Radio Okapi is a

radio network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass media, mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio (Duplex (teleco ...

that operates in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

. On an annual budget of USD$4.5 million, a staff of 200 provide news and information to the entire urban population of the DRC. Radio Okapi provides programming in French and in the four national languages of Congo:

Lingala Lingala (or Ngala, Lingala: ) is a Bantu languages, Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser de ...

, Kituba, Swahili and Tshiluba,

History

Radio Okapi was created by the

United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or MONUSCO (an acronym based on its French name ), is a United Nations peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A planned withdraw ...

(MONUC) and the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

NGO Fondation Hirondelle. The agreement between MONUC and the Congolese government foresaw the creation of a radio network to inform the Congolese population of the MONUC's efforts. MONUC and the Fondation Hirondelle submitted a plan in 2001 to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

, and the radio network went live on 25 February 2002. The station takes its name from the endangered

Okapi The okapi (; ''Okapia johnstoni''), also known as the forest giraffe, Congolese giraffe and zebra giraffe, is an artiodactyl mammal that is endemic to the northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. However, non-invasive gen ...

, the elusive mammal native to the rainforest of northern Congo. In 2011 ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...

'' said that Radio Okapi was "one of Africa’s most admirably independent radio services". Mary Myers, in the essay "Well-Informed Journalists Make Well-Informed Citizens: Coverage of Governance Issues in the Democratic Republic of Congo," said that the radio station "raised the bar for other indigenous radio and TV stations in the country."Myers, Mary. "Well-Informed Journalists Make Well-Informed Citizens: Coverage of Governance Issues in the Democratic Republic of Congo." Printed in: Odugbemi, Sina and Taeku Lee (editors). ''Accountability Through Public Opinion: From Inertia to Public Action''. World Bank Publications, 2011
155
Retrieved from

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...

on 15 February 2012. 0821385569, 9780821385562. Other area radio stations copied Radio Okapi's news gathering techniques, program concepts, and formats. Myers also said "Although Radio Okapi can be a thorn in the government's side at times, its stance of promoting peace and democracy and the strong role it plays in civic education have led to its recognition, even by the Minister of Information, as a national asset that the Democratic Republic of Congo could ill afford to lose." On 13 June 2007, the station’s editor in chief for Bukavu, Serge Maheshe, was shot dead.

Transmitters

Radio Okapi provides programming in French and in Lingala, Kituba, Swahili and Tshiluba, transmitting all day every day on: *

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

103.5

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

* Aru 88.0 MHz * Bandundu 99.0 MHz * Baraka 103.4 MHz * Béni 92.0 MHz * Bukavu 95.3 MHz *

Bunia Bunia is the capital Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city of Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It was part of the Orientale Province until that province's dissolution. It lies at an elevation of on a ...

104.9 MHz * Bunyakiri 103.2 MHz * Butembo 92.9 MHz * Dungu 103.4 MHz *

Gbadolite Gbadolite or Gbado-Lite () is the capital of Nord-Ubangi Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The town is located south of the Ubangi River at the border to the Central African Republic and northeast of the national capital Kinshasa ...

93.0 MHz * Gemena 95.4 MHz *

Goma Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...

105.2 MHz *

Isiro Isiro () is the capital of Haut-Uele Province in the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies between the Tropical rainforest, equatorial forest and the savannah and its main resource is coffee. Isiro's population is est ...

90.1 MHz * Kalemie 105.0 MHz * Kamina 104.3 MHz *

Kananga Kananga, formerly known as Luluabourg or Luluaburg, is the capital Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city of the Kasai-Central, Kasai-Central Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and was the capital of the former Kasaï ...

93.0 MHz * Kanyabayonga 96.0 MHz *

Kikwit Kikwit is the largest city of Kwilu Province, lying on the Kwilu River in the southwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kikwit is also known in the region under the nickname "The Mother". The population is approximately 458,000 ( ...

103.5 MHz * Kindu 103.0 MHz *

Kisangani Kisangani (), formerly Stanleyville (), is the capital of Tshopo, Tshopo Province, located on the Congo River in the eastern part of the central Congo Basin in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the country's fifth-most populous urban a ...

94.8 MHz * Lisala 104.3 MHz *

Lubumbashi Lubumbashi ( , ; former ; former ) is the second-largest Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in the country's southeasternmost part, along the border with Zambia. The capital ...

95.8 MHz * Mahagi 96.0 MHz * Manono 104.5 MHz * Masisi 96.0 MHz * Matadi 102.0 MHz * Mbandaka 103.0 MHz * Mbuji-Mayi 103.5 MHz * Moba 102.4 MHz * Rutshuru 95.3 MHz * Tshomo Uni 106.5 MHz * Uvira 105.3 MHz * Walikale 104.9 MHz *

Shortwave Shortwave radio is radio transmission using radio frequencies in the shortwave bands (SW). There is no official definition of the band range, but it always includes all of the high frequency band (HF), which extends from 3 to 30 MHz (app ...

**9635

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...

(5 AM to 7 AM) **11690 kHz (5 PM to 6 PM)

Sources

In film

* ''Radio Okapi, radio de la vie'', is a documentary produced by Pierre Guyot, 2006. It premiered on TV5 in June 2006. It examines the work of Breuil Munganga, a journalist at Radio Okapi. It has been selected by many festivals in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

and

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...

.''Radio Okapi, radio de la vie'' was selected at:
''Festival international du grand reportage d'actualité et du documentaire de société''
(FIGRA) March 2006; *''Festival Ciné droits libres de

Ouagadougou Ouagadougou or Wagadugu (, , , ) is the capital city of Burkina Faso, and the administrative, communications, cultural and economic centre of the nation. It is also the List of cities in Burkina Faso#Largest cities, country's largest city, wi ...

'', Burkina Faso, November 2006;
Documentary Month
, France, November 2006;
''Assises internationales du journalisme''
Lille, March 2007;
''Festival international du film des droits de l'Homme''
Paris, March 2007,

, Université Laval, May 2007, *''Le Festival du Film des Droits de l'Homme'', Bangui, Central African Republic, May 2007.

References

External links

Official Site of Radio Okapi

Radio Okapi on the MONUC site

Article at DXing.info

External links

{{Authority control

Radio in the Democratic Republic of the Congo 2002 establishments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

History

Transmitters

Sources

In film

See also

References

External links

External links