The Impact of the BBC World Service Trust’s Programme Afghan Woman’s Hour – Results from a National Survey in Afghanistan
BBC World Service Trust Research & Learning Group
Authors:
Researchers: Andy Bhanot, Head of Research – South Asia Emily LeRoux-Rutledge, Research Officer *
Head of Project: Safia Haleem
* This paper draws heavily on LeRoux-Rutledge, E. (2007). Afghan Women’s Hour: Psychological Empowerment Using a Mass Media Approach. Master’s dissertation, London School of Economics and Political Science.
1
CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...... 3
CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND ...... 6
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH OBJECTIVES & METHODOLOGY ...... 16
CHAPTER 3: LIFE IN AFGHANISTAN ...... 25
CHAPTER 4: MEDIA CONSUMPTION & HABITS ...... 32
CHAPTER 5: AWARENESS AND REACH ...... 40
CHAPTER 6: GENDER EQUALITY...... 48
CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSIONS ...... 62
CHAPTER 8: RECOMMENDATIONS...... 64
2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. Overall awareness of Afghan Woman’s Hour (AWH) in Afghanistan was found to be high; 50% of all those who had listened to the radio in the previous month were aware of AWH. Awareness was higher in the South Western region at 64% compared with the lowest level of awareness at 23% in the Hazarjat region.
Awareness was higher among women (60%) as compared to men (40%) men indicating popularity of the programme among its primary target audience i.e. women.
2. The survey found that about 45% of active radio listeners 1 had ever listened to AWH, indicating that the programme has been heard by approximately 11 million Afghans. Listenership was highest in the South Western province (61%) followed by Eastern (49%) and South Central (48%) provinces. Hazarjat province reported the lowest listenership at 22%.
3. More than half of all female active radio listeners had ever listened to AWH. Again, it is apparent that the programme is reaching its primary target audience with 55% of women having ever listened to the programme. Nearly all those who were aware of the programme had heard the programme at some point.
4. Of all those aware of AWH, 76% of men and 83% of women had listened to it in the last month or more recently. Nearly a fifth of all active radio listeners had listened to the programme in the last 7 days with more than a third having listened in the last month.
5. Just over a fifth of all active radio listeners listen to AWH once a week or more. Slightly less than a third of female all active radio listeners listen to the programme once a week or more. As expected this figure is lower for men.
6. Of all those who were aware of AWH 90% listened to the programme more than once a month or more. This means that about 9 million Afghans are listening more than once a month with half of them listening every week.
7. This high level of regular listening suggests that Afghan Woman’s Hour is extremely popular with those who are aware of it. Women tend to listen more regularly than men although a large proportion of men are listening on a regular basis – nearly half of all those who are aware of the programme.
8. As expected, the majority of AWH listeners are female (61%), but it is notable that in a country with significant separation of the sexes 39% of those who report listening to AWH in the last month are male.
With the exception of gender, the demographic characteristics of AWH listeners mirror those found in the overall sample. The largest portion of the audience is rural women, but AWH is reaching a broad cross section of Afghan society and serves as vehicle for the distribution of information to a variety of different demographic groups within Afghanistan.
1 Active radio listeners aged 15+ defined as those who had listened to radio in the last 4 weeks
3 • The average age of listeners is 32 years old. Overall, listeners tend to be relatively young with 58% of respondents reporting to be age 34 or younger. • Slightly over half of AWH listeners (54%) report having no formal education compared to 58% for the whole sample. • The majority of AWH listeners live in rural areas (78%) with 22% living in urban environments. • Half of AWH listeners reported being housewives. Another 36% are working and 8% are students. • Overall, 46% of listeners described themselves as Pashtuns, 37% Tajiks, 7% Uzbeks, 8% Hazaras, and 2% other ethnicities.
9. Afghan Women’s Hour listeners most frequently listened to the programme either on their own or with family or friends.
AWH listeners are talking about what they hear in the programme, indicating that the programme may be reaching more than the active radio listeners. Over half of listeners (56%) reported they had talked with someone regarding something they heard on AWH. Women were more likely to do so than men (65% compared to 35%). Those who discussed issues with others did so mostly with family members and friends.
10. The vast majority of listeners feel that listening to AWH is beneficial to them. Specifically: • 96% agree they think more positively about lives of women after listening to AWH. • 91% agree the show helps them better understand women in different situations than them. • 91% agree that listening to AWH helps them to solve problems. • 80% agree they often talk about things they hear on AWH. • 79% agree that men enjoy listening to AWH.
11. More than three-fourth listeners of AWH have listened to different segments of the programme –Testimonials, Music of Our Village, Women & Work, and Women in Parliament. Close to 90% listeners agree on the benefits of the specific segments. The benefits include inspiration they get from listening to individual experiences, influencing their opinions or behaviours in different ways, making them feel proud of Afghan culture and encouraging political, civic and electoral engagement among the listeners.
12. Qualitative research using Focus Group Discussions indicated that women displayed a significant capacity to aspire, which included specific aspirations in domains relevant to the programme segments they had recently finished listening to (suggesting that AWH has made an impact.) They also had critical awareness of social barriers, could identify causal agents that might help or hinder them, displayed the ability to brainstorm (an important component of problem-solving ) and had the capacity to express voice within the all-female group. Furthermore, they displayed the intention to inform other women of relevant issues, and, in some cases, the intention to discuss these issues.
4 13. Less encouraging, however, was that for the most part their aspirations were not particularly focused or specific, and they had a low perceived ability to influence and low perceived competence outside of the female domain of child-rearing, (which is already considered to be an area of female expertise.) This meant that they did not display knowledge of the ways in which to influence causal agents. For example, a woman might demonstrate knowledge that men were causal agents, but not be able to indicate how she would go about attempting to influence them. There was little evidence for leadership , and little indication that participants would take any direct action to influence outcomes other than discussing the issues raised with other women.
The lack of perceived ability to influence and perceived competence proved critical to all the other components, as even in the areas where the women excelled, such as in their capacity to brainstorm, they displayed passivity; the suggestions they generated indicated not what actions they could take, but what could be done for them.
14. Encouragingly, there is evidence that AWH has the potential to enhance women’s capacity to aspire , by giving them ideas about specific goals. It is also has the potential to enhance women’s perceived ability to influence , and perceived efficacy .
15. The litmus test for empowerment is whether poor and subordinate groups have effectively advanced their particular interests through their own choice and action. In order for AWH to help women translate their aspirations into action, it must attempt to facilitate agency through psychological empowerment. In order for empowerment to occur, however, aspects of the opportunity structure (such as male opinion) must also be addressed. As there is a large male audience for Afghan Women’s Hour, a significant opportunity exists for the programme to tackle this aspect of the empowerment framework as well.
5 CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND
1.1 Status of Women in Afghanistan
Violence against women and girls, and other violations of their rights in Afghanistan have been widely reported by media and NGOs, in the last three decades. In 2000, the Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, in her report to the Commission on Human Rights, wrote “Most countries of the world appear to tolerate some practices that discriminate against women, but only in some countries is discrimination official policy. In Taleban controlled areas of Afghanistan, discrimination against women is officially sanctioned and pervades every aspect of the lives of women.” 2
A recent report by Amnesty International notes that although Taleban is no longer in power, a cultural legacy remains 3. Violence against women and girls in Afghanistan is pervasive; few women are exempt from the reality or threat of violence. Afghan women and girls live with the risk of: • abduction and rape by armed individuals; • forced marriage; • being traded for settling disputes and debts; and • daily discrimination from all segments of society as well as by state officials.
Nader Nadery, a commissioner with the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) said that the cycle of violence for many women continues and “comes out of negative practices from Afghanistan’s long history that have created a culture of violence against women.” 4 Strict societal codes, invoked in the name of tradition and religion, have been used as justification for denying women the ability to enjoy their fundamental rights, and have led to the imprisonment of some women, and even to killings. Should they protest by running away, the authorities may imprison them.
Women have not witnessed a significant improvement in their abilities to enjoy their human rights. Discriminatory practices institutionalized prior to and during the war have not disappeared and in some ways have grown stronger. The insecure environment exacerbates this further. In the Afghanistan context, violence suffered during the conflict years was an extreme manifestation of the discrimination and abuses they suffered in before the conflict began as well as the unequal power relations between Afghan men and women. Such attitudes contribute to the widespread acceptance of domestic violence, rape and other forms of sexual abuse against women. Women’s right to choose a marriage partner is still severely curtailed and subject to the authority of male members of the family; they continue to be abducted and forced into marriage; early marriage and childbirth is commonplace; and prohibited interaction between unrelated men and women greatly inhibits women’s access to, amongst others, higher education, the
2 Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Ms. Radhika Coomaraswamy, “Mission to Pakistan and Afghanistan (1-13 September 1999)”, UN Doc. E/CN.4/2000/68/Add.4, 13 March 2000 3 Afghanistan Women still under attack – a Systematic Failure to Protect, Amnesty International, May 2005 4 IRIN press, Rally to stop violence against women, Kabul, 24, November 2004.
6 workplace and both formal and informal justice mechanisms as these bodies continue to be almost exclusively male and largely segregated.
Husbands, brothers and fathers are the main perpetrators of violence in the home but the social control and the power that they exercise is reinforced by the authorities, whether of the state or from informal justice systems such as shuras and jirgas . Members of factional and militia forces are also responsible for perpetrating violence. In some instances, female members of the family have a role in upholding patriarchal structures, and may also commit violence. However, male members of society perpetrate the overwhelming majority of acts of violence against women.
The new government has sought to remedy these abuses through the creation of a Ministry of Woman Affairs and an Independent Human Rights Commission. However, attention to women’s issues is often overshadowed by other pressing concerns, such as security and the narcotics trade. Simply establishing institutions dedicated to gender sensitivity and tolerance does not ensure gender equality. As the Afghan government recognizes, attention to women’s issues across all government bodies and aid delivery organizations must be established. Accordingly, the government has prepared a National Action Plan for the Women of Afghanistan, which will provide a comprehensive, cross-ministerial approach to improving the condition of women.
M. Ashraf Haidari, the Political Counselor at the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, DC, observes that the persecution of women fighting for Afghanistan’s progress is partly driven by the country’s male-dominant, conservative culture 5. Achieving gender equality will therefore require a fundamental change in Afghan societal norms and perceptions, over many generations.
This is the backdrop in which BBC WST has been working on women’s empowerment through its radio programme Afghan Woman’s Hour (AWH) that aims “to empower Afghan women to know their rights and to encourage them to participate in civil society”
1.2 BBC WST and Afghan Woman’s Hour
BBC World Service Trust, the international charity of BBC, uses media and communications to reduce poverty and promote human rights, thereby enabling people to build better lives.
In the project Afghan Woman’s Hour the Trust seeks to empower women by broadcasting programming on gender issues, with the aim of helping Afghan women explore new ideas, find solutions to their problems and encourage them to participate more fully in the rebuilding of their country. It celebrates the role of women in Afghan society not only as mothers, daughters, wives and sisters but as future policy makers and role models for the next generation.
Afghan Woman’s Hour went on air in January 2005. Since then a group of 20 female journalists from all over Afghanistan gather original stories, conduct engaging
5 Help Empower the Women of Afghanistan, M. Ashraf Haidari, November 2007, http://www.afghan-web.com/woman/empowerafghanwomen.html
7 interviews and record folkloric songs. The programme is broadcast in the two main languages of the region, Dari and Pashto, with 100 programmes per year. Afghan Woman’s Hour is broadcast weekly, with two repeats at different times of day. The programme is made by Afghan women journalists and is currently broadcast on BBC World Service Radio. The following map shows the presence of AWH reporters in Afghanistan.
Figure 1: Presence of AWH Reporters
1.2.1. Aim of Afghan Woman’s Hour
To empower Afghan women to know their rights and to encourage them to participate in civil society by:
• Raising awareness • Stimulating debate and discussion amongst women and men and women • Offering alternative solutions to problems/situations • Celebrating the role of women in Afghan life
Afghan Woman’s Hour aims to reach all classes of women – rural and urban, educated and uneducated. It cuts across social and ethnic boundaries, uniting women and bringing much needed information to those denied access by their husbands, fathers or brothers to the outside world.
It’s anticipated that by offering Afghan women a radio programme they enjoy as well as one that offers them potential solutions to the challenges they face, female listeners will gain confidence in their own ability to achieve and participate in wider society.
8 1.2.2. Programme content and format
Afghan Woman’s Hour is a magazine format programme comprising different segments. The programme’s debates, features and phone-ins cover everything from women’s health, domestic violence, family planning, the taboo of physical handicap, political participation, forced marriage, education and working life, to family issues, cooking, music and literature. The programme aims to be a friendly and trusted voice. It offers information, advice and comfort to its listeners.
