Promoting Gender and Inclusion through Community Radio: BCRA’s Village Court Awareness Initiative

The Bangladesh Community Radio Association (BCRA), with support from the UNDP Activating Village Courts in Bangladesh Phase III (AVCB) project, successfully implemented the initiative “Developing and Broadcasting Community Radio Programs for Promoting Gender and Inclusion in the Village Court System.”
The initiative used community radio to increase public awareness of the Village Court system, access to justice, gender equality and social inclusion, with particular attention to women, marginalized and vulnerable communities, persons with disabilities, indigenous groups and hard-to-reach populations.

Key Achievements

Through 14 participating community radio stations, the project achieved:

• 196 rebroadcasts of Village Court dramas
• 11,700 PSA and jingle broadcasts
• 30 phone-in live talk shows
• 280 magazine programmes
• 14 orientation sessions with 153 participants
• 8 Radio Festivals with 825 participants
• 420 community/listener feedback responses
• Estimated radio coverage of 1,821,004 people
• Approximately 2.63 million social media outreach through Radio Festival activities
The project also provided platforms for community members, experts, government representatives, women, youth and local stakeholders to engage in discussions on Village Courts, social justice and inclusion.

Community Engagement

The Radio Festivals created opportunities for direct interaction between community radio stations and local communities through awareness activities, discussions and participatory events. These activities helped bring information on Village Courts and access to justice closer to people at the community level.
Through locally relevant content and interactive programming, the initiative demonstrated the role of community radio as an accessible platform for promoting justice, inclusion and informed community participation.
Project at a Glance

Implemented by: Bangladesh Community Radio Association (BCRA)
Supported by: UNDP – Activating Village Courts in Bangladesh Phase III (AVCB)
Participating Radio Stations: 14
Drama Rebroadcasts: 196
PSA & Jingle Broadcasts: 11,700
Magazine Programmes: 280
Radio Festivals: 8
Festival Participants: 825
Community Feedback: 420
Estimated Coverage: 1,821,004 people