The work of the BBC World Service Trust has been praised by the BBC Director General for delivering an “unmissable drama” in Afghanistan and providing a “vital source of information” in Haiti following the earthquake there earlier this year.
In a speech to the New America Foundation, Mark Thompson spoke warmly about New Home, New Life, the radio drama series which has been broadcast every week in Afghanistan for 14 years and tells stories set in rural parts of the country.
The programme is one of the BBC WST’s Afghan Education Projects (AEP), the largest media-for-development initiative in Afghanistan.
Speaking on 5 October, the Director General said: “HIV and AIDs prevention, children's health, the controversial topic of dowries, how to vote - these are some of the underlying educational themes and messages New Home, New Life has been able to deliver.
'Vivid' drama
“The skill of the writers and producers has been to encapsulate these messages in a vivid and unmissable drama, which is why the programme reaches 11 million listeners each week, around two-thirds of all radio listeners in Afghanistan.”
Mr Thompson said the programme has become part of Afghan national life.
“The characters are so well-known that politicians often compare each other to them,” he said.
Storylines on the show are intended to encourage discussion on conflict issues and represent a wide range of viewpoints.
The issues covered in the drama are reinforced in educational series Learning for Life which offers practical information to help listeners put lessons learned into action.
And a monthly magazine, New Home, New Life Cartoon, featuring storylines from the radio drama accompanied by simple captions in Dari and Pashto is also published.
'Vital' information source
The BBC WST works with various organisations and institutions, including the Afghan government, Afghan broadcasters, non-governmental organisations and schools.
AEP programmes are broadcast by the BBC World Service before being aired again by local radio stations.
Mr Thompson also used his address to comment on the BBC WST’s work in Haiti following the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck the island on 12 January, killing up to 230,000 and leaving more than one million people homeless.
“In the first days of the disaster, we launched a Creole language service out of our BBC Mundo newsroom in Miami,” he said.
“It became a vital source of information to Haitians and rescue and aid teams on the ground, relaying critical updates about water supplies, food drops and temporary hospitals.”
The BBC WST collaborated with Internews, UN OCHA and other agencies to deliver coordinated information to audiences in Haiti.