Afghan Woman’s Hour offers a forum to discuss gender, social issues and women’s rights. The programme celebrates the value of women, informs them and offers advice from professionals, such as doctors, psychologists, social commentators, female politicians, as well as encouragement through the voice and example of ordinary Afghan women.
There is a particular emphasis on practical, ‘home grown solutions’ to problems within the programme. This is because of a shortage of professionals in Afghanistan, e.g. doctors, social workers, psychotherapists. It is also because many women cannot afford or access a doctor. Afghan Woman’s Hour also includes the voices of girls, uses successful, internationally famous women achievers as role models and includes items on Afghan culture which validate women.
1.2.3. Programme segments
There have been some changes to the programme segments over the last two years. The current research was designed to measure the impact of the segments broadcast at the time of doing the research:
A. Women and Work This segment showcases women from across Afghanistan undertaking a range of different jobs, being entrepreneurial, setting up businesses or earning extra income for their family with the aim of: • helping women to see the opportunities available to them • providing women with information to take-up these opportunities • building their confidence by providing examples of women in similar situations • challenging the view that women should remain in the private sphere and not work.
B. Women in Parliament This series of segments on women participating in Parliament aims to: • increase understanding of and trust in the political system • emphasise the importance of the role of women in Parliament and society more broadly • emphasise the importance of voting • encourage women to feel that they have a voice • find routes into politics for women and their experiences on this journey.
9 C. Testimonials This is a regular story slot at the end of the programme featuring real life stories of women and adaptations of novels with relevance to women. The segment aims to: • recognise the problems faced by women • provide comfort to listeners by providing real life experiences that they can relate to • challenge the way they think about their situation • offer inspiration to change their situation • provide potential solutions.
D. Music of our Village A regular slot presenting women from across Afghanistan performing songs or music from their villages. The segment aims to: • celebrate Afghan culture and life • promote a shared sense of pride in contemporary Afghan society • foster a sense of belonging • encourage people to play music or sing.
1.2.4. Developing a Framework of Women’s Empowerment
The project team conducted extensive review of literature and research reports to identify and adapt from among various theoretical models, a framework for developing the communication strategy for the programme.
We considered two most recent and prominent theoretical frameworks for empowerment proposed by Deepa Narayan and Naila Kabeer respectively. Narayan defines empowerment as:
The expansion of assets and capabilities of poor people to participate in, negotiate with, influence, control, and hold accountable institutions that affect their lives. (2005, p.5)
Narayan’s theoretical structure divides the components of empowerments into opportunity structure and agency 6 (see Figure 2).
Opportunity structure refers to “the broader institutional, social and political context of formal and informal rules and norms within which actors pursue their interests” and is broken down into institutional climate, which can create incentives for action or inaction, and social and political structures which can be open or closed, inclusive or exclusive and cooperative or conflictual. Agency refers to “the capacity of actors to take purposeful action, a function of both individual and collective assets and capabilities and is broken down along individual and collective lines.
Kabeer defines empowerment as “the process by which those who have been denied the ability to make strategic life choices acquire such ability” 7. Kabeer’s definition is notable because it highlights the concept of choice. In her
6 Narayan, 2005; Petesch, Smulovitz & Walton, 2005 7 Kabeer, 1999, p.435
10 framework, empowerment concerns the ability to make choices, while to be disempowered is to be denied choice.
Figure 2: Components of Empowerment
Both these models of empowerment, while comprehensive and potentially very useful for development, was considered too broad given the goals of Afghan Women’s Hour. Although a radio programme could target other aspects of the framework, such as the opportunity structure, by advocating for greater access to information or political openness, for it to tackle all aspects of the empowerment structure would be exigent. Psychological empowerment does form a part of the greater empowerment framework, however. In the models, individual assets and capabilities are broken down into material, human, social and psychological categories, with psychological empowerment being conceived of as self-esteem, self-confidence, and the ability to imagine and aspire to a better future. Thus, both the models help define and situate psychological empowerment in a wider framework of empowerment as conceived by development practitioners.
We further considered Garba’s exogenous and endogenous empowerment strategies 8 to understand the process of empowerment. Exogenous strategies are built on the premise that disempowered groups can be empowered by external individuals, while endogenous empowerment strategies presume that external individuals can merely facilitate empowerment by creating enabling conditions for groups to empower themselves. This distinction is akin to Freire’s notion of extension versus communication, or conscietization. Conscietization, like endogenous empowerment, is a process through which individuals develop a ‘critical consciousness’ through interpretation of problems, openness to revision, refusing to transfer responsibility, rejecting passive positions, arguing, and engaging in dialogue. It results in an understanding of the circumstances
8 Garba, 1999
11 and social environment, leading to action 9. Similarly, Garba maintains that endogenous empowerment has six stages leading to action:
1. Awareness building 2. Capacity and skills assessment 3. Capacity building and skills development, 4. Participation and greater control in decision making 5. Action for change 6. Evaluation
Empowerment itself is realized in stages four and five, and stages one, two, three and six are points where external interventions can enable an endogenous empowerment process. We believe that a media approach, and Afghan Women’s Hour specifically, is likely to result in ‘an empowering situation’ where one or more of the necessary conditions for empowerment are in place or being developed, but not in ‘a situation of empowerment’, where all conditions are met 10 .
We further examined the critical role played by collectives in the process of empowerment. The importance of forming collectives and taking collective action is a theme touched on by many empowerment theorists 11 . Evidence shows that women who operate through collectives gain confidence and the ability to challenge power structures, leading to empowerment on both an individual and group level. Enhancing individual capabilities and opportunities may easily fail because of the influence of shared values, norms, beliefs, and traditions, but collective action involves changing ideas about the social order, and is therefore more powerful 12 . Thus, while women’s assets and capabilities are usually conceptualized as individual attributes, collective capabilities and organizations are often more important in helping to break through the constraints of powerlessness and voicelessness.
Deshmukh-Ranadive, who conceives of empowerment as a series of physical, economic, sociocultural, political and mental spaces, says that mental space, “the feeling of freedom that allows a person to think and act”, is the most important condition for empowerment to take place. She goes on to elaborate that mental space can be increased in two ways: by bringing women together in new settings (collectives), and by giving them information, particularly about power structures and rights. Other theorists likewise proclaim the pivotal role of psychological empowerment 13 .
Finally, we turned to Zimmerman’s psychological model for a more thorough understanding of women’s empowerment. For Zimmerman, psychological empowerment includes beliefs that goals can be achieved, awareness about resources and factors that hinder or enhance efforts to achieve one’s goal, and concrete efforts to fulfill those goals 14 . Zimmerman’s model factors in active
9 Freire, 1990; Campbell, 2006; Rowlands, 1995 10 Rowlands, 1995 11 Narayan, 2005; Rowlands, 1995; Perkins & Zimmerman, 1995; Mason, 2005; Deshmukh-Ranadive, 2005 12 Mason, 2005, p.98 13 Narayan, 2005, Rowlands, 1995; Diener & Biswas-Diener, 2005 14 Zimmerman, 1995
12 engagement in one’s community and understanding of one’s socio-political environment (see Figure 3).
Figure 3: Components of Psychological Empowerment
We added to Zimmerman’s framework the collective aspects of psychological empowerment through the concepts of voice and capacity to aspire 15 . Appadurai conceives of capacity to aspire as something embedded in social groups and determined by collective cultural experience. Specifically, he defines it as the capacity of groups to envision alternatives and aspire to different futures 16 . Appadurai contests the notion that aspirations belong to individuals, pointing out that aspirations are always formed “in the thick of social life” and take the form of communal ideas about “the good life”, health and happiness. He also points out that marginalized groups have a lower capacity to aspire because “poverty means a smaller number of aspirational nodes and a thinner, weaker sense of the pathways from concrete wants to intermediate contexts to general norms and back again”. Voice is about having the ability to express one’s views, and includes the capacity to debate, contest, inquire, oppose and participate critically 17 . Capacity to aspire and voice are mutually reinforcing, and could be an important addition to Zimmerman’s framework.
Self-esteem could also be an important addition to Zimmerman’s framework. Zimmerman does not include it; however other theorists in development do include it in their definitions of psychological empowerment 18 . Participants in a Columbian study who were asked to do a self-evaluation highlighted the
15 Appadurai, 2004 16 Appadurai, 2004; Petesch, Smulovitz & Walton, 2005 17 Appadurai, 2004; Petesch, Smulovitz & Walton, 2005; Garba, 1999 18 Malhotra & Schuler, 2005; Narayan, 2005; Deshmukh-Ranadive, 2005; Rowlands, 1995
13 importance of self-esteem in measuring their own empowerment 19 . Self- esteem refers to one’s personal judgment of one’s own worth 20 .
We thus proposed a model of psychological empowerment, combining all the elements discussed above which focuses largely on three main dimensions of empowerment: o The intrapersonal dimension considers how people think and feel about themselves. o The interactional dimension considers the understanding people have about their community and related socio-political context. o The behavioural dimension looks at actions people take to directly influence outcomes.
Figure 4: Model of Psychological Empowerment
Critical Awareness Decision-making Understanding causal skills agents Efficacy/Perceived Problem-solving competence Collective self- skills esteem
Perceived Ability to Influence Intrapersonal Interactional
Capacity to Aspire Psychological Empowerment Capacity to express voice
Resource Mobilization
Behavioural
Community Involvement Organizational Participation
19 Moser, 2005 20 Coppersmith, 1967, quoted in Zimmerman, 1995
14 The knowledge, attitude and behavioural indicators of empowerment based on the model above were developed to measure the impact of the programme on our audiences. These indicators are described in Table1 below:
Table 1: Indicators of Empowerment – Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours
Intrapersonal Interactional Behavioural Capacity to aspire: Capacity to express Community voice: involvement: Does the person or group display the ability to Does the person or group Does the person or imagine and aspire to a display the capacity group display the different and better speak out and express intention to engage in future? opinions? participatory behaviours that involve them with other members of their community?
Perceived ability to Decision-making Organizational influence: (Skill development): Participation:
Does the person or group Does the Person or group Does the person or display a belief in their display the ability to make group display the ability to exert influence informed decisions? intention to become in different spheres of life, involved with formal or such as family, work or Problem-solving informal organizations? socio-political contexts? (Skill development):
Does the person or group display the ability to engage in problem solving?
(Collective) Self-Esteem: Resource mobilization:
What is the person or Does the person or group group’s personal display understanding of judgment of their worth, the resources needed to or the value of women in achieve a desired goal, general? knowledge of how to acquire those resources and/or skills for managing the resources once they are obtained?
15 CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH OBJECTIVES & METHODOLOGY
2.1 Research Objectives
The aim of this survey is to measure the awareness and reach of Afghan Woman’s Hour as well as measuring changes in knowledge, attitudes and self-reported behaviours (practices) regarding key programme issues including:
• Gender Equality • Education • Women and work • Governance-related issues • Family life (forced marriage, domestic violence)
In addition, the survey looked at the following issues to provide context to the above issues and guide the project:
• Media habits and consumption • Life in Afghanistan • Awareness of HIV/AIDS (to inform future programming)
This report also analyzes the findings of qualitative audience research commissioned by the BBC World Service Trust in Nov 2006 – March 2007 to inform future programming and explore the potential impact of programming on AWH audiences. The specific questions addressed in the qualitative research were:
• How is empowerment defined in the development literature and where does psychological empowerment fit in? • How can psychological empowerment be measured in a development context? • What evidence of psychological empowerment is there among the listeners of Afghan Women’s Hour?
2.2 Methodology
2.2.1. Quantitative Research
The research and learning team at BBC WST designed a quantitative survey covering a national sample of 3,213 Afghan adults age 15 and older from all 34 provinces of Afghanistan. Fieldwork for the survey was conducted by D3 Systems and ACSOR-Surveys from October 8 to October 24, 2007. A semi-structured pre- coded multiple response questionnaire was used for collecting data from selected respondents.
2.2.2. Qualitative Research
The data set comprised 76 in-depth interviews and eight focus groups. The research and learning team selected qualitative methodology in order to generate in-depth data, and BBC WST researchers developed the discussion
16 guide with guidance from the country director, head of project and research agency (which included Afghans.)
Focus group have been called the ‘minimal social unit’ (Gaskell, 2000) and are therefore the ideal research unit to examine how groups of women make sense of the programming content of AWH, and do or do not exhibit signs of collective psychological empowerment. This data was supplemented with two semi- structured expert interviews conducted with the programme’s presenter/ producer and the programme’s editor.
