Radio Hekima FM is a radio station transmitting from the diocese of Mbinga in Tanzania. It engages youth, volunteers and media professionals to bring a fresh and updated voice to the region of Songea.
This area was not reached by many communications outlets and, since information is power and cause for social transformation, the zone had become a victim of underdevelopment. For this reason, Bishop John Ndimbo and his team decided to develop the first Catholic radio station of Mbinga, with four goals in mind: to widen the scope of evangelization of the diocese; to improve the economic and social status of the people by having an improved communication system in place; to instill their minds some morals enriched by like skills and values; to maintain and sustain the culture, traditions and customs of Tanzania.
One of the ways to reach these goals was to become a point of reference for the youth. Indeed, several young people work at Radio Hekima. For Asumtha Hekela, working there has been a “delightful experience” as she has “learned a lot about the process that goes behind producing a radio program, using computers and radio editing software. The interaction with the listeners is amazing, they are very social!”. On the listener’s side, Stella Mbunda shares her thoughts on the radio station, “I prefer listening to Radio Hekima as it helps us reflect on the word of God, it educates us on serving life and in different areas like how to engage in agricultural activities, how to preserve our environment and how to use our present resources. It informs us on different news and events that are happening in the world and our region”.
Keneth Komba, another listener, says “this is my favorite community-based radio station. I love it because it educates us on various areas like faith, economics, social and political issues. This station is vital to the development of our community, they are working hard for our improvement as a society”.
Radio Hekima focuses on various issues, but mainly on enhancing cooperation with local communities in the development of the welfare of people, and in solving their social problems, as well as promoting practical works of self-sufficiency in order to uplift their social economic status. They strive to foster a greater appreciation of cultural and ethnic tolerance, strengthening the civil and cultural life of the community, and supporting the rural community’s initiatives and interactions through an improved communications system.
Watch episode 2 of our Radio Hekima series
And enjoy episode 1.
Inspiring hope: a SIGNIS project empowering new voices is a campaign sponsored by SIGNIS with support from the Catholic Communication Campaign aims to share stories of hope that inspire and generate social transformation from new communication resources—a journey through Burundi, Liberia, Belize, Mexico, and Tanzania.