The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative

After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. 

Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com. 

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

Time to read
1 minute
Print
a- a+
Published 21 years ago
Last updated 1 year ago
Read so far

Local Voices DJ Programme

0 comments
This project worked to build the capacity of young local deejays (DJs) to communicate about HIV/AIDS prevention and related issues through a 10-day training session carried out by the Internews’ Local Voices project in Abuja, Nigeria with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Organisers hoped that, through this experience, the 14 selected participants would be more adept in channelling preventative information and awareness about HIV/AIDS through their artistic productions, particularly as recognised radio deejays in Nigeria.
Communication Strategies

This project used face-to-face interaction to expose young deejays in Nigeria (who hold positions of authority amongst their listeners) to HIV/AIDS-related issues, in an effort to shape the way they disseminate preventative education through their musical productions.

The premise is that music can be a means of sharing information and raising awareness about HIV/AIDS and other issues; the strategy is based on the idea that participants would pass messages and memories from their experience in this training session to listeners through their nationwide broadcasts.

The project was geared toward participation: involving young musical artists in an experience that was designed to provide them with an understanding the issues that people living with HIV/AIDS face.

Specifically, the training sessions included personal interaction with people living with HIV/AIDS as well as a visit to Wuse General Hospital in Abuja, where all of the participants experienced HIV testing and counselling firsthand.

The deejays came from 10 radio stations in Lagos, Kano and Abuja and were joined by a group of rap artists/musicians known as “the Black Family & Skufaze.” The organisers sought to use the Black Family as an example of an urban youth-oriented music group that is dedicating their work to HIV/AIDS awareness. The organisers also invited internationally known DJ Georges Collinet to help the trainees integrate the information they had learned creatively into their rap between songs in a way that appeals to their young audience. Subsequently, during the training session, the Black Family wrote a song, whose chorus echoed, “Umh-ha Alele. Go-um-ha Alele…oooh, you’ve got to know your status…” The band is working on a music video of this song which encourages young people to get tested for HIV.

Development Issues

Youth, HIV/AIDS.

Key Points

According to the organisers, "The training helped to improve the deejays' knowledge of HIV/AIDS issues, with a particular focus on voluntary counselling and testing, and sensitised them to the key role they can play in reaching their young listeners with life-saving information."

Internews has carried out similar work to that described here with radio DJs in Kenya.

Partners

Internews, USAID, the Black Family & Skufaze.

Sources

Internews website on February 15 2005, and email from Liz Gold to The Communication Initiative on February 6 2006.