be coordinated with these bodies and related to the overall national objectives of the Ministry.

B. In the context of the national plans for devel­opment, the Centre shall have as its principal res­ponsibilities:

a. To develop, monitor and evaluate various forms of rural communication in support of social and economic development including the Mahaweli Community Radio and the Guirandurokotte Community Radio models;

b. To plan, develop and supervise community media projects in the country in conjunction with the development plans of the sectoral ministries, and to coordinate external assistance in this domain;

c. To provide full training facilities at the Maha­illuppalama complex and organize a training programme in the fields of rural communication, social change, economic development, communication strategies and related disciplines;

d. To provide a basic resource for research and documentation on village traditions and economy, to include rural communication, village folklore, traditional music, multi-media production, community radio, community newspapers, community video.

C. The Centre shall have a composite Board of Direc­tors for which the appropriate by-laws shall be created; this Board shall include at the appropriate levels:

i

39

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

Ministry of State for Information and Broadcasting Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation Rupavahini (National Television Network) Independent Television Network Ministry of Telecommunication Ministry of Lands, Irrigation, Mahaweli Development and

Upliftment of the Kandyan Peasant Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Cooperatives Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education Ministry of Rural and Small Industries Other development-related ministries or offices Communication Department of a suitable University

(Colombo, Peradeniya or other) the Arthur C. Clarke Centre a suitable research institution three senior citizens currently or previously involved

in rural and community broadcasting

D. The Community Communication Centre shall be financed from the National Budget for information and broadcasting for personnel and operational costs, but it shall also be enabled by law to receive donations from participating ministries and government offices or from external resources (international bilateral or multilateral assistance); it shall also be enabled to generate supple­mentary funds to maintain its operations and eventually be self-financing.

E. The Centre shall have its own staff appointed by the Ministry of State for Information and Broadcasting and these should include: Director-General, Director of Programmes, Director of Training and Research, Director of Technical Operations, Director of Administration and Finance; controllers, producers, technicians and support staff in the measure required to manage the whole operation including community stations,' outposted personnel and projects. Each community radio station shall have as a minimum one controller, two programme officers and one technician, plus support staff. Provision shall also.be made for covering stipends of volunteer workers.

F. All personnel, and particularly technicians, once seconded to Mahaweli Community Radio or to the new Community Communication Centre shall be under the responsibility of the National Coordinator and the respective controller of the community programme service or station.

40

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

Mechanisms for Follow-up

G. To oversee coordination of all actions required to establish the new institution, the Community Communication Centre, and to ensure a dynamic continuity of the present project and completion of all activities foreseen, a working group shall be established under the umbrella of the Ministry or the current MCR Monitoring Board shall be convened for this purpose.

H. The Secretary of the Ministry of State for Infor­mation and Broadcasting shall be responsible for preparing the necessary legal documents for enactment of the required ministerial decision; as appropriate he may be assisted by the working group or the Monitoring Board whose members may eventually be asborbed into the Board of Directors of the new Centre.

I. The Ministry shall support all action to ensure the completion of the Mahailluppalama studio complex and its full operation by 1 July 1990.

J. A complete inventory of all vehicles and non­expendable equipment shall be prepared and shall indicate the location, use and operational status of each item. This report shall be submitted to Unesco and Danida by 1 March 1990 to ensure that all donated equipment and vehciles are made available for continuous programme production and technical operations.

K. To ensure standardization and compatibility of all production and transmission equipment and in particular to maintain conformity with the basic philosophy of rural communication developed by the project, all propositions for supplementary donor assistance in this field shall be coordinated within the present project and the eventual Community Communication Centre. The Government shall theefore inform Unesco when such offers are made.

Role of the National Coordinator

L. In preparation for the termination of the project at the end of 1990, the National Project Coordinator shall:

i. maintain relations with AIBD, AMIC, AMARC and ensure representation of MCR at the AMARC IV assembly in Dublin 12 to 19 August 1990.

41

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

ii. within the funds available, organize a regional workshop on community radio in 1990 for selected broadcasters in the Asian region.

iii. in addition to the regular monthly and six-monthly reports, pay special attention to the preparation of the terminal report, to be submitted to Unesco by 1 September 1990.

iv. on the basis of plans already worked out, undertake the establishment of the next two community stations in Welikanda (for Sinhala and Tamil programmes) and Suriyawewa.

v. propose modalities for the creation of a small scale assembly of solar-powered FM radio sets and FM-band adaptors.

vi. build up the research and documentation facilities at the Mahailluppalama studio complex.

vii. prepare the inventory cited above and oversee the works to complete the studio complex at Mahailluppalama.

Role of Unesco and UNDP

M. Unesco and UNDP shall continue to provide technical advice and backstopping and shall see to it that all project inputs are provided. In cooperation with the Government, particular attention shall be paid to the coordination of donor assistance for related activities and projects.

