Global Issues

When Information Saves Lives

Engaging Local Media in Humanitarian Crises

CASE STUDY: Refugees and IDPs—Darfur/ Eastern Chad

George Papagiannis/Internews

"Imagine an African widow with eight children and nothing to eat and whom you give five to eight kilos of millet a month. It’s very difficult. We go to camps, we meet people, and we hear their complaints. Then we talk to humanitarian workers to see if there is a solution." — Houda Mahamat Malloum, a journalist for The Ouaddaï Voice (La Voix du Ouaddaï), a radio station Internews established in eastern Chad

THE NEED

The six-year conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan has made millions homeless and sent hundreds of thousands of traumatized Darfuris across the border to refugee camps in eastern Chad. Meanwhile, fighting in neighboring Chad has displaced many local Chadians and forced them into IDP camps.

THE RESPONSE

Starting in 2005, Internews has built three community radio stations along the Chad-Sudan border and trained local journalists to run them. The stations allow Darfur refugees and displaced Chadians to hear and produce news that directly affects their survival, including information on security, food rations, and water distribution; news on their home areas; and special programming on women’s issues. The stations also serve as a communication channel between relief agencies and camp dwellers.

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