2.2.3. Questionnaire Design
The questionnaire included the following sections: • General media habits – standard questions used across all BBC WST surveys tailored to the Afghan media landscape • Afghan Woman’s Hour - Reach, Awareness and Listenership • Listeners’ Views on Afghan Woman’s Hour • Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices on: o Life in Afghanistan o Governance o Gender Equality o Education and Livelihoods o Health • Demographics
Developing knowledge, attitudes and practices questions to measure impact: In order to understand the potential impact of Afghan Woman’s Hour in relation to the aim of empowerment it was necessary to identify the specific attitudes, knowledge and behaviour anticipated as a result of listening to this programme.
2.2.4. Defining Awareness and Reach
The survey measured awareness, reach and level of exposure to the programme.
• Output Awareness is defined as the ‘percentage of the audience who are aware of a specific output’ (this included spontaneous and prompted awareness); • Output Reach is defined as the ‘percentage of the audience who have seen or listened to a specific output’(this included spontaneous and prompted listenership of the output);
2.2.5. Defining Amount of Exposure
The amount of exposure to the programme can vary to a great extent across audience members – from a one-off consumer who catches a single episode to a frequent consumer of the show. However, if the amount of exposure is taken as a single dichotomous measure, exposed versus unexposed, any variation in this exposed audience is ignored. Moreover, any ‘effect’ on the exposed audience would be presumed to be the same regardless of amount of exposure.
17 Recognising that more opportunities to be exposed to output containing either directly or indirectly informative content could result in greater opportunities for an ‘effect’, the Research & Learning Group introduced measures to assess amount of programme exposure. These amounts were classified as: High, Medium/Low and No exposure.
2.2.6. Amount of Programme Exposure
Amount of campaign exposure calculations were based on the amount of exposure to the output. Thus: • Highly Exposed to the programme = Must listen weekly or more. • Medium Exposed = Must listen monthly but not weekly • Low Exposed = Must listen less often than monthly • No exposure to the programme = Must never have listened.
2.2.7. Analysis of Impact
Comparisons of these different amounts of exposure to the programme (High, Medium, Low and No Exposure) were used to examine the relationships between exposure and knowledge, attitudes and behaviour change. Statistical associations between the three levels of exposure and behavioural outcomes were considered evidence of impact 21 . Where statistically significant differences are found they are reported beneath each exposure group comparison chart.
2.3 The sample
As mentioned 3,213 Afghan adults aged 15 years and older from all 34 provinces of Afghanistan were interviewed.
A systematic sampling method with a multi-stage random stratified selection procedure was used with interviews distributed proportionally by population of province. Interviews were conducted in both urban and rural locations.
The sample is divided at the outset with half the sampling points designated for male interviews, half for female interviews. Male respondents were interviewed only by male interviewers, female respondents only by female interviewers due to the cultural restrictions in Afghanistan. ACSOR maintains a field team with both male and female interviewers to be able to meet this particular challenge.
Households were selected using a random route technique with interviewers starting from assigned locations then visiting homes at a set interval. Respondents were selected using a Kish grid to further randomize the survey process. Interviews are clustered into groups of 10 interviews per sampling point. In order to reduce the design effect due to clustering, where randomly drawn male/female sampling points fell within close proximity to each other in districts with small population sizes, the number of sampling points was doubled, also by random selection, and the number of interviews per point was halved, from 10 to five.
21 Exposure data were tested for significant changes using z-tests of column proportions with the Bonferroni adjustment for multiple comparisons. However, it is recognised that these associations are not evidence of a causal relationship between exposure and outcome measures.
18
In total, 3,669 households were visited. Non-contacts represent 253 persons (6.9% of total contacts), refusals 203 persons (5.5%), yielding the total realized sample of 3213 (87.6% of all contacts).
2.4 The Respondents
The sample was designed to reflect as accurately as possible the demographic composition of Afghanistan.
2.4.1. Gender
The sample was divided from the outset to provide 50% male respondents and 50% female respondents. The table below presents the demographic breakdown of the sample:
Table 2: Sample Demographics 22 Demographics % Total sample (n=3213) Age 15 – 17 6 18 – 24 27 24 – 34 26 35 – 44 22 45 – 54 13 55+ 6 Region Northern 29 Central/Kabul 19 South Central 14 Western 11 Eastern 10 South Western 9 Central/Hazarjat 8 Location Village 78 Town 4 City 7 Metros (Kabul) 11 Ethnicity Pashtuns 42 Tajiks 36 Uzbeks 8 Hazaras 8 Other 6 Religion Sunni Muslim 80 Shia Muslim 10 Other 10 Language Dari 46 Pashtun 42 Uzbek 10 Other 2
22 Where demographic measures used in the BBS WST survey and the Asia Foundation Survey (2007) were comparable the demographic composition of each sample were consistent.
19 Education level No formal 58 Up to 5 years 7 6 – 8 years 9 9 – 10 years 8 11 – 12 years 14 Higher 4 Employment status Working 39 Unemployed 8 Housewife 40 Student 7 Retired 1 Other 5 Marital status Married 60 Single 28 Widowed 4 Media consumption Active radio 78 Active TV 22 Social class A/B 2 C+ 11 C, C- 31 D 34 E 23
2.4.2. Age
The age distribution in the sample reflects the relatively young nature of the population with 59% of the respondents reporting to be age 34 or younger. Relatively few respondents report being age 55 or older (6%). While there has not been a formal census in Afghanistan in several decades, estimates from the United Nations and the Afghan Central Statistics Office suggest average life expectancy is low and that Afghanistan has a young population overall.
Chart 1: Age of Respondents 27% 26% 22%
13%
6% 6%
15-17 yrs 18-24 yrs 24-34 yrs 35-44 yrs 45-54 yrs 55+ yrs
Base: Total sample (3213) The age spread compares very well with the results of the survey conducted by The Asia Foundation in 2008, as shown in the table below:
20 Table 3: Comparison with Asia Foundation Survey Age Group BBC WST Survey The Asia Foundation (n=3213) Survey 2008 (n=6593) 15-17 yrs 6% - 18-24 yrs 27% 26% 24-34 yrs 26% 28% 35-44 yrs 22% 22% 45-54 yrs 13% 15% 55+ yrs 6% 8%
2.4.3. Education Level
According to the survey results, 58% of the respondents report having no formal education. Several decades of conflict have curtailed educational opportunities for Afghans. Reading proficiency and education levels are higher among those under 22 and over 35, reflecting the difficulties of pursuing an education for those who came to age at the height of the conflict.
Chart 2: Education of Respondents
58%
14% 7% 9% 8% 4%
No formal Upto 5 yrs 6-8 yrs 9-10 yrs 11-12 yrs Higher
Base: Total sample (3213)
Again, comparison with the findings of The Asia Foundation survey reveal similar trends, as shown in the table below:
Table 4: Comparison with Asia Foundation Survey Age Group BBC WST Survey The Asia Foundation (n=3213) Survey 2008 (n=6593) No Formal Education 58% 55% Upto 5 years 7% 13% 6-8 years 9% 12% 9-10 years 8% 5% 11-12 years 14% 12% Higher 4% 2%
21
2.4.4. Urban and Rural Populations
The majority of Afghans live in rural areas. The respondents in the survey reflect this reality, with 78% of the respondents coming from rural environments and 22% from urban environments (towns, city, metros [Kabul]). The corresponding proportion of the respondents in the Asia Foundation survey (2008) was 79% rural and 21% urban.
2.4.5. Employment Status
Afghanistan has high levels of unemployment – overall only 39% of respondents reporting being employed. However, this number is skewed by the fact that the majority of women in the sample reported being either housewives or students (87%) (see Chart 3). While 55% of men in the survey report working full-time and 14% report working part-time, only 5% of women say they work full-time and 5% report working part-time. On an encouraging note, males and females who say they are students in the sample were almost equal, with 8% of men reporting to be students and 7% of women reporting the same.
Among working men the most mentioned professions were Farmers, Farm labourers & Labourers. Among women the most mentioned professions were Govt. servant (mid level), Labourers, artisans and Clerical workers.
Chart 3: Employment Status of Respondents by Gender
80% 69% Male Female
14% 10% 8% 7% 3% 0% 1% 0%
Working Unemployed Housewife Student Retired
Base: Total sample (3213)
22 Chart 4: Main Occupation by Gender
Respondents Main Occupation by Gender
35 32 33 30
25
20 16 Male % 15 13 15 12 13 12 Female 10 10 5 5 6 4 4 3 4 3 5 2 2 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 0
Base: 1250 – all working or retired
2.4.6. Ethnicity
The sample was proportional to population by province and region. There is no census data on ethnic distributions, but the reported ethnicities in this survey are similar to those reported in similarly conducted surveys of Afghanistan. Overall, 42% of respondents reported to be Pashtuns, 36% Tajiks, 8% Uzbeks, 8% Hazaras, and 6% other ethnicities.
Chart 5: Major Ethnic Groups
Pashtuns, 42%
Other, 6%
Tajiks, 36% Hazaras, 8%
Uzbeks, 8%
Base: Total sample (3213)
2.4.7. Marital status
60% of respondents were married; 28% stated they were single and 4% were widowed.
23 2.4.8. Religious Affiliation
80% of respondents were Sunni Muslims with a further 10% stating they are Shia Muslims. The remaining 10% were other religions including Ismaeli and Hindu.
2.4.9. Language
46% of respondents cited their mother tongue to be Dari, 42% Pashto and 10% Uzbek.
Chart 6: Major Languages Spoken
Dari, 46%
Other, 2%
Uzbek, 10%
Pashto, 42%
Base: Total sample (3213)
24 CHAPTER 3: LIFE IN AFGHANISTAN
This section presents the views of respondents on their life in Afghanistan and draws upon the results from the Asia Foundation Survey (2008) conducted in the first part of the year. Respondents were asked a series of questions including: • Quality of life • Problems facing Afghanistan • Attitudes towards government • Security situation • Access of household to provisions/services
3.1 Life in general
More than half of respondents stated that life was either hard (35%) or very hard (22%) with 40% reporting that it was good/quite good.
Chart 7: Overall Rating of Life in General
35% 30%
22%
10%
Very Hard Hard Good Quite Good Base= All respondents (n=3213)
3.2 What are the biggest problems facing Afghanistan currently?
Respondents were asked what they thought were the first, second and third biggest problems facing Afghanistan currently. The first most frequently mentioned problem was insecurity (19%) followed by poor economy (13%) and unemployment (10%). Interestingly, the Taliban (9%) was the next most frequently mentioned biggest problem – scoring slightly higher than poverty (8%). When combining the results for the first, second and third problems mentioned, unemployment is the most frequently mentioned response (39%) followed by security issues (32%), poor economy (27%), high prices (27%) and poverty (21%).
Overall, insecurity (attacks/ violence/ terrorism), presence of Taliban and presence of Warlords emerge as the key problems related to security. Economic hardship comprising unemployment, poor economy, high prices & poverty is the other biggest problem facing Afghanistan. Governance issues (Corruption, power,
25 roads, education, health, shelter, drinking water) were cited by fewer respondents as the major problem.
Results from the Asia Foundation survey were very similar with respondents reporting the biggest problems facing Afghanistan to be security, unemployment, poor economy and corruption in that order. In 2006, the major problems were reported to be poor economy, uncertain security situation, slow pace of reconstruction – development and unemployment.
