Amake Tofie , a small-scale farmer with a slight drinking problem, and Ba Estelleh, a housewife who looks after the orphans of her daughter who has died from HIV/AIDS, are household names in Zambia, thanks to a WFP-supported radio soap opera highlighting risks to food security.

Lusaka, 22 December 2003 - 'Ichi chalo', a phrase in the indigenous Bemba language, is being heard more and more frequently in Zambia.

Literally translated, 'ichi chalo' means 'this world in which we live'. But, for the growing number of Zambians struggling against food shortages, it has become a common way of referring to their daily battle to feed themselves and their families.

Radio stations, and in particular community radio stations, have proven to be one of the best mediums for disseminating information in Zambia
Richard Ragan, WFP Country Director

So, when WFP decided to sponsor a new and innovative radio series devoted to highlighting the risks to food security, 'Ichi Chalo' was the show's natural title.

The programme is the centrepiece of a WFP campaign designed to help prevent a repeat of last year's food crisis, which threatened 2.9 million people.

Local company - Window Images: Media in Development - will produce the programmes, with close and constant collaboration from WFP.

"The goal of these programmes is for people to draw the link between food security and their own security," said Richard Ragan, WFP Country Director in Zambia.

"To do this, we wanted to find a medium that was approachable and fun for people to listen to."

SOAP OPERA

In total, there will be 10 radio shows on food security. Each will be broadcast in English and seven indigenous languages on both national and local community stations.

Adopting a similar format to that used by the successful South African series on health and social change 'Soul City', the 'Ichi chalo', radio shows will have two segments -- a 12-minute dramatized soap opera followed by 18-minutes of interviews and informative discussion.

Depending on the topic being addressed, the soap opera is set in either a typical urban or rural community, where a host of entertaining characters are confronted with a range of issues linked to hunger and food security.

Topics include the impact of HIV/AIDS, childhood malnutrition and natural disasters such as droughts and floods.

The programmes have not shirked potentially controversial subjects such as biotechnology, unfavourable government policies on agriculture, food relief, crop diversification and indigenous foods. These topics will all be woven into the series as it unfolds.

REGULARS

All successful shows have good characters and 'Ichi Chalo' is no exception:

Amake Tofie is a market-trader and small-scale farmer with a slight drinking problem, while her good friend, Ba Estelleh, is a housewife who looks after the orphans of her daughter who has died from HIV/AIDS.

Other regulars include Amake's wealthier half-sister, Aunty Maggie Tembo, and Ba Estelleh's brother from the village, Ba Jailos.

The project is already proving a hit with Zambians. "WFP's radio series on food security has had a great impact on me and my friends," said one listener in the capital, Lusaka.

"We can laugh at the stereotypes in the soap opera, but we do get the message at the same time. It is vital to achieve and sustain food security at the individual level, at the household level and at the national level."

SCRIPTED

However, the shows are not just targeted at people in the capital. They have been carefully scripted to appeal to everyone from farmers in remote rural areas to the top decision-makers in Lusaka.

By translating and adapting the original show from English into Zambia's seven main indigenous languages (Nyanja, Bemba, Lozi, Tonga, Kaonde, Luvale and Lunda), WFP hopes the programme will broaden its own appeal and overcome linguistic and cultural barriers in the fight for food security.

"I have spoken to people from the Western province and they say that the first shows have already made a difference", said Wilson Kasunga, who translates the show into Lunda.

"They now understood that by changing their habits, they can improve their food security. For example, they say that they will no longer store their food in open calabashes where rats can get to it."

NATIONWIDE

Broadcast on both national and community stations, these programmes have the potential to reach, and influence, over six million people - more than 50 percent of the population.

"Radio stations, and in particular community radio stations, have proven to be one of the best mediums for disseminating information in Zambia," says Ragan.

"WFP believes that this is the first step towards an open discussion, which will encourage Zambians to make informed decisions that will help them in 'this life'- or 'Ichi Chalo'."