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Program Collaborations and Workshops
13 December 2017

2009

Radio Nisaa FM launched in December in collaboration with the Womanity Foundation.

2010

Started broadcasting from 96.0 FM in the Central and Northern West Bank of the Palestinian Territories 2 daily prime-time programs are launched. In November, the station’s first audience survey showed that Nisaa had gained a 2 % audience share in just a few months. Surveys also gave Nisaa FM positive feedback from women listeners.

2011

The station’s 3rd prime-time show, Nisaa Break, is added to the program schedule. It is sponsored by the US Consulate in Jerusalem. According to research by leading telecommunication provider Jawal, Nisaa FM ranked as 5th most important radio station in the West Bank, out of a total of 20. UNESCO awarded Nisaa FM a grant with the aim of training women in radio and broadcasting techniques. Maysoun Odeh Gangat, Director and founder of Nisaa FM, selected to join Synergos’ Arab World Social Innovators Program and invited to the International Conference on Women Media Leaders in Washington D.C.

Ms Gangat honored by the Palestinian Ministry of Women Affairs

2012

Estimated audience of 126,800 listeners in a population of about 1.4 million over 18-year-olds who declare to listen to the radio Won the Arabia Fast Growth 500 Award for fast-growing companies in 2012. Ms Gangat invited to present her commitments to training women journalists and enhancing women’s role in the media at the plenary session of the Global Clinton Initiative. MsGangat selected by Ashoka Arab World as an Ashoka Fellow. In partnership with the Womanity Foundation and Global Production, Nisaa FM conceived a radio fiction series for women’s empowerment called “Worth 100 Men”.

2013

Survey by the Arab World Research and Development Centre (AWRAD) showed

       - 9 % of respondents listening to Nisaa FM
       - All listeners believe Nisaa FM to have a positive impact on the lives of women in Palestine – 100 % of women listeners believed the same

All 11 West Bank districts and North Gaza now receive radio broadcasts

Engaged in partnerships with several international organizations on projects aiming to empower women:

       - UNESCO and the British Consulate in Jerusalem on training women reporters to host regular radio spots
       - Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on promoting women representatives in villages and municipal councils
       - USAID on developing the radio program “The Key of the Judiciary” about informing women about their legal rights 

Partnerships were embarked on with Ashoka, Open Society Foundation, and the Synergos Institute. Staff from Nisaa FM participated in an exchange of best practices with the Danish Broadcasting Cooperation, as well as media research project internships for female media and communications students at Al Quds and Birzeit Universities Ms Gangat invited to attend the Trust Women Conference in London, hosted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Nisaa FM the only Palestinian radio station interviewing women candidates for the 2013 municipal and local elections on a daily basis.

2014

Started broadcasting the fiction series “Worth 100 Men”, and facilitated discussions with the audience and experts on topics the series addresses. Expanded its programming with 2 new shows. The station now broadcasts 3 daily shows, 3 weekday news bulletins and 2 weekend programs. Alongside the station’s daily and weekly programs, Nisaa FM also produced a variety of focus reports in collaboration with local and international NGOs and donors. Themes covered include women entrepreneurs, family law and its effect on women, honor killings, and more. Station staff trained 48 village council representatives on how to address the media, and trained two reporters from Jerusalem. Intensively covered the 2014 war on Gaza with 5 daily reports focusing on how the conflict affected women. In cooperation with Deutsche Welle and AWRAD published a study on the role of women in Palestinian media. Facilitated workshops with journalists and civil society representatives on the role of women and gender stereotypes in the media. Nisaa FM and “Worth 100 Men” featured on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour, about the work they are doing in improving women’s access to media programming in Arab countries. Ms Gangat, together with the Womanity Foundation, was selected to participate in Ashoka’s Globalized Program on media and information technology, to develop a regional scaling strategy. The Program culminated in a high-level meeting with media professionals and business consultants, co-hosted by Deutsche Welle and Ashoka in Germany Runner-up in Gender at Work's "End Gender Discrimination Contest". 3 winners and 6 runner's-up were selected out of entries from 63 countries.

2015

Ms Gangat was nominated a Schwab Social Entrepreneur during the World Economic Forum Meeting in Amman in May 2015 for her work on Radio Nisaa. The recognition will give to Radio Nisaa significant visibility throughout the region and worldwide. Ms Gangat attended the Skoll World Forum, an annual three-day conference that highlights entrepreneurial approaches and innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing social issues. Nisaa FM aired the show KAFA, which sought to raise awareness about the negative consequences –social and economic – of gender-based violence.  Among the guests invited to the studio were social workers, psychologists, and legal experts. The project, which was funded by Canada, also included two workshops in collaboration with SAWA, Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counseling (WCLAC), and the Palestinian Family Planning and Protection Association (PFPPA). Nisaa Fm aired the weekly program Yad-byad (Hand-by-hand), with the aim of strengthening the basic business and management skills of entrepreneurial Palestinian women. The program was funded by the Canadian Development Fund and conducted in collaboration with the Palestinian Business Women’s Association (ASALA). Nisaa FM aired the weekly program Sanabel Al Ard (Fruits of the Earth) from March to May 2015. The program focused on developing the role of women in Palestine’s agricultural sector, as well as highlighting the importance of agriculture in resisting occupation of Palestinian land. Sanabel Al Ard was developed in cooperation with the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC). In cooperation with the Womanity Foundation, Nisaa FM worked on developing a regional multimedia platform called "Nisaa Network". It aims to be the first network and multimedia platform that focuses on Arab women's interests; promotes women's rights; and highlights the role of women in society through media contents that address both women and men.
The Network will entail wider broadcasting of the station’s content, as well as the creation of new management structures that encourage women to enter radio broadcasting as a profession. More information about Nisaa Network will be made available in the beginning of 2016.