Table 5: Biggest Problems facing Afghanistan Currently Problems Facing Afghanistan Most 2nd most 3rd most All Important important important mentions Insecurity/attacks/violence/terrorism 19% 6% 7% 32% Poor Economy 13% 9% 5% 27% Unemployment 10% 14% 15% 39% Presence of Taliban 9% 6% 3% 18% Poverty 8% 8% 5% 21% Presence of warlords 6% 3% 2% 11% Scarcity of electricity 6% 7% 4% 17% High Prices 5% 9% 13% 27% Roads 3% 6% 6% 15% Corruption 3% 6% 8% 17% Shelter problems 3% 4% 2% 9% Education/schools/literacy 2% 3% 3% 8% Lack of safe water supplies 2% 2% 1% 5% Health care/clinics/hospitals 1% 2% 3% 6% Base: All respondents (n=3213)
There emerged some differences among various regions on the mention of major problems - Security appears to be a major problem in South Central, South Western & Western parts while Presence of Taliban/Warlords was mentioned by Western, Northern & Central/ Hazarjat regions. Relatively higher proportion of respondents from Central/Kabul mentioned Unemployment
Table 6: Biggest Problems facing Afghanistan by Regions Central Eastern South South Western Northern Central/ Total /Kabul Central Western Hazarjat Security/atta 14% 16% 26% 43% 23% 8% 14% 18% cks/ violence Poor 14% 12% 13% 6% 12% 17% 13% 13% Economy Unemployme 20% 9% 6% 4% 7% 10% 8% 10% nt Presence of 5% 5% 8% 10% 15% 10% 17% 9% Taliban Poverty 6% 10% 6% 9% 8% 9% 8% 8% Presence of 4% 4% 6% 4% 6% 8% 10% 6% warlords
26 Scarcity of 8% 9% 2% 4% 4% 6% 4% 6% electricity High Prices 9% 3% 4% 2% 4% 6% 3% 5%
Base: All respondents (n=3213)
3.3 Security Situation
Nearly half of respondents stated that the security situation in Afghanistan is either excellent (10%) or good (38%). A third thought the situation is fair with just under a fifth (19%) stating that it is poor. More men than women felt that the security situation is excellent. The Asia Foundation survey found that 66% of respondents reported that security in their area was good or quite good.
Chart 8: Assessment of Security Situation
Total 10% 38% 33% 19% 1%
Excellent Good Fair Poor Don't know/not sure
Male 12% 38% 29% 21%
Female 7% 37% 38% 17% 1%
Base: All respondents (n=3213)
Analyzing by different regions, more respondents from South Western, South Central & Western areas perceived the security situation to be poor in their areas.
Chart 9: Assessment of Security Situation by Regions
Excellent Good Fair Poor Don't know/not sure
Central/Kabul 14% 50% 28% 7% 1% Northern 13% 47% 33% 7%
Eastern 6% 42% 46% 5% 1%
Central/Hazarjat 25% 26% 22% 27%
Western 32% 43% 25%
South Central 2% 25% 32% 39% 3%
South Western 4% 20% 27% 48% 1%
Base: All respondents (n=3213)
27 Respondents were asked whether they thought the security situation had changed in the last six months. More respondents thought that the situation had improved, rather than declined, with the majority of respondents (57%) stating that it had remained the same. Interestingly, the proportion of respondents who thought the security situation is poor and that it had got worse in the last six months were the same. Further analysis of these respondents is required – particularly in terms of regional variations. Overall, it would seem that for a substantial proportion of Afghan’s security is still a major issue.
Analyzing by regions, it is evident that the security situation in South Western, South Central, Western & Central Hazarjat areas is poorer compared to the rest of the country, and the respondents from these areas perceive the situation to have worsened in their areas in the last 6 months.
Chart 10: Changes in the Security Situation by Regions
Total 19% 57% 23% 2%
Got worse Remained the same Got better Don't know/not sure
South Central 36% 47% 11% 6%
South Western 35% 50% 11% 4%
Central/Hazarjat 43% 25% 4%
Western 25% 65% 10% 1%
Eastern 13% 49% 36% 2%
Central/Kabul 11% 69% 19% 2%
Northern 7% 58% 34% 1%
Base: All respondents (n=3213)
Results from the Asia Foundation survey (2008) also report similar findings with the security situation in the Southern & Western areas being perceived as poorer by the residents, compared to other parts in Afghanistan.
Respondents were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the following statement:
The current security situation makes it difficult for me to listen and watch the programmes I want to.
Forty-two per cent of respondents agreed that the security situation makes it difficult for them to listen and watch programmes. Again, more respondents from South Western, Western & South Central provinces feel that the current security situation makes it difficult for them to watch/ listen to programmes of their choice.
28 Chart 11: Impact of Security Situation on Ease of Listening
The current security situation makes it difficult for me to listen and watch the programmes I want to……..
79% Agree Disagree Don't Know/ Not Sure 77% 72% 68% 63% 57% 51% 49%50% 49% 42% 37% 30% 28% 21% 23%
2%
Total South Western Western South Central Eastern Central/Kabul Northern Central/Hazarjat
Base: All respondents (n=3213)
3.4 Perceptions towards Government
This survey attempted to document the public perceptions towards the government by asking respondents to what extent they agree/disagree with the following questions: • Government doesn’t care much about what ordinary people like me think • I have a say in the way my local area is run • I have a say in the way Afghanistan is run • I feel helpless in face of what is happening in Afghanistan today
Chart 12: Perceptions towards Government (All respondents)
Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree
Govt doesn't care much about what ordinary 17% 36% 29% 12% people think
I feel helpless in face of what is happening in 27% 35% 21% 10% Afghanistan
I have a say in the way 20% 41% 24% 10% Afghanistan is run
I have a say in the way 20% 43% 24% 8% local area is run
Base: All respondents (N=3213)
29 Interestingly, although most people feel agree they have a say in the way their local area and Afghanistan is run, the majority of people also feel that the government doesn’t care what they think and they feel helpless in face of what is happening to Afghanistan today.
3.5 Access of household to provisions/services
Respondents were asked whether their household usually has enough to eat, can cover all its needs and whether they have access to a health clinic or hospital. Only 69% of respondents agreed that their household has enough to eat and only 22% said they could cover all their household’s needs. Analyzing by demographic variables, we did not find major differences in the responses across males and females, but those from urban areas, those with higher education, younger respondents and Tajiks, Uzbeks and Hazaras appeared to be more satisfied compared to other groups.
Table 7: Thinking about your household do you usually have…? (% Yes) …enough to … enough money to cover all eat needs All 69% 22% Gender Male 68% 22% Female 70% 22% Area of Rural 67% 21% Residence Urban 77% 26% Age 15-17 yrs 76% 26% 18-24 yrs 71% 24% 25-34 yrs 71% 24% 35-44 yrs 65% 20% 45-54 yrs 67% 18% 55+ yrs 61% 15% Ethnicity Pashtun 63% 22% Tajik 73% 22% Uzbek 75% 25% Hazara 82% 23% Other 59% 19% Education No formal schooling 64% 17% Up to 5 yrs 69% 22% 6-8 yrs 72% 28% 9-10 yrs 75% 27% 11-12 yrs 82% 34% Some college & higher 79% 33% Occupation Working 69% 21% Housewife 69% 21% Student 81% 36% Unemployed 59% 20% Other not working 69% 23% Base: All respondents (n=3213)
30 Majority of the respondents mentioned having access to primary health & education services. Access to Hospitals & Primary Girls Schools was relatively less compared to other services (see table 8). There were no major differences in the responses by males and females except that a slightly lower percentage of females mentioned having access to health clinic. Majority of the people reported that it takes 20 minutes to 1 hour to get to the facility for most of the services.
Table 8: Does your household have access to…? (% Yes) Total Males Females Time taken to get to the facility < 20 1 hr > 4 Don't 20 Min to 4 hrs Know Min to 1 hrs hr Doctor 84% 83% 85% 24% 49% 21% 6% 1% Health Clinic 79% 81% 76% 18% 46% 26% 7% 2% Hospital 60% 61% 59% 15% 38% 30% 16% 2% Primary School for Boys 86% 88% 84% 37% 46% 13% 2% 2% Primary School for Girls 66% 65% 67% 42% 43% 10% 3% 2% Secondary School for 78% 80% 76% 29% 47% 17% 4% 2% Boys Base: All respondents (n=3213)
When asked about their most recent problem 21% of the respondents mentioned water supply and an equal number mentioned electricity. Roads followed next with 16% mentioning it as the most recent problem. Water supply, electricity & family disputes were mentioned by more urban respondents, while higher number of rural respondents mentioned roads, property dispute, health services, community conflict & school/ education as the most recent problem.
Table 9 Most recent problem faced…? Total Rural Urban Problem with Water Supply 21% 19% 29% Problems with Electricity 21% 17% 32% Roads 16% 17% 12% Property dispute 12% 13% 7% Problem with health Services 11% 13% 7% Conflict in community 10% 11% 6% Problem with schools/education 7% 8% 4% Family dispute/problems 1% 1% 3% Base: All respondents (n=3213)
31 CHAPTER 4: MEDIA CONSUMPTION AND HABITS
4.1 Access to Media Equipment
Since 2002, Afghans have had a growing number of media options and increasing access to various kinds of media equipment. The media market is becoming more diverse and the options continue to increase for Afghans.
Radio remains the most significant medium in Afghanistan , with 86% of respondents reporting they have a working radio in their home, in comparison to just 44% who claim to have a television in their home. Many Afghans have access to television in places other than their home, bringing total access to television up to 58%. However, access does not necessarily translate into regular use. Still, the increase in the number of Afghans with access to television has increased exponentially since 2002 and significantly in just over a year since the last BBC survey was completed.
There are significant differences in terms of access to television for urban and rural Afghans . While almost equal numbers of urban (86%) and rural (85%) Afghans report having a radio at home, the picture for television is dramatically different. The majority of urban Afghans (88%) claim to have access to a television at home just slightly more than say they have radios, but only 32% of Afghans in rural areas report having a television at home.
Access to mobile telephones is also increasing in Afghanistan. Thirty-five percent of Afghans report having a mobile phone in their home, and 56% claim they are able to have access to a mobile phone overall – a large increase since the 2006 survey. Shared use of mobile phones in families is common.
Internet access remains very low. Almost no respondents in the survey reported having access at home, and only 3% of respondents in the survey reported any kind of access to Internet.
Chart 13: Access to Media
Access to media
100 90 80 70 60 2006 % 50 2007 40 30 20 10 0 Radio TV Mobile Satellite Internet Computer Phone
Base 2006: Total sample (n=2988) Base 2007: Total sample (n=3213)
32 Access to media equipment is relatively equal among men and women in the survey, with the exception of mobile phones. 61% of males claim to have some access to a mobile phone, while only 51% of females report access.
The results of our survey resonate the findings of the Asia Foundation survey (2008) which reported radio ownership at 84%, TV at 38% and Mobile phone ownership at 40% among the Afghan population (See Table 10 below).
Table 10: Household Ownership of Media Equipment
Source: The Asia Foundation Survey (2008)
4.2 Information Sources
Afghans gather information from a variety of sources. The respondents in the survey overwhelmingly cite radio as their primary source of news and information, followed by friends, family, and television. Printed materials and the Internet are the least common sources.
Chart 14: Sources of Information 74% 68% 61%
38%
21%
12% 7% 2% 1%
Radio Friends Family TV Elders Newspapers Magazines NGOs Internet
Base: Total sample (3213)
There are some differences among different segments in the sources they choose to use.
Rural respondents are far less likely to use television, 27% compared to 80% of urban residents. They are slightly more likely to use radio (75%) in rural areas than in
33 urban areas (71%). Afghans in rural areas are also much more likely to rely on family, friends and elders for information than urban Afghans.
Men and women also display some differences in their use of information sources.
Women are more likely to use family members (70%) than men (52%) as sources of information . Also, most likely due to cultural norms related to access, women are three times less likely to name religious leaders as sources of information than men.
4.3 Use of Radio and Television
The majority of Afghans (78%) have listened to the radio in the last month, while only a 42% report having watched television.
However, 86% of urban Afghans report having watched television in the last month, but only 29% or rural respondents report they watched television in the last month. Radio is used almost equally in urban and rural areas.
Chart 15: Radio and Television Use in the Last Four Weeks by Geographical Area
Listened to radio Watched TV 86%
80% 78% 78%
42%
29%
Total Urban Rural
Base: Total sample (n=3213)
These findings on media consumption compare very well with The Asia Foundation survey (2008) which reported that 76% of the respondents listened to radio once a week or more often, and 37% watched TV with the same frequency.
4.4 Listening to the Radio
The majority of respondents (78%) cited Short Wave as the frequency on which they usually listen to the radio, followed by AM/MW.
34 Chart 16: Radio Bands Listened to
78% 74% 67%
28%
2% Short wave Medium Wave (AM) FM or VHF Long Wave Other Base: Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
4.4.1. When do People Listen to the Radio?
There are two main listening peaks throughout the day for both men and women: 7.30 – 8.30am and 7.30- 8.30pm, when more than 40% of respondents reported listening. There is a slight peak around 2.30 – 3.00pm – mainly for female listeners - where over 20% of females reported listening. More men listen to the radio than women earlier in the day. From 9am this pattern shifts and more women than men listen until 7pm when the % of men listening is higher. This continues until approximately 11pm when listening becomes more popular with women once again.