CONCLUSION

29. The Resident Representative of UNDP stressed the need of integrating the work of this project within the national context in order to ensure permanent funding and long term sustainability. He cited the role of training, not merely for learning particular skills, but also for sharing the experiences of community radio with a broad range of professionals through periodic reviews and seminars. While appropriate equipment was important, maintenance too was necessary.

42

ANNEX I (Cont'd)

îff- In closing the Secretary of the State Ministry for Information and Broadcasting expressed his satisfaction that the project has demonstrated its value over ten years of operation and that it was now time to set up an autonomous, independent institution that can take over this work and continue its relations with national and international organizations. He renewed the Ministry's intentions to work am the required legal documents to create the new Centre. He cited the importance of community radio for keeping alive cultural traditions of the villagers while helping to improve socio-economic conditions. The new Centre should also explore the applications of other media to this work, particularly community newspapers and video.

date:

Signed on behalf of Unesco

date:

Signed on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka

Signed on behalf of Danida

date:

43

ANNEX II

List of Meetings and Participants

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING WITH HON. A.J, RANASINGHE. MINISTER OF STATE

FOR INFORMATION

AT SRI LANKA BROADCASTING CORPORATION 29 JANUARY 1990

1. Ministry of Information 1. Hon. A.J. Ranasinghe, Minister of Information

2. Mr. Sumanasekera Banda, Secretary Ministry of Information

2. SLBC 3. Mr. Hudson Samarsinghe, Chairman/DG

4. Mr. W.S. Berlin, Working Director

5. Mr. Asoka Colombage, DDG/Administration Programme

6. Mr. Hilton Perera, National Coordinator MCR Director News

7. Mr. Cyril Rajapakse, Director-Sinhala Service

8. Mr. Dayananda de Silva, Director, Current Affairs.

3. UNESCO/DANIDA MISSION 9. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

10. MB. Mehir Ashraf

11. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre

12. Mr. Martin Allard

4. Project Mr. Hilton Pereira,National Coordinator

13. Mrs. S.K. Mendis

44

ANNEX II (Cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING AT THE MAHAWELI MINISTRY WITH HON, P. DAYARATNE

MINISTER FOR LANDS. IRRIGATION AND MAHAWELI DEVELOPMENT

29 JANUARY 1990

I« Ministry of Lands, Irrigation

and Mahaveli Development 1. Hon. P. Dayaratne, Minister for Lands

Irrigation & Mahaweli Develpment

2. Mr. A.A. Wijetunge, Secretary, Ministry

of Lands, Irrigation & Mahaweli Development.

2. ÜNESCO/DANIDA MISSION 3. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

4. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

5. Ms. Karin-Lis- Svarre

6. Mr. Martin Allard

3. SLBC & PROJECT 7. Mr. Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator-MCR

4. Project. 8. Mrs. S.K. Mendis

45

ANNEX II fCont'd)

PARTICIPANTS - MEETING AT MCR CENTRE, MAHAILLUPPALAMA, 3 0 JANUARY 1990.

I. UNESCO/DANIDA MISSION 1. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

2. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

3. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre

4. Mr. Martin Allard

2. MCR/SLBC 5. Mr. Hilton Pereira,National Coordinator-MCR

MCR Mahailluppalama 6. Mr. Nandasiri Vithanage, Actg. Controller

7. Kolitha Mendis, Producer

8. Mr. B.G. Dayananda - Producer

9. Mr. Gamini Wijewardane - Producer

10. Mr. Athula Kodikara, Secretarial Assistant

11. Mr. P.R. Wimalasekare Banda, Minor Supervisor

12. Mr. J.H.P. Jayamaha, Driver

13. Mr. A.G. Wijesinghe, Driver

1A. Mr. R. Vengappuli, Labourer

Street Drama Troupe Mr. Gamini Wijewardane - Producer and Members of Street Drama Troupe Volunteers/Listeners etc)

Project. 15. Mrs. S.K. Mendis

3. Others Met

8ajarata sevaya (Regional service , Anuradhapura)