2016

On International Women's Day March 8 2016, Nisaa FM and UNESCO hosted a debate on gender equality in the Movenpick Hotel in Ramallah. Five students were invited to the panel to start the discussion led by Nisaa FM presenter Israa Obrabi. The themes discussed were gender equality, discrimination in the workplace and in academic disciplines and the need of women in senior positions.

Organized the project Speak Up! Palestinian Youth goes Radio in collaboration with Deutsche Welle. The project, which aims to increase media literacy among youth, began with a summer camp where journalist students led by a German expert taught Palestinians aged 14-16 about media and journalism. This will lead to 14 radio shows conducted by the participants on the theme “youth in Palestinian society”. The shows will air August through November 2016.

Nisaa FM: - Women in Palestine are in many respects still far from enjoying the same rights and privileges as men. Some of the challenges in the way of achieving gender equality are listed below. 

- they have one of the lowest rates of labor force participation in the world

- gender-based violence and sexual harassment remains widespread across Palestine

- cultural norms, traditional gender roles

- a highly intricate and biased legal system bars women from access to justice

Adding to the list, research has shown that Palestinian women and children bear the heaviest burden of sustaining life under the ongoing occupation.

In this challenging social, political and economic context, a broad palette of Palestinian NGOs have been launched with the aim of improving the rights of women across Palestine by lobbying for gender equality, informing women about their legal rights, providing necessary refuge and counseling in cases of violence and sexual harassment, and supporting women in becoming economically independent through starting their own businesses. Nisaa FM is proud to have joined forces with leading NGOs and institutions in creating a series of programs tailor-made to address the many obstacles women face in today’s Palestine, and across the Arab world. In the spirit of Nisaa FM’s values and mission statement, these programs play a crucial role in informing, inspiring and supporting the endeavors and ambitions of Palestinian women from all parts of society. 

The list of collaborations Nisaa FM has engaged in can be seen below.

 

Combatting violence against women

2017 Eliminating violence against women symposium

Nisaa FM hosted two symposiums during the UN Women's 16-days campaign running from November 25 to December 10 2017 to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. 
 

2016 Together Against Gender-Based Violence

Project conducted by Radio Nisaa FM with the support of USAID to increase awareness of gender based violence (GBV) and its consequences for women, families and society. The overall goal of the project is to raise awareness of the consequences of GBV and the available possibilities for seeking legal advice and support for victims of GBV and the norms and customs that sanction GBV.


2014 "Kafa"

In 2015 Nisaa FM aired the show "Kafa" (Enough) funded by Representative Office of Canada to the Palestinian Authority. The show was broadcasted weekly and sought to raise awareness among Palestinian men and women of the negative consequences - social and economic - of sexual and gender-based violence. Each show had a different topic, covering the many different types of violence women are exposed to in daily life. Among the guests invited to the studios were social workers, psychologists, and legal experts. The themes discussed varied from honor killings and violence against divorced women to workplace harassment and electronic violence.

 

Women's empowerment and rights

2016 Women in elections

A program series enhancing the participation of Palestinian women in politics and decision-making positions with the approach of the October 8 2016 election.The program was conducted in partnership with the United Nations Women’s Commission and the Central Election Commission and realised with support from the Norwegian government.
 

2015 Muftah al Qada (Key to the Judiciary)

A weekly program that highlighted the legal questions and challenges men and women face in their daily lives. The program was sponsored and funded by USAID, and had been developed in collaboration with the Roles for Social Change Association (ADWAR), a Palestinian not-for-profit NGO that works for the economic, social and personal empowerment of Palestinian women. Four workshops was held across Palestine in connection with the program. 
 

2015 Tawasol (Connections)

A weekly program that focused on issues important to woman in all areas of daily life. The program was developed in cooperation with the Italian Cooperation for Development, and funded by the Ministry of Women Affairs (MoWA).
 

2014 Women in the Diaspora

A segment aired during Nisaa FM’s morning show produced in collaboration with the Womanity Foundation. Purpose was to give voice to Palestinian women in the Diaspora, and empowering Palestinian women worldwide by sharing stories of their struggles and achievements.
 

2014 "B 100 Ragl" ("Worth 100 Men")

The Womanity Foundation, in partnership with Nisaa FM and Global Production, conceived a radio fiction series to foster constructive debate on women’s empowerment in Arab-speaking countries. The series was aired between March and September 2014 and broadcast on 10 radio stations across the Arab world. The series demonstrated how fiction can be a safe and accessible method of bringing about debates on taboo subjects that challenge thinking about women’s empowerment in the Middle East.


2012 Forgotten Rights

A series of radio shows with focus on the rights of disabled women; the difficulties and challenges they face in employment, in marriage, in the political lift etc. Made in partnership with Palestinian organization working with the rights of disabled women, Stars of Hope.
 

 

Women entrepreneurs in Palestine

2015 Fi Al Qiyadeh (Entrepreneurship)

In