Chart 17: Times Listening to the Radio by Gender 50% Male Female 45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
m m m m m m m m m 9a 9am 9a 9am 9p 9pm 9p 9p 9p 9p a 9a :2 2 :29am :2 2 :29pm 2 2 :2 :2 :2 :2 :29 :2 5 07: 8 0 11: 2 01: 03: 05 7 09 1 1 3 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 1 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 0 0 - 0 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 08:29pm 0 - 0 0 - 00:29am 0 0 0 - 04:29am :0 0 :00 :0 0 :00 0 0 :0 :0 0 :0 :0 0 :0 :0 0 05 07: 08 09:00 - 09:29am10 11: 12 01: 02:00 - 02:29pm03: 04:00 - 04:29pm05 06:00 - 06:29pm07 08: 09 10:00 - 10:29pm11 12: 01 02:00 - 02:29am03 04: Base: All active radio listeners (n=2519)
35 4.4.2. Where do People Listen to the Radio?
Most respondents listen to the radio at home – women were more likely to listen at home than men (98%: 90%), with men are more likely than women to listen at work.
Chart 18: Where do you listen to the radio most often (first mention), by gender 98% 94% 90% Home
Work
At a friend or neighbours 7% Car 4% 1% 1%1% 1%
Total Male Female
Base: All Active radio listeners 23 (n=2519) (Male (n=1301), Female (n=1218)) [Percentages do not add up to 100 due to rounding.]
The second most frequently cited place where respondents listen to the radio is at a friend’s house. Once again this is higher for women. Men were more likely to mention public places such as work, cafes, and cars – more than a quarter of male respondents reported listening to the radio at work. Similarly, students, unemployed and those working were more likely to listen to radio at places like friend’s, work, public place, café etc.
Table 11: Where do you Listen to the Radio (First mention + Other mentions) Gender Residence Occupation House Unemp- Total Male Female Rural Urban Working wife Student loyed Other Home 97% 96% 99% 98% 96% 96% 99% 96% 97% 98% At a friend or neighbour’s 58% 55% 62% 61% 49% 51% 61% 70% 68% 68% Car 31% 35% 26% 27% 44% 33% 22% 46% 40% 39% Work 19% 34% 3% 19% 19% 45% In a public place 12% 17% 7% 12% 14% 15% 6% 19% 15% 16% Cafe, restaurant, food stall 11% 18% 4% 12% 9% 16% 4% 10% 16% 19% Base: All Active radio listeners (n=2519)
4.4.3. What Types of Programmes do People Listen to?
When respondents were asked to name the types of programmes they generally tend to listen to those most frequently mentioned by both men and women were news and music. Men were more likely to mention news than women (86%: 68%) although this was still the most frequently mentioned
23 Active radio listeners are those who have listened to the radio in the last four weeks
36 response by women. Programmes on music, health issues, women’s issues, and children’s programmes were more popular with women and programmes on sport, politics and business were more popular with men.
Chart 19: Types of Programme Listened to (spontaneous recall) by gender 86% 77% Total 68% Male 56% 54% 52% Female
18% 19% 17% 14% 15% 14% 12%13%12% 12% 13% 10%
News programmes Music Programmes about Radio dramas Religion / Faith Arts health matters/issues Base: All active radio listeners (n=2519) (Male (n=1301), Female (n=1218)) [Percentages are greater than 100 because multiple response question.]
4.4.4. What Radio Stations do People Listen to?
The most popular radio station is the BBC, with 80% of all active radio listeners reporting to be aware and 41% listening to BBC Farsi and 39% BBC Pashto in the last 7 days. Other popular stations that respondents reported listening to in the last 7 days included RFA (Dari), Voice of America (Dari) & (Pashto), Arman FM and Kabul (RTA) Radio.
Chart 20: Listenership – Radio Stations
Aware Ever Within last week 80%
67% 66% 65% 63% 60% 55% 54% 49% 46% 43% 42% 41% 39% 40% 39% 40% 38% 36% 38% 34% 32% 34%34% 34% 30% 30% 26% 17% 18%
BBC Farsi RTA - BBC RFA - Dari VOA - Dari Arman FM VOA - RFA - Radio Killid Radio Kabul Pashto Pashto Pashto (Kabul) Mashad
Base: All active radio listeners (n=2519)
37 4.5 TV Viewing
4.5.1. TV channels: Awareness, Reach and Recency of Listening
The channels mentioned most frequently by respondents were Radio Television Afghanistan (Kabul) (93%), Tolo TV (88%), Aryana TV (86%) and Lema TV (61%). The same top four channels were also mentioned as the most watched by respondents with Radio Television Afghanistan (local) in fifth place (See chart 21).
Chart 21: TV stations – viewing (% Yes) 93% 88% 86% 84% 82% Aware Ever Within last week 77%
61% 60% 56% 51% 50% 47% 42% 45% 39% 33% 34% 32% 28% 28% 24% 25% 22% 22% 20% 17% 15% 12% 13% 12% 10% 8% 8% 5% 5% 2%
RTA – TV Tolo TV Aryana TV Lemar TV Aina TV Al Jazeera RTA – Local Afghan TV Aeena TV - Iran TV VOA TV BBC World TV Jawzjan Base: All Active TV Viewers (N=1339)
4.5.2. When do People Watch Television?
The most popular time for watching television was between 7pm and 9.30pm when between 25% – 35% of people reported watching. More men report watching in the morning between 5am and 9am (between 5% – 10%); with more women watching from 9am until 6.30pm (until 5.30pm, when viewing increases). Between 7pm and 9pm, slightly more men reported watching than women although after 9pm this trend reverses with slightly more women viewing
Chart 22: Times Watching TV by Gender
Males Females 79% 76% 71%
18%
05:00 - 07:30 - 09:00 - 10:30 - 12:00 - 01:30 - 03:00 - 04:30 - 06:00 - 07:30 - 09:00 - 10:30 - 12:00 - 01:30 - 03:00 - 05:29am 07:59am 09:29am 10:59am 12:29pm 01:59pm 03:29pm 04:59pm 06:29pm 07:59pm 09:29pm 10:59pm 00:29am 01:59am 03:29am
Base: All Active TV Viewers (N=1339)
38 4.6 Trust in Various Institutions
Village Elders, Afghan National Army & Afghan National Police are the most trusted institutions. Local police, central/ local government officials and NGOs are the least trusted. Electronic media is trusted more compared to Print media, with more men than women trusting mass media.
Chart 23: Trust in Various Institutions (Totally Trust+ Mostly Trust)
69% Village Elders 66%
69% Afghan National Army 61%
64% Afghan National Police 57%
61% Electronic media 51%
53% Member of Jirga 49%
51% Member of the Shura 49%
49% Newspapers/print media 46% Male 46% Local police in your area 44% Female 45% Central government officials 44%
46% Local government officials 40%
41% NGOs 36%
Base: Total sample (3213)
39 CHAPTER 5: AWARENESS, REACH AND FREQUENCY OF LISTENING
5.1 Programme Awareness
Of all who listened to the radio in the last month (n=1247), 50% had heard of Afghan Woman’s Hour (AWH). Awareness was higher in the South Western region at 63.7% compared with the lowest level of awareness at 23.4% in the Hazarjat region.
Table 12: Overall Programme Awareness S Total Kabul Eastern Central S Western Western Northern Hazarjat Aware of 49.5% 53.0% 54.8% 53.1% 63.7% 47.5% 44.9% 23.4% AWH Base: 2519 489 270 403 251 236 699 171
The primary target audience for Afghan Woman’s Hour is women – and as is evident in Chart 24 women are more aware of AWH than men (59.8%: 39.9%).
Chart 24: Aware of AWH by Gender
60% 50% 40%
All Male Female
Base: All Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
5.2 Programme Reach
To date, about 45.1% of active radio listeners 24 had heard Afghan Woman’s Hour. This is equivalent of approximately 11 million Afghans.
Table 13: Programme Reach S S Total Kabul Eastern Western Northern Hazarjat Central Western Listened to 45.1% 45.8% 49.3% 47.9% 61.4% 45.3% 41.3% 21.6% AWH Base: 2519 489 270 403 251 236 699 171
24 Those who had listened to radio in the last one month
40 More than half of all female active radio listeners had heard Afghan Woman’s Hour. Again, it is apparent that AWH is reaching its primary target audience with 55% of women having ever listened to the programme. Nearly all those who were aware of the programme had heard the programme at some point.
Chart 25: Ever listened to AWH by Gender
55% 45% 36%
All Male Female
Base: All Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
5.3 Recency and frequency of listening
5.3.1. Recency of listening
Nearly a fifth of all active radio listeners had heard Afghan Woman’s Hour in the last 7 days with more than a third having listened in the last month.
Chart 26: Recency of Listening by Gender
All Male Female
53% 44% 46% 35% 37% 28% 23% 18% 14%
Last Year Last Month Last 7 days Base: All Active radio listeners (n=2519) (Male (n=1301), Female (n=1218))
Of all those aware of Afghan Woman’s Hour 76% of men and 83% of women had listened in the last month or more recently.
41 Chart 27: Recency of Listening by Gender (Those Aware of AWH)
42% All Male Female 41% 40% 40% 38% 38%
19% 15% 13%
3% 3% 3%
Last 7 days Last Month Last Year More than a Year Base: All aware of AWH (n=1157) (Male (n=476), Female (n=681))
5.3.2. Frequency of listening
Of all those who were aware of AWH 90% listened to the programme more than once a month or more. This means that about 9 million Afghans are listening more than once a month with half of them listening every week.
This high level of regular listening suggests that Afghan Woman’s Hour is extremely popular with those who are aware of it. Women tend to listen more regularly than men although a large proportion of men are listening on a regular basis – nearly half of all those who are aware of the programme.
Chart 28: Frequency of Listening
53% Once a week or more 48% 42% 42% 38% More than once a 35% month (but not weekly)
About once a month
Less than once a 7% 8% 7% 5%4% 5% 5% month 2% 1% Don't Know / Can't Total: Male Female Remember Base: All Listeners of AWH (n=1103) (Male (n=920), Female (n=873)
5.4 Audience Profiles
Understanding the audience reach is important to assess whether Afghan Woman’s Hour is reaching diverse audiences. Although the primary target audience is women
42 the output aims to be driven by the heterogeneity - geographic, linguistic, educational, media access, cultural and religious – of Afghanistan.
5.4.1. Demographic Profile of AWH Listeners
As expected, the majority of AWH listeners are female (61%), but it is notable that in a country with significant separation of the sexes 39% of those who report listening to AWH in the last month are male.
With the exception of gender, the demographic characteristics of AWH listeners mirror those found in the overall sample. The largest portion of the audience is rural women, but AWH is reaching a broad cross section of Afghan society and serves as vehicle for the distribution of information to a variety of different demographic groups within Afghanistan. • The average age of listeners is 32 years old. Overall, listeners tend to be relatively young with 58% of respondents reporting to be age 34 or younger. • Slightly over half of AWH listeners (54%) report having no formal education compared to 58% for the whole sample. • The majority of AWH listeners live in rural areas (78%) with 22% living in urban environments. • Half of AWH listeners reported being housewives. Another 36% are working and 8% are students. • Overall, 46% of listeners described themselves as Pashtuns, 37% Tajiks, 7% Uzbeks, 8% Hazaras, and 2% other ethnicities.
The chart below shows the % of respondents (aware of AWH only) by age and gender who listen to the programme once a week or more. Interestingly, of those who were aware of the programme more than half of men aged 15 - 17 are listening once a week or more.
Chart 29: % of respondents by age and gender who listen to AWH once a week or more
58% 58% 54% 56% 56% 50% 52% 52%
40% Male 38% 36% 27%
Female
15-17 yrs 18-24 yrs 25-34 yrs 35-44 yrs 45-54 yrs 55+ yrs Base: All Listeners of AWH (n=1103) (Male (n=920), Female (n=873)
43 5.5 Listening to Afghan Woman’s Hour
When asked who do they listen the programme with, majority of Afghan Women’s Hour listeners mentioned that they listened to the programme on their own and almost an equal number mentioned listening with their family members or friends. It is interesting to note that in spite of being a women’s programme, the programme has sizeable listenership among family members – including males (father/ brother/ husband/ son) making it a family programme.
Chart 30: Who respondent listens to AWH with, by Gender 45% 46% 44% 43% Total Male Female 39%
31%
25%
20% 21% 17% 16% 15% 16% 12% 13% 13% 13% 10% 11% 9% 7% 6% 5%
On my own Other family My family - Friend Mother Father Brother Husband Wife member general Base: All listened to AWH (n=930) (Male (n=365), Female (n=565))
5.5.1. Talking to others about AWH
AWH listeners are talking about what they hear in the programme. Over half of listeners (56%) reported they had talked with someone regarding something they heard on AWH.
