"In addition to the working groups, the TCMP has a communications unit
that works to promote coastal management in
TCMP has attempted to keep Tanzanians updated through newspaper
articles and TV coverage. Other communication tools include the Pwani
Yetu (Our Coast) newsletter, the E-Pwani e-mail listserv, and on-line
posting of key TCMP documents. This communications network is
critical to the successful development of the national ICM policy,
providing rapid access to local programs and key constituencies at the
Email, online postings, TV, and newspaper articles, in a country which at that time (1995-2000ish) had a nearly 70% rural population, virtually none of whom had access to electricity, and a large percentage of whom, especially the women, were illiterate.
Now of course the people writing this report knew all of these circumstances very well. They were in the country for over five years. But still they had the.....balls? (and I say that in a sincerely complimentary way) to write the clearly absurd statement, which bears repeating, that such methods of communication were "critical" and provided "rapid access" to "key constituencies at the local level."
The sociological circumstances within which this can occur demand further study.

No comments:
Post a Comment