Elections are on the way in Kenya: Jingles are created to urge Politicians to help children and End-FGM

By Ruth Kilimo,

The Radio Project:

My project was geared towards creating awareness on the issues affecting children, and the harmful practices of FGM, since it was the day of the African child, our discussion was on the safety of children even as we head towards the election period here in Kenya.

Our emphasis was on the politicians to take precautions and ensure that they protect children at all costs. We also had the jingles run all through the day with the key message being on Leaders to protect children against all forms of… Click To Tweet

Our success:

The media project was a huge success, it attracted a huge listening partly because before the show a poster was shared on their social media platforms and also on my social media. This created huge traffic and made the conversation a success. Concerns received included parents asking how to deal with politicians who will give children some money during campaigns to go and convince their parents to vote for them, this is because there have been several incidences where it has been noticed and children end up engaging in illegal games such as gambling. This was addressed by a children officer who was put on call to shed some light on how that issue can be avoided and if it ever happens how to go about it.

Strong messages:

Protection of children is a collective responsibility and leaders have a big role to play. With policies in place, the leaders must ensure the safety of children all over. Parents too have to ensure that they instill discipline in their children as well as teachers while at school, also religious leaders while the children are at places of worship.

Unexpected wins:

A major one was when the children’s officer was put on the call and he answered so many questions concerning the protection of children. He went ahead to give more information on how one can go about should they come across a child in danger. He said they will also publish a notice to all politicians to ensure that they have the best interest of a child while carrying on their campaigns.

Next time…

I would advance and go to television now because it has wider viewership and audience. Also, since it goes to the whole county, I will have a senior person in government from the children’s department warn the public against manipulating children and protect them against any form of violence.