Women were more likely to do so than men (65% compared to 35%). Those who discussed issues with others did so mostly with family members and friends.
Chart 31: Talking about AWH with others
Total Male Female 49% 47% 44% 40% 35% 32%
26% 25% 23% 19% 18% 19% 19% 17% 16% 14% 13% 11% 10% 9% 8% 8% 5% 6% 4% 3% 1% 1%
Family Friend Mother Father Brother Husband Community Wife Colleague Religious member Elder leader Base: Listeners who talked with someone about what they heard on AWH (524).
44 It is interesting to see that men also reported talking about the programme with community elders, colleagues & religious leaders indicating its influence on the listeners and their communities.
5.5.2. Listeners’ views of Afghan Woman’s Hour
The vast majority of AWH listeners feel that listening to AWH is beneficial to them. Specifically: • 96% agree they think more positively about lives of women after listening to AWH (Men: 93%; Women: 98%). • 91% agree the show helps them better understand women in different situations than them (Men: 87%; Women: 94%). • 91% agree that listening to AWH helps them to solve problems ( Men: 86%; Women: 94%). • 80% agree they often talk about things they hear on AWH (Men: 74%; Women: 84%). • 79% agree that men enjoy listening to AWH (Men: 82%; Women: 77%).
Testimonials – an Afghan woman telling the story of her life followed by discussion. 693 (or 75%) of AWH listeners have heard a testimonial on AWH, in which a woman tells the story of her life followed by a discussion. Most AWH listeners agree that testimonials are beneficial to them. Specifically: • 93% agree it is important to hear stories about individual experiences (Men:90%; Women: 95%) . • 83% agree the stories inspire them to change their own situation (Men: 80%; Women: 83%) . • 87% agree the stories remind them of their own situation or someone they know (Men: 84%; Women: 89%). • 76% agree the discussion challenges the way they think (Men: 72%; Women: 79%).
Music of Our Village – Women from across Afghanistan performing songs or music from their village. 72% (671/930) of AWH listeners have heard this segment. Of them: • 92% agree that this music celebrates Afghan life (Men: 88%; Women: 95%). • 88% agree that hearing this music makes them feel closer to fellow Afghans (Men: 83%; Women: 90%). • 88% agree that hearing this music makes them feel proud of Afghan culture (Men: 85%; Women: 90%) • 61% agree that hearing this music makes them want to sing/play music (Men: 61%; Women 61%).
Women and Work – women from across Afghanistan describing the work they do to generate income 75% (701/930) of AWH listeners had heard of this segment. Of them: • 93% agree that listening to this programme made them realise that there are more opportunities for women to work than I thought there were (Men: 90%; Women: 96%).
45 Women in Parliament – female members of Parliament talking about their role and responsibilities and how they were elected 76% (705/930) of AWH listeners had heard this segment. Of them: • 95% agree that this programme helped them to understand more about how government works (Men: 95%; Women: 95%). • 90% agree that they understood the importance of women participating in Parliament after hearing this (Men: 85%; Women: 92%). • 92% agreed that listening to this programme made me realise how important it is to vote (Men: 93%; Women: 91%)
5.5.3. Intensity of Listenership
We classified programmes listeners by intensity of listenership as under: a. Heavy listeners: Those listening to AWH once a week or more often b. Medium listeners: Those listening more than once a month but not weekly c. Light listeners: Those listening once a month or less often d. Non Listeners: Those who haven’t listened in the last one year or have never listened There were almost an equal number of heavy (18%) and medium (19%) listeners, and 8% respondents were classified as light listeners. The balance 55% were non- listeners of programme AWH.
Chart 32: Intensity of Listenership
Light 8%
19% Medium 55%
18% Heavy
Listeners Non-Listeners Base: Active Radio Listeners (n= 2519)
Expectedly, we find that there are more women among heavy listeners as compared to non listeners (see chart 33). Chart 33: Intensity of Listenership by Gender
40% 39% 50% 52% 60% Males
60% 61% 50% Females 48% 40%
Heavy Listener Medium Listener Light Listener Non Listener All Respondents Base: All respondents (n=2513)
46 There were no major differences in the profile of listeners by other demographics such as age, education, monthly household income and area of residence (urban vs. rural). However, there appear to be slight difference in the profile by marital status – with more married respondents being heavy listeners of AWH.
Chart 34: Intensity of Listenership by Marital Status 2% 3% 1% 3% 3%
26% 25% 33% 30% Widowed 28%
Single
72% 71% 66% 67% 69%
Married
Heavy Listener Medium Listener Light Listener Non Listener All Respondents Base: All Respondents (n=2513)
Some differences emerge in the profile of listeners by region and ethnic group. Pashtuns and those from the South Western & Western provinces have a higher proportion among heavy listeners compared to those from other regions/ ethnicities.
Table 14: Intensity of Listenership by Region & Ethnicity Heavy Medium Light Non All Listener Listener Listener Listener Respondents Region Northern 27% 24% 23% 29% 27% Central/Kabul 15% 26% 16% 19% 20% South Central 15% 14% 28% 15% 16% Eastern 10% 12% 14% 10% 11% South Western 17% 12% 10% 7% 10% Western 12% 8% 7% 9% 9% Central/Hazarjat 4% 4% 2% 10% 7% Ethnicity Pashtun 50% 42% 56% 42% 44% Tajik 35% 38% 28% 35% 35% Hazara 7% 10% 4% 9% 8% Uzbek 6% 8% 6% 9% 8% Others 2% 2% 5% 6% 4% Base: All Respondents (n=2513)
47 CHAPTER 6: GENDER EQUALITY
6.1 Attitudes on Gender Equality
The survey endeavored to gauge public opinion on the issue of gender equality. Respondents were asked for their opinions about equality of opportunity for education, opportunities for women to work outside the home, opportunities for women to participate in public life and equal rights for women in issues related to marriage and domestic matters.
Close to three-quarters of the respondents agreed (with 37% agreeing strongly) that a wife should obey her husband even if she disagrees with him. Slightly less than half agreed (with 21% agreeing strongly) that it is inappropriate for women to perform music and more than half disagreed (with 24% disagreeing strongly) that women should be able to move in public without restriction. 39% agreed (with 16% agreeing strongly) that it is okay for a husband to hit his wife if she disobeys him. 59% agreed that it is acceptable for women to work and earn money, and 79% agreed that family members should be involved in the decision who one should marry.
Chart 35: Overall Attitudes Towards Gender Equality
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Don't know / Don't w ant to answ er
Family members should be involved in the decision on w ho 7% 13% 34% 45% 2% should marry A w ife should obey her husband even if she disagrees w ith 8% 18% 36% 37% 2% him
It is acceptable for married w omen to w ork and earn money 16% 23% 33% 26% 3%
It is inappropriate for w omen to perform music 20% 30% 27% 21% 2%
Women should be able to move about in public w ithout 24% 31% 26% 17% 2% restriction It is acceptable for a husband to hit his w ife if she disobeys 27% 30% 23% 16% 4% him
Base: All Respondents (n=3213)
Analyzing the responses further it emerged that females, younger persons (15-24 years), those with higher levels of education and those from urban areas had more positive attitudes on gender equality. It further emerged that those from Southern provinces (south western & south central) and those belonging to Pashtun ethnic group had the least supportive views on overall gender equality.
6.2 Views on Marriage and Children’s Education
A majority of the respondents agreed that they would freely express their opinion on issues like desirable number of children a family should have, views about the marriage of a family member and views about education of children. Nearly
48 everyone agreed that it is important that their children get educated. There were no major differences in the views expressed by male and female respondents.
However, on two issues there were differences. More women than men agreed that girls should be allowed to attend school, and that girls and boys should have equal access to higher education. 91% of the females compared to 86% males agreed that girls should be allowed to attend school. Further 84% of females compared to 73% of males agreed that girls and boys should have equal access to higher education. Chart 36: Views on Family and Children’s Education
Would freely express view s on the desirable number of 80% Total 81% sons and daughters the household should have 80% Male Would freely express view s about the marriage of a family 77% 77% Female member 77%
88% Would freely express view s about the education of children 89% 88%
94% It is very important to me that my children are educated 95% 93%
88% Girls should be allow ed to attend school 86% 91%
Girls and boys should have equal access to higher 79% 73% education 84%
Base: All Respondents (n=3213)
6.3 Support for Gender Equality
We created an index for support to gender equality by measuring the responses to some attitudinal statements related to opportunities for women. The process is described below: 1. The respondents were grouped into 3 categories based on their responses to the following attitudinal statements: i. It is acceptable for married women to work and earn money ii. Women should be able to move about in public without restriction iii. Girls should be allowed to attend school iv. Girls and boys should have equal access to higher education v. It is acceptable for a woman to decide who she should marry vi. A wife should obey her husband even if she disagrees with him vii. It is inappropriate for women to perform music viii. It is acceptable for a husband to hit his wife if she disobeys him 2. Respondents agreeing strongly to statements 1 to 5 and disagreeing strongly to statements 6 to 8 were categorized as highly supportive 3. Those disagreeing strongly to statements 1 to 5 and agreeing strongly to statements 6 to 8 were categorized as least supportive 4. Others were categorized as moderately supportive
49 Chart 37: Support for Gender Equality
Highly supportive Least supportive 27% 34%
Moderately supportive 39%
Base: All Respondents (n=3213)
Data shows that slightly more than a quarter are highly supportive, more than one third are least supportive and nearly 40% are moderately supportive of Gender Equality.
Analyzing by demographics, differences emerge among various segments in their attitudes towards gender equality (see charts 38 to 44 below). Women, younger people (15 24 yrs), those with higher education and single respondents show high support for gender equality.
Among ethnic groups Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks & Turkmens; and those from the Northern, Western & Central/ Kabul provinces show high support. By contrast Pashtuns & Nuristanis and those from the South Western, Eastern & South Central parts show least support for gender equality. Metro (Kabul) & City dwellers and middle income families show high support for gender equality relative to other groups
Chart 38 to 44: Support for Gender Equality by Different Demographics
High Support 31% 69% Males
Medium Support 50% 50%
Females Low Support 65% 35%
50
15-24 yrs High Support 40% 23% 21% 16%
25-34 yrs
Medium Support 33% 25% 23% 19%
35-44 yrs
Low Support 28% 28% 22% 22% 45 yrs +
High Support 54% 40% 6% Illiterate
Medium Support 55% 41% 4% Schooled
College & Low Support 62% 33% 4% above
Single High Support 32% 64% 4% 1%
Married
Medium Support 28% 68% 4% Widowed
Low Support 24% 72% 3% Divorced/ Seperated
51
Tajik 39% 33% 53% Hazara 5% 3% 2% 4% Uzbek 8% 10% 2% 2% 2% 8% 11% Turkmen 8% 3% Others 40% 30% 37% Nuristani
Pashtun Low Support Medium Support High Support
Northern High Support 35% 15% 20% 7% 12% 7% 5% Western
Central/ Kabul Medium Support 28% 13% 23% 7% 11% 9% 10% Central/ Hazarjat
South Central
Eastern Low Support 27% 8% 16% 6% 16% 14% 14% South Western
Village High Support 74% 2% 9% 14%
Town
Medium Support 72% 3% 8% 16% City
Low Support 84% 4% 6% 6% Metro (Kabul)
52 6.4 Attitude Towards Gender Equality and Intensity of Listenership
Analyzing by intensity of listenership, we can see that among heavy listeners there is a higher proportion of those highly supportive of gender equality (see chart 45 below). The reverse is true for the non-listeners which has the highest proportion of those least supportive.
Chart 45: Attitude Towards Gender Equality by Intensity of Listening
24% 33% 29% 34% High support 27%
39% 31% Medium 40% 41% 43% support
Low support 36% 37% 33% 26% 28%
Heavy Listener Medium Listener Light Listener Non Listener All Respondents Base: Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
Although we can’t establish causality with the current research, there is strong evidence of a correlation between degree of exposure to AWH and support towards gender equality.
6.5 Freedom to act
Respondents were asked how free they were to decide on the following in their household: • what to listen to on the radio • whether to visit the local market • whether to visit the local health centre
6.5.1. Comparison by gender These questions provide interesting background information on the freedom of respondents to make decisions.
There were slight differences between men’s and women’s responses to these statements (see Table 15). As anticipated, for all statements women were less free than men.
• For ‘deciding what to listen to on the radio’ 50% of women felt ‘completely free’/’quite free’ – for men this figure is 60%. This means that nearly 50% of women didn’t feel free to decide what to listen to on the radio. • For ‘deciding whether to visit your local market’ only 41% of women felt ‘completely free’/’quite free’ - for men this figure is 67%. More than 26% of women felt that they were ‘not at all free’.
