In 2003 - 04, Internews set up 15 independent radio stations in Afghanistan under its media development programme.

Communication is the means by which people create their identity, both individual and collective. It underlies our sense of community and our sense of difference. In community radio, skills, sound, music and speech can be recorded, edited and produced using software tools with an intuitive user interface. Computers become devices for achieving creative production goals rather than tools for business and public administration.

Communication in Afghanistan
In rural Afghanistan radio is the only source of information about market prices for crops, election, and thus the only defence against speculators and extremists. It is used in agricultural extension programmes, as a vehicle for both formal and informal education, and it also plays an important role in the preservation of local language and culture in this country where the literacy level is 20 per cent. Ninty six per cent of the households have no access to electricity and a small number of people have access to print media and TV.

Introduction of community radio
The press law signed by the President Hamid Karzai in September, 2002, paved the way for independent radio stations in the country. Prior to that, even before the war and Soviet invasion, radio was a state monopoly and community radio didn not exist. Now community radio in Afghanistan is not only creating an infrastructure but it’s also about bringing a new culture of communication which will speed up social change.

Internews initiatives
In 2003-’04, Internews set up 15 independent radio stations in Afghanistan under its media development programme. This year, Internews is setting up 20 more as part of a national network of independent local radio stations and programming.

All of these 15 radio stations began broadcasting Internews’ national programme initiative Salaam Watandar, a three hour daily program of news and entertainment, delivered to the stations over satellite. Salaam Watandar includes the popular Ba