1. Mr. Aluthge, Director

Technical Staff 2. Mr. Udaya Ranasinghe, TA II 3. Mr. Kapilaratne, TA

4. Accompanied by Precision Productions Ltd - Ms. Sharmini Boyle STeam.

46

ANNEX II I cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING AT GUIRANDUROKOTTE COMMUNITY RADIO STATION

31 JANUARY 1990

lm UHESCO/DANIDA MISSION 1. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

2. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

3. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre

4. Mr. Martin Allard

2- UNDP

3. SLBC/MCR

5. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi

6. Mr. Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator

& Director News

GCR Station 7. Mr. Bandula Piyadasa - Controller

8. Mr. Upul Karunaratne - Snr. Producer

9. Weerasinghe Karunanayake - Producer

10. Mr. Kapila Gamage - Producer

11. Mr. Asoka Harison Peiris - Technical Assistant

Project. Mr. Hilton Pereira,National Coordinator-MCR

12. Mrs. S.K. Mendis

4. Others Met.

Mahaweli Officers

SYSTEM »C

13. Col. P. Pathirane - Resident Project Manager

14. Mr. Leo Nanayakkara- Asst. R.P.M.

15. Mr. S. Edirisinghe- Director Mahaweli

Cultural Unit

16. That Large Audience at Cultural Show Settlers from the area.

5. Accompanied by Precision Productions Ltd. - Ms. Sharmini Boyle & Video Team.

47

ANNEX II (Cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING - COMMUNITY RADIO UNIT. MAHANUWARA SEVAYA

REGIONAL STATION. KANDY 1 FEBRUARY 1990.

UNESCO/DANIDA MISSION 1. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo 2. Ms. Mehir Ashraf 3. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre 4. Mr. Martin Arnaldo

DNDP, COLOMBO

MCR/SLBC

Community Radio Unit

Regional Station

5. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi

6. Mr. Hilton Pereira,National Coordinator, MCR

7. Mr. Sugath Weerasinghe,

8. Ms. Nanda Rambukwella

9. Mr. Premalal Wijesinghe

10. Technical Staff of the Station on duty

at time of visit (11.00 a.m.)

Accompanied by Precision Productions Ltd. Ms. Sharmini Boyle & Video Team.

48

ANNEX II (Cont'd)

PARTICPANTS AT MEETING AT KOTMALE COMMUNITY RADIO STATION

BNESCO/DANIDA MISSION

1 FEBRUARY 19 9 0

1. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

2. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

3. Ms. Karin-Lis Savrre

4. Mr. Martin Allard.

ÜNDP, COLOMBO

MCR/SLBC

Kotmale Station

5. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi, Programme Officer

6. Mr. Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator-MCR

7. Mr. Sunil Wijesinghe - Producer

8. Mr. Sunil Abeysiri, Producer

9. Mr. Gunaratne, Driver

10. Mr. Weerakone, Labourer.

Project. 11. Mrs. S.K. Mendis.

49

ANNEX II Cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PERADENIYA. PERADENIYA

1 FEBRUARY 1990

(This was a follow-up of a brief Meeting with Mr. Carlos Arnaldo by

Vice-Chancellor, University of Peradeniya, Prof. Lakshman Jayatillake

on 28th, January 1990)

UNESCO/DANIDA MISSION !• Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

2» Ms. Mehir Ashraf

3. Ms. Karin - Lis Svarre

4. Mr. Martin Allard

UNDP, Colombo. 5. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi.

UNIVERSITY OF PERADENIYA 6. Dr. Sarath Seneviratne, Faculty of Engineeri

7. Dr. Ben Basnayake, Faculty of Agriculture &

Warden / Student welfare.

MCR/SLBC 8. Mr. Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator-MCR

Project 9. Mrs. S.K. Mendis.

50

ANNEX II (Cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT MEETING WITH HOW. A.J. RANASINGHE. MINISTER OF STATE

FOR INFORMATION

MINISTRY OF INFORMATION 2 FEBRUARY 1990

I. Ministry of Information 1. Hon. A.J. Ranasinghe, Minister of State for Information

2. Mr. Sumanasekera Banda, Secretary Ministry of Information.

3. Mrs. Lalani Peiris, Additional Secretary

Ministry of Information

2. UNDP A. Mr. Matthew Kahane, Resident Representative

5. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi - Programme Officer,

3. UNESCO MISSION 6. Mr. Carlos Arnaldo

7. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

8. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre

9. Mr. Martin Allard

4. SLBC. 10. Mr. Hudson Samarasinghe, Chairman/DG

11. Mr. Asoka Colombage, DDG/Administration & Programmes.

5. Project 12. Mrs. S.K. Mendis - Project Secretary.

51

ANNEX II (Cont'd)

PARTICIPANTS AT TRI-PARTITE REVIEW OF MAHAWELI COMMUNITY RADIO PROJECT

FIT/510/SRL/61

SRI LANKA BROADCASTING CORPORATION 2 FEBRUARY 19 90

1. UNESCO MISSION 1. Mr, Carlos Arnâldo

2. Ms. Mehir Ashraf

3. Ms. Karin-Lis Svarre

4. Mr. Martin Allard

2. UNDP 5. Mr. Matthew Kahane - Resident Representative

6. Dr. Asoka Kasturiarachchi- Programme Officer

3. Ministry of Information 7. Mr. S.J. Sumanasekera Banda - Secretary Ministry of Information

4. External Resources Department 8. Mrs. C. Amarasekara - Additional Director

External Resources Department

5. Ministry of Education 9. Mrs. S. Sumanasekera Cultural Affairs & Information

6. SLBC 10. Mr. Hilton Pereira, National Coordinator-MCR

7. Project 11. Mrs. S.K. Mendis