53 • For ‘deciding whether to visit the local health centre’ just over half of women (55%) and two thirds of men (67%) felt ‘completely free’/’quite free’. 16% of women felt they were ‘not at all free’ to make this decision.
Table 15: Freedom To Decide
What to listen to on the radio Males Females Total Completely Free 18% 11% 14% Quite Free 42% 39% 41% Not Very Free 23% 26% 25% Not Free At All 15% 21% 18% Don't Know/ No response 2% 4% 3%
Whether to visit the local market Completely Free 26% 10% 18% Quite Free 41% 31% 36% Not Very Free 24% 30% 27% Not Free At All 8% 26% 17% Don't Know/ No response 2% 2% 2%
Whether to visit the local health centre Completely Free 31% 23% 27% Quite Free 36% 32% 34% Not Very Free 23% 26% 24% Not Free At All 8% 16% 12% Don't Know/ No response 2% 3% 3% Base: All Radio Listeners 3213
6.6 Women In Parliament Segments
This section aimed to explore the differences in Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours of respondents to a range of governance related indicators. The questions were designed to reflect the aims of the segment including: • increasing understanding of and trust in the political system • emphasizing the importance of the role of women in Parliament and society more broadly • emphasizing the importance of voting • encouraging women to feel that they have a voice
This segment has been running since March 2007 and so far, 27 different episodes of this segment have been broadcast. Each segment involved an interview with a female Member of Parliament and discussion of her experiences.
54 This section includes responses on the following: • views on the acceptability of female MPs • levels of understanding of the political system • levels of trust in the political system • attitudes to voting
6.6.1. Women as MPs
Respondents were asked whether or not they agreed with the following statement: • In our country it is acceptable for a woman to be a member of Parliament
Women were significantly more likely to agree with this statement than men – 73% of women agreed and only 56% of men.
Analyzing by the intensity of listenership, it is evident that the heavy listeners of AWH have more supportive attitudes towards women’s role in public life, including their role in governing the country as MPs.
Table 16: Views on Women’s Role by Intensity of Exposure In our country it is acceptable for a Heavy Medium Low Non- women……….. Listener Listener Listener Listener To get paid work outside the home 77% 71% 65% 67% To have their own business/enterprise 53% 50% 50% 45% To have an influence on issues in the community 65% 63% 55% 53% To be a teacher 82% 82% 77% 80% To be a member of parliament 70% 71% 61% 61% Base: All active radio listeners (n=2519)
6.6.2. Understanding of the political system Respondents were asked whether they could name any of the levels of government in Afghanistan.
Comparison by gender With the exception of government at the village level (this includes Jirga/ Shura/ Malik/ Khans/ Nawabs) men were more able to name the different levels of Government than women (See Chart 46).
55 Chart 46: There are different levels of government in Afghanistan, can you name any? (% naming)
There are different levels of Government in Afghanistan, can you name any?
90 77.3 80 71.1 67.1 70 58.2 60 51.6 50 40.3 Male % 40 32.1 Female 30 24.1 21.7 23.6 20 10 0 Central Provincial District Municipal Village
Bases differ across levels of government
Comparison by level of exposure It was anticipated that those who listen to the programme regularly would be more aware of ‘Central Government’ than non-listeners. The following table confirms that a higher percentage of AWH listeners are familiar with the Central Government. For other levels there were no significant differences in the awareness of listeners and non-listeners, except for CDC where a higher proportion of listeners compared to non-listeners were aware.
Table 17: Awareness of different levels of Government Heavy Medium Low Non- Listener Listener Listener Listener Central Government 75% 76% 76% 70% Provincial government 68% 69% 61% 67% District government (including Jirga/Shura/Woluswal) 47% 44% 46% 47% Municipal Government (includes Mayor) 27% 35% 31% 28% Village government (Jirga/Shura/Malik/Arbab/Mirab/Khans/Nawabs) 25% 23% 23% 23% Community Development Council (CDC) 25% 26% 18% 19% Base: All Respondents (n=2519)
6.6.3. Familiarity with different levels of government
Respondents were asked whether they felt familiar enough or not with each of the different levels of government shown above.
Comparison by gender Across each level of government men felt more familiar than women.
56 Chart 47: Familiarity with Different Levels of Governemnt.(% Yes) by gender
Familiarity with Different Levels of Government (% of Yes) by Gender (Prompted)
80 74 72 69 65 65 66 70 62 61 62 63 63 57 58 60 51 54 50 Total % 40 Male 30 Female 20 10 0 Central Provincial District Municipal Village
Base: All Active radio listeners (n=3213) (Male (n=1606), Female (n=1607))
6.6.4. Trust in different levels of government
Respondents were asked how much trust they have in the different levels of government.
Comparison by gender Women were slightly less trusting of village level government than the men. Responses for local and central government officials were similar for men and women.
Charts 48 – 51: How much trust do you have in the following institutions (by gender)?
Trust In Member of Jirga Trust In Member of the Shura
36 36 50 41 40 33 34 38 37 31 32 40 33 32 29 Tot al 30 20 Tot al 30 18 16 % 17 17 16 Male % 14 15 20 13 13 14 20 13 Male Female 10 10 Female
0 0 Not Trust at Trust a Lit t le Trust Most ly Trust Not Trust at Trust a Lit t le Trust Most ly Trust All Complet ely All Complet ely
Trust In Local government off icials Trust In Central government of ficials
37 37 36 34 40 34 33 50 38 39 37 35 36 34 30 40 Tot al Tot al 17 17 16 % 13 15 30 20 12 Male % 15 Male 20 15 14 12 12 13 10 Female Female 10 0 0 Not Trust at Trust a Lit t le Trust Most ly Trust Not Trust at Trust a Lit t le Trust Most ly Trust All Complet ely All Complet ely
Base: All (bases different for each level of government)
57 6.6.5. Participation in political processes
Respondents were asked whether they had participated in the following activities: • voted in the last election • peaceful demonstration • contacted a Member of Parliament
Comparison by gender As expected there are significant differences between the level of participation in these activities between men and women: • 73% of men and 66% of women voted in the last election • 33% of men and 22% of women have taken part in a peaceful demonstration • 39% of men and 28% of women have contacted a Member of Parliament
Chart 52: Political activities respondents have participated in (% Yes), by gender
One Has Participated In (% of Yes) by Gender
73 80 70 66 70 60 Total 50 39 33 % 40 28 Male 30 20 Female 10 0 Voting in last election Contacting a MP
Base: All Active radio listeners (n=3142) (Male (n=1574), Female (n=1568))
Comparison by level of exposure Analysis of levels of participation by exposure group was undertaken for ‘contacting an MP’ as it was hypothesised that regular listeners would be more likely to contact an MP as a result of hearing this segment. Data indicates that higher percentage of AWH listeners compared to non-listeners have participated in various political activities. However, it is interesting to note that the participation is higher among medium and low listeners compared to heavy listeners. This could be because a high proportion of heavy listeners are women and housewives who do not get as many opportunities to participate in such activities outside their homes.
Table 18: Participation in Different Political Activities Heavy Medium Low Non- Listener Listener Listener Listener Voting in last national election 76% 82% 79% 79% Participating in a peaceful demonstration 28% 34% 35% 32% Contacting a Member of Parliament 37% 42% 48% 38% Base: Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
58 6.6.6. Fear of participation of participation in political processes
Respondents were asked if they were to participate in these activities in the future, how much fear they would have.
Comparison by gender As expected women were significantly more likely than men to select ‘some fear’ or ‘a lot of fear’ in response to this question. • More than a third (38%) of all respondents said that they would experience ‘a lot of fear’ or ‘some fear’ voting in a general election (men: 32%; women: 42%) • Half of all respondents said that they would experience ‘a lot of fear’ or ‘some fear’ contacting a Member of Parliament (men: 42%; women: 57%)
Charts 53 & 54: How much fear would you feel if you …..(by gender)?
How Much Fear When Voting in Election How Much Fear When Contacting a Member of Parliament
80 70 68 58 70 63 60 59 50 60 50 43 41 50 Total 37 Total 40 33 % 40 Male % Male 28 30 30 30 26 Female Female 20 16 20 12 13 9 9 10 6 10 0 0 No fear Some fear A lot of fear No fear Some fear A lot of fear
Base: All Active radio listeners (n=3142) (Male (n=1574), Female (n=1568))
Comparison by level of exposure It was anticipated that exposure to the segment on women in Parliament would result in respondents feeling less fear about contacting an MP in the future. Interviewing MPs about their journey to becoming an MP, their role and responsibilities and the process involved in contacting an MP may break down some of the pre-conceived barriers and reduce levels of apprehension.
Table 19: Willingness to participate in political activities without any fear Heavy Medium Low Non- Would feel no fear in……. Listener Listener Listener Listener Contacting a Member of Parliament 40% 36% 38% 35% Base: All Active radio listeners (n=2519)
6.6.7. Attitudes to voting
Respondents were asked for their views on the following statement: • When people like you vote they can really change what is happening in Afghanistan today
Comparison by gender Women were more likely to agree/strongly agree with this statement than men (men: 61%: women 65%).
59 Comparison by level of exposure It can be seen that a higher percentage of AWH listeners expressed strong agreement with the statement that when people like them vote they can really change what is happening in Afghanistan.
Table 20: Attitude to Voting Heavy Medium Low Non- % Strongly agreeing Listener Listener Listener Listener When people like me vote, they can really change the way that Afghanistan is governed 26% 24% 28% 19% Base: All Active Radio Listeners (n=2519)
6.6.8. Faith in the political system
We asked respondents to what extent they agree with the following statements: • You have a say in the way Afghanistan is run • You don’t think the government care much about what people like you think • More and more I feel helpless in face of what is happening in Afghanistan today • When people like you vote they can really change the way that Afghanistan is governed • Democracy brings westernisation, too much freedom and will challenge Islamic values
Comparison by gender There were some differences in the responses of men compared to women to these statements: • Women were more likely to strongly disagree/disagree that they have a say in the way Afghanistan is run (men: 33%; women 39%) • Interestingly, although women are less likely than men to feel that they ‘have a say in the way Afghanistan is run’ they were more likely to disagree/strongly disagree that ‘the Government doesn’t care much about what people think’ (men: 41%; women: 45%) • There were minimal differences between men and women’ s responses to the statement ‘more and more I feel helpless in face of what is happening in Afghanistan today’. • Overall women had more positive values in relation to democracy. 52% of women and only 42% of men strongly disagreed/disagreed that ‘democracy brings westernisation, too much freedom and will challenge Islamic values’. Furthermore, 8% more women than men strongly disagreed with this statement.
60 Charts 55 to 58: Faith in Political System
Chart 55: Chart 56:
One has a say in the way Afghanistan is run Democracy brings westernisat ion, and will challenge Islamic values 50 46 43 45 41 33 40 35 30 27 28 27 35 30 26 25 28 Total 24 23 22 30 25 25 20 23 Tot al % 25 21 21 20 Male 20 16 % Male 20 Female 15 15 11 10 11 10 Female 10 5 5 0 0 St rongly Disagree Agree Strongly Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly agree disagree agree disagree
Base: Total=3045 (men=1550) (women=1495) Base: Total=3036 (men=1526) (women=1510)
Chart 57: Chart 58:
One feels helpless in the face of what's happening in Afghanistan Government doesn't care much about what people think today 45 38 40 45 40 37 38 38 37 33 40 35 31 28 35 29 30 30 30 28 Total 23 23 Total 25 25 23 % 18 18 18 Male % Male 20 20 13 15 13 12 Female 15 10 11 10 Female 10 10 5 5 0 0 Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly agree Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly agree disagree disagree
Base: Total=3001 (men=1513) (women=1488) Base: Total=3047 (men=1552) (women=1495)
Comparison by level of exposure Data shows that heavy listeners of AWH do not only feel more engaged with the local and national governance systems, but they are also more critical of the government. On one hand they feel they have a say in the way their local area and the country is run, but on the other hand they think that the Government doesn’t care much about what they think. Also, there appears to be a simmering helplessness in not being able to change many things in Afghanistan.
