Together to Market

'Together to Market' was a series of short radio programmes or 'spots'made in 2005 that aimed to stimulate interest among small farmers in forming groups to market their produce more effectively. It was conceived by Monica Janowski, radio in development coordinator at the Natural Resources Institute of the University of Greenwich, and Kaz Janowski, producer at the BBC World Service, and made as a collaboration between the BBC and Radio Lira in Uganda. It was funded through the UK Department for International Development, linked to a project that aimed to increase involvement with the market on the part of small farmers in Uganda. That project was a collaboration between the NRI, Foodnet (part of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture), the NGO CEDO and the Ugandan Government's NAADS and PMA Secretariat.

The 'spots' have at their core excerpts from interviews carried out in October 2003 with people involved in different ways with farmers' groups in Rakai, Masaka and Masindi Districts in Uganda, including members and leaders of groups, local female and male farmers, traders, extension workers, community leaders, leaders of farmers' associations both locally and nationally, a member of parliament, a radio presenter, and people involved in promoting group marketing in these districts. They tell us about the successes, pitfalls and excitement of setting up farmers’ groups, through their own personal experience.

The short 'spots' that make up 'Together to Market' were made for broadcast on local radio stations in Uganda, as part of longer, live programmes in which the topic of the spots was discussed. The first broadcast was in Lira District, in a Luo-language version as well as in English, between December 2003 and March 2004.

List of ‘spots’ in the series Together to Market:

Why form groups?
Why market together?
Getting started
Trust and transparency
Getting information on the market
Women and men in groups
Keeping going – the Kamukamu women’s group
Money matters – the Bateganda women’s group
Getting the size right – the Andingana farmers’ group
A vision for the future – the Kasambiya farmers’ group

Production: Kaz Janowski (BBC) and Monica Janowski (NRI)
Production assistant: Benson Taiwo (Foodnet/Radio Lira)
Studio manager: Kai Depkat (RadioWorks, Kampala)
Presenter: Joanita Babihuga (Appropriate Technology, Uganda)