By Rachel Kakraba
National Program Officer, Communication and Information, UNESCO-Ghana, Abdul Hamid YAKUB, has asked governments the world over to resource public and community radio stations in order to continue to serve the public interest. He said radio continues to provide a platform for citizens to engage, which is why investing in the medium is critical.
“At UNESCO we think that public service broadcasting and community radio they need to be resourced in the sense that they serve a particular need in our society” so government all over the world should provide resources.”
Speaking to GBC NEWS on the occasion of World Radio Day, Mr. Yakub noting the contribution of radio to the public discourse, said plans by vehicle manufacturing companies to do away with AM radio in vehicles should not be supported.
“Radio in cars plays a significant role when people are driving, they are able to engage in discussion and engage in what’s going on, but there are moves to take out AM radio from cars. All these manufacturers are saying that they want to do away with radio completely, and today, for instance, should be a day that we should remind them that radio in cars is very important for people to engage.”
He said that although originality of radio may have been lost over time, it emphasises the adaptability of radio.
“In a way, we’ve lost the originality of radio as only voice, but what we are experiencing is the adaptability, how radio is able to adapt to changing times because it cannot remain the way it was.”
Proclaimed in 2011 by the Member States of UNESCO and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2012 as an International Day, February 13 has since become World Radio Day.