Table 21: faith in the Political System Heavy Medium Low Non- % Agreeing strongly Listener Listener Listener Listener I don't think the government cares much about what people like me think 19% 12% 13% 16% I have a say in the way your local area is run 23% 17% 11% 20% I have a say in the way Afghanistan is run 22% 16% 9% 20% More and more, I feel helpless in the face of what's happening in Afghanistan today 30% 28% 28% 25% Base: All Active Radio Listeners (N=2519)
61 CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSIONS
7.1 Performance of Programme in Reaching Target Audiences
It is clear that Afghan Woman’s Hour has built a formidable awareness and reach among Afghan audiences. Half of all who had listened to the radio in the last month had heard of Afghan Woman’s Hour (AWH). Awareness was higher in the South Western region at 63.7% compared with the lowest level of awareness at 23.4% in the Hazarjat region. Further awareness was higher among women – the primary target audience of the programme.
The quantitative survey indicates that about 45% of active radio listeners have listened to Afghan Woman’s Hour. This is equivalent to approximately 11 million Afghans.
More than half of all female active radio listeners had listened to Afghan Woman’s Hour. Again, it is apparent that AWH is reaching its primary target audience with 55% of women having ever listened to the programme. Nearly all those who were aware of the programme had heard the programme at some point. The majority of AWH listeners are female, but it is notable that in a country with significant separation of the sexes nearly 40% of those who reported listening to AWH in the last month were males.
With the exception of gender, the demographic characteristics of AWH listeners mirror those found in the overall sample. The largest portion of the audience is rural women, but AWH is reaching a broad cross section of Afghan society and serves as vehicle for the distribution of information to a variety of different demographic groups within Afghanistan.
7.2 Impact
On the positive side, the data indicated that women displayed a significant capacity to aspire, which included specific aspirations in domains relevant to the programme segments they had recently finished listening to (suggesting that AWH has made an impact.) They also had critical awareness of social barriers, could identify causal agents that might help or hinder them, displayed the ability to brainstorm (an important component of problem-solving ) and had the capacity to express voice within the all-female group. Furthermore, they displayed the intention to inform other women of relevant issues, and, in some cases, the intention to discuss these issues.
Less encouraging, however, was that for the most part their aspirations were not particularly focused or specific, and they had a low perceived ability to influence and low perceived competence outside of the female domain of child-rearing, (which is already considered to be an area of female expertise.) This meant that they did not display knowledge of the ways in which to influence causal agents. For example, a woman might demonstrate knowledge that men were causal agents, but not be able to indicate how she would go about attempting to influence them. There was little evidence of leadership , and little indication that participants would
62 take any direct action to influence outcomes other than discussing the issues raised with other women.
The lack of perceived ability to influence and perceived competence proved critical to all the other components, as even in the areas where the women excelled, such as in their capacity to brainstorm, they displayed passivity; the suggestions they generated indicated not what actions they could take, but what could be done for them.
Encouragingly, there is evidence that AWH has the potential to enhance women’s capacity to aspire, by giving them ideas about specific goals. It is also has the potential to enhance women’s perceived ability to influence, and perceived efficacy.
The litmus test for empowerment is whether poor and subordinate groups have effectively advanced their particular interests through their own choice and action. In order for AWH to help women translate their aspirations into action, it must attempt to facilitate agency through psychological empowerment. In order for empowerment to occur, however, aspects of the opportunity structure (such as male opinion) must also be addressed. As there is a large male audience for Afghan Women’s Hour, a significant opportunity exists for the programme to tackle this aspect of the empowerment framework as well.
63 CHAPTER 8: RECOMMENDATIONS
8.1 The quantitative study revealed that AWH has built a formidable awareness and reach in Afghanistan, reaching 45% of the radio listeners or 11 million people in Afghanistan. Further, it is reaching its target audience with 55% women having listened to the programme. However, the reach is relatively low in the Hazarjat & Northern regions compared to other provinces.
RECOMMENDATION 1: It is recommended that AWH explore methods of increasing its reach in the two provinces – Hazarjat and Northern provinces while continuing to build on the high reach in other areas. It is significant that AWH is also listened to by males, and the programme must continue to appeal to them because they are important stakeholders in the process of empowerment.
8.2 AWH can help provide Afghan women with specific, achievable goals that will help them to improve their lives :
The quantitative survey results show that more than three-quarters of AWH listeners have listened to different segments of the programme – Testimonials, Music of Our Village, Women & Work, and Women in Parliament. Close to 90% listeners agree on the benefits of the specific segments. The benefits include inspiration they get from listening to individual experiences, influencing their opinions or behaviours in different ways, making them feel proud of Afghan culture and encouraging political, civic and electoral engagement among the listeners.
AWH audiences who participated in the focus group discussions also displayed a significant capacity to aspire and dream. They frequently said that they would like to see changes and improvements in women’s lives. Having this “capacity to aspire” is a necessary and positive component of psychological empowerment.
However, the women’s aspirations, while frequent, tended to be vague. e.g. This kind of programs can change our life to a beneficial life [32, Housewife, Illiterate, Dari, Kabul]
The women’s goals were for the most part broad and undefined, with not a lot of concrete, small scale aspirations mentioned.
After listening to the AWH segment about the “grass-lady” who started a dairy- cottage industry, however, the women got ideas about more specific goals towards which they could aim. e.g. I do want to get a cow now and start milking it. [20, Housewife, Illiterate, Pashto, Kabul]
This suggests that AWH can help give women more concrete ways in which to focus their broader aspirations for change.
RECOMMENDATION 2: It is recommended that the AWH continue to showcase
64 the successes of other women in specific small-scale endeavours that could be replicated by listeners, in order to help listeners develop concrete, achievable goals.
8.3 AWH can help increase women’s perceived ability to influence and perceived competence:
Although the women in the focus groups had broad aspirations for change, they had very little confidence in their own ability to influence the world around them and act competently, both necessary components for psychological empowerment. This is also resonated in the quantitative survey findings. The survey found that although more than 60% people feel that they have a say in the way their local area and Afghanistan is run, the majority also feel that the government doesn’t care what they think and they feel helpless in face of what is happening to Afghanistan today.
Most of the comments made by participants in the focus groups were notable for their passivity; women spoke of the hope that their lives would be changed, rather than expressing a desire to change their lives through action. Agents of change were usually seen to be men, the radio programme AWH, other radio and television programmes, the government, Mullah’s and society in general. e.g. All the problems are related to government somehow. The government should do something about all problems. [26, Journalist, Literate, Dari, Mazar-e- Sharif]
Listening to AWH did help to increase women’s feeling that they could do something to change their situation in certain instances. Women who listened to the “grass-lady” segment felt they too could earn an income: e.g. I felt that every woman can work to find money. [20, Housewife, Illiterate, Pashto, Jalalabad]
AWH segments that depict women working and succeeding could therefore serve as an important confidence booster for other women.
One weakness of the segments played, however, was that they did not teach women how to emulate or replicate the successes they were hearing about. Listeners were often left with questions about exactly how a specific outcome was achieved (e.g. How did the woman make that product? How did the woman get permission from her husband to do that?)
RECOMMENDATION 3: It is recommended that the AWH provide specific information that will enable women to replicate what they have heard about, thus increasing their perceived ability to influence and perceived competence. (For example, modelling the kind of conversation a woman might have with her husband in order to get permission to work outside the home would be more useful that just hearing about a women who got such permission.)
8.4 AWH can attempt to help develop women’s critical awareness of facilitators that will enable them to overcome the barriers they face.
The participants in the study displayed “critical awareness” about a wide range
65 of factors in their environment, most notably the barriers facing women in Afghan society. Their knowledge often went beyond simple understanding, to a highly complex understanding of how and why the barriers existed. Some of the barriers mentioned were:
o The difficult lives that many Afghan women lead o The extremely hard work that many Afghan women must engage in o The barriers and restrictions on some women’s freedom of movement o Problems and conflicts that can occur in households o Pressure on women to bear sons o Difficulty accessing healthcare o Difficulty getting education o Barriers to discussing issues with men that women want to discuss o Difficulties in breaking through the culture of inequality
Similarly, in the quantitative survey, insecurity (attacks/ violence/ terrorism), presence of Taliban and presence of Warlords emerged as the key problems related to security. Economic hardship comprising unemployment, poor economy, high prices & poverty was the other biggest problem facing Afghanistan. Governance issues (Corruption, power, roads, education, health, shelter, drinking water) were cited by few respondents as the major problem.
The respondents were, however, much weaker when it came to identifying facilitators that could help them overcome the barriers they faced.
RECOMMENDATION 4: It is recommended that the AWH focus on facilitators which can enable women, in both small and large ways, to overcome barriers. Facilitators could be anything from skills, to knowledge of community organisations, to information.
8.5 AWH can attempt to help women identify causal agents and how to influence them:
While the women in the study displayed a large degree of critical awareness about the barriers they faced, they did not display a great deal of knowledge about how to influence intermediaries, such as people, objects or events, which could either inhibit or enhance their efforts to achieve their goals. They could only identify such intermediaries.
RECOMMENDATION 5: It is recommended that AWH address ways in which women can influence men, heads of households, religious leaders, radio and TV stations, and government. (For example, segments could include arguments to support a woman’s case, which could be used in a discussion. Or segments could include information on how to contact members of parliament, or how to persuade a literate family member to write a letter for you.)
8.6 AWH can attempt to help women develop certain skills which facilitate empowerment:
There are several skills which facilitate empowerment, namely: decision- making, problem-solving, leadership and capacity to express voice.
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In the focus groups, it was difficult to draw conclusions about “decision making” and “leadership”, partially because they were not the specific focus of the initial BBC WST research. However there were several examples of excellent problem solving skills. The women in the focus groups were able to engage in very effective collective brainstorming, although most of their suggestions were passive.
e.g. I think that they can enlighten people's minds by using other media such as posters and stickers. They can do so in clinics since clinics are good places in terms of location. [30, Seamstress, Literate, Dari, Kabul] I think through medical propagations which have been on since a long time they can express their messages concerning this issue…[27, Nurse, Literate, Dari, Kabul] They can put such messages in the books of literacy courses. It is a very useful channel as well. [26, Housewife, Literate, Dari, Kabul]
The women also displayed a significant capacity to express voice within the all- female group. They were able to debate, contest, oppose, question and share their opinions and experiences.
RECOMMENDATION 6: It is recommended that AWH focus on developing women’s decision-making and leadership skills, which are important precursors to empowered action. (This could be done, for example, by interviewing successful women and asking them how they make or have made important decisions.) AWH could also try to facilitate more active thinking about how to overcome barriers. (For example, when interviewing women about their problems, an interviewer could ask about the ways in which the women themselves can take action. Testimonials are also a vehicle for showcasing how women’s own actions have helped them overcome adversity.)
8.7 AWH can attempt to increase women’s understanding of the resources required to achieve certain concrete objectives.
It is difficult to measure resource mobilization skills in the absence of specific goals, as different goals require different resources. While the women in the study did express some understanding of general resources that could help them, they did not display extensive knowledge of how to acquire those resources, or manage them once obtained.
RECOMMENDATION 7: It is recommended that AWH help increase women’s understanding of required resources by highlighting those resources necessary to achieve certain concrete objectives. ( For example, after a segment about a woman who runs a dairy cottage industry, there could be a short instructional section about the resources required to run such a business, such as livestock, pasture, family support, buyers for products, etc.)
A notable exception was information. The women recognized the radio as a powerful source of information, and were comfortable requesting information on items they wished to hear about.
67 RECOMMENDATION 8: It is recommended that AWH continue to recognize the value of audience research, as audience research ensures the programme is covering issues relevant to women, in a manner that women can relate to. Also, the act of giving input can itself empower the listener.
8.8 AWH can attempt to encourage community participation, as it is through the formation of collectives that empowerment is most effectively achieved:
The goal of psychological empowerment is ultimately some sort of behaviour change indicative of empowered action. The evidence indicates two types of behaviour change among the focus group participants:
Firstly, women absorbed the messages of the three segments they heard, and expressed the desire or intention to:
• Breastfeed their babies equally • Not feed opium to their children • Emulate the “grass lady’s” success running the dairy cottage industry
Secondly, and perhaps more significantly, a notable portion of the study participants said that they intended to inform others about what they had learned, particularly other women. This is a form of community involvement (even though the emphasis tended to be on instructing, advising or passing on “correct” ways of doing.)
Community involvement and the formation of collectives is an extremely important part of empowerment. Empowering individuals may not have the desired effect, because of the influence of shared values, norms, beliefs, and traditions in a society. Collective empowerment, on the other hand, can change ideas about the social order. Women who operate through collectives gain confidence and the ability to challenge power structures, leading to empowerment on both an individual and group level.
RECOMMENDATION 9: It is recommended that the AWH project facilitate bringing women together into collectives to listen to the programme. For example, the project could facilitate the formation of listening groups for women, and women could be encouraged to listen together and discuss the programme.
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