Communication for development workshop

Evaluation of the communication for development workshop © UNESCO

8 July 2011

How can communication be used as an integral part of human development projects — from poverty alleviation to social and environmental programmes?

Communication for Development (C4D) was the topic for a two-day workshop at UN House in Almaty, July 4-5, attended by 14 local journalists and UN agency staff. The workshop organized by UNESCO Almaty Office jointly with the Department of Public Information in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

It was led by Dr. David Mould, Professor of Media Arts ands Studies at Ohio University (U.S.A.) and currently Fulbright Scholar in Journalism and Mass Communication in Kazakhstan. He was assisted by Asqat Yerkimbay, media researcher and trainer at the Minber Center for Support of Journalists.

The workshop began by examining how C4D differs from other types of communication—journalism, corporate communication/public relations, and internal communication in an organization. Participants studied a range of C4D techniques that focus on individual-level, community and social change. These included diffusion of innovations, social marketing, entertainment-education, media advocacy and social mobilization.

On the second day, participants worked in groups to design C4D strategies to address three key issues in Kazakhstan—domestic violence among internal migrants, littering in mountain rivers in the Almaty region, and reviving traditional carpet-weaving in Southern Kazakhstan to alleviate poverty.