Founded in 1979, Farm Radio International (FARM) was created by Canadian radio broadcaster George Atkins, who realized the disconnect between the wide African radio audience and the lack of good information being offered to farmers while on a trip in Zambia. Coming from both a farming and radio-broadcasting background himself, George saw radio as a widely accessible solution to the scarce information available to small-scale African farmers. With at least 75% of households in developing countries having access to a radio, and the African countries FARM works in ranked as some of the least developed in the world, FARM thus works to make radio a force for change in rural Africa. 

A Charity Intelligence 2021 Top 10 International Aid Impact Charity

Farm Radio International works in 41 countries to improve the livelihood of rural Africans by enabling access to information. It is the only international non-profit focused on using radio to inspire change in African farming communities. In F2020, Farm Radio International reached 13 million listeners of its 33 million potential audience. FARM's goal is to serve 40 million rural people with a radio project that supports them in making a change in their life by 2025.

FARM's core program is Radio Projects. It also runs two smaller programs, Radio Resources, and Radio Innovation, which improve rural radio provision. 

Radio Projects: This program was 65% of annual program spending in F2020. Farm Radio works with over 1,000 radio broadcast organizations to encourage effective development through radio broadcasted topics such as crop and pest management, climate change adaptation strategies, gender equality, health and nutrition, and more. Emergency updates and support are also a broadcast topic of focus, inclusive of information on covid-19. To ensure that broadcasted information and available radio channels are community-sensitive, FARM researches the needs of the community before providing radio infrastructure. FARM then works with local stations to design suitable programs, provide broadcasters resources, offer technical innovations, and track the stations' engagement with listeners. In F2020, 71 partners aired FARM's radio programs and 31 radio projects were implemented.

Radio Resources: FARM's Radio Resources program made up 28% of program costs in F2020. This program provides local broadcasters resources such as scripts and training so they can produce and present relevant radio programs. In F2020, 225 individual radio broadcasters were trained, 75% of whom are women. FARM also provided 107 resources to 2,829 radio broadcasters in F2020. To improve radio infrastructure, FARM trained 79 radio stations on interactive radio aimed at promoting sustainable development.

Radio Innovation: This program accounts for 8% of program spending. Farm Radio develops innovative digital solutions and develops engaging new radio approaches to make radio more effective and interactive. FARM's Uliza tool, Swahili for “ask,” is its main innovation. It is used by Farm Radio to allow listeners to communicate with their radio station quickly and for free. By doing so, broadcasters can gauge their engagement with the audience to improve programming. In F2020, FARM facilitated 68,693 unique interactions between listeners and stations via Uliza. Uliza's newest extension, Uliza Log, can now analyze and provide feedback on broadcasters' programs.

Farm Radio International had Canadian donations of $1.7m and international donations of $3.4m in F2020. Both Canadian and international donations largely came from government or development-affiliated agencies. Administrative costs are 6% of revenues and fundraising costs are 24% of donations. For every dollar donated to the charity, 70 cents go to the cause, which is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. The charity’s funding reserves of $943k can cover 2 months of annual program spending.

This report is an update that has been sent to Farm Radio International for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming. 

Updated on June 8, 2021 by Rachel Leteta.