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Catholic Radio Station Launched In Wau Sudan Catholic Radio Network has launched its 9th radio station -Voice of Hope radio FM and its branch in Western Bahr el Ghazal State capital Wau.

WAU, 10th October, 2011 [Gurtong] - Sudan Catholic Radio Network has launched its 9th radio station -Voice of Hope radio FM and its branch in Western Bahr el Ghazal State capital Wau.This is the first FM radio station of its kind to be established in Wau since the Country’s independence on 9th July 2011. The radio station will soon test its signal for three continuous hours this week, broadcasting in Frequency Modulation(FM) signal in the State capital Wau. “The signals will cover a distance of 90 Kilometres radius, which includes parts of the State and other neighbouring States but the right licensed fixed distance approximation will be determined later,” Enrica Valentini said. Voice of Hope radio is part of the Sudan Catholic Radio Network (SCRN) and also a community- based radio station now owned by the Catholic Diocese of Wau. Voice of Hope is now part of the 8 sister branches launched in Juba; Bakhita at 91 FM, Southern Kordofa, Radio Voice of Peace at 107.9 FM, Radio Emmanuel at 89 FM in Torit, Voice of Love at 93.6 FM in Malakal, Radio Easter-94 FM in Yei, Radio Good News at 89 FM in Rumbek and Don Bosco 91 FM in Tonj. “SCRN is an articulated media project constituted by community – based radio stations broadcasting in Frequency Modulation (FM) that will unite the people of Western Bahr el Ghazal State to build a united society through peace initiatives,” Enrica Valentini told Gurtong. The station will broadcast and share programs in English, local Arabic news, civic education and pastoral programs as well as other local languages which are understood by the local people in Wau, she added. Voice of Hope radio in Wau will also focus on the Cultural values and sensitivity for local communities in the State. “Our vision is to have a reconciled society, capacity build human and spiritual values rooted in justice and honesty,” she stated. “Our Radio will also contribute in the spiritual welfare of the people of Western Bahr el Ghazal State through relevant information and civil education, paying a special attention to the vulnerable groups,” Enrica said.

Broadcasting

The state-owned Sudan Radio and Television Corporation, SRTC, is the only broadcaster with transmission facilities within Sudan. The government says that it is open to private broadcasting, but has not issued any licenses as yet. Sudan State TV broadcasts 18 hours a day and its radio arm – Radio Omdurman – broadcasts 24 hours a day and can be received throughout almost all Sudan. In addition, there are 17 functioning regional radio stations plus Khartoum. They are owned and operated by state or provincial government but the SRTC owns the transmission facilities and usually pays some if not most of the staff (IMS).

Radio according to IMS is ‘by far the most accessible medium in most of Sudan’ and research indicates that there are radios in most villages. Sudan State TV is received in all large urban areas under Government of Sudan control, including ‘garrison’ towns in the South. Its international arm Blue Nile TV is on ArabSat and soon will be available in some parts of North America. It broadcasts predominantly in Arabic, which not all of the population of Sudan use or understand 1.

The SRTC is tightly controlled by the government, primarily via the Ministry of Information, the Office of the President and the Security Service. Content is proscribed not only by political and security criteria but also by the government views of correct moral and spiritual values. However, recently it has undertaken challenging 1 In Sudan there are 134 languages and dialects. The most widely spoken languages are Arabic, Dinka, Nuer and colloquial (Juba, Kadugli, etc) Arabic. IMS reports that there are many that do not speak any of these languages well enough for effective communication.

programming on health, touching on taboo issues such as FGM and HIV/AIDS. Content includes news programming, music, story-telling, sports, variety shows, dramas and soap operas (IMS).

In addition, the BBC reports that there are a few opposition and clandestine radio stations operating or broadcasting into Sudan. For example, Radio Voice of Hope set up by the New Sudan Council of Churches is produced at studios in Uganda and transmitted to Sudan via Radio Netherlands’s short-wave transmitter in Mauritius. Programming focuses on the peace process, social services, education and Christianity. Radio Voice of Hope is the only non-governmental organisation that broadcasts to Sudan in languages other than English and Arabic, but it can take two to four weeks for reports that are filed to be broadcast. According to the website Clandestineradio.com, other opposition/clandestine radio stations that are operating in the country include:

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Voice of Sudan – operated by the opposition National Democratic Alliance on shortwave

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Voice of Freedom and Renewal – operated by armed opposition group Sudan Alliance Forces via shortwave.

From 1984 – 1993, the SLPA operated a clandestine station called ‘Radio SPLA’. From 1984-1985, this ran concurrently with another SLPA station called the ‘Voice of the Sudan Popular Revolution’.

The BBC World Service can also be picked up in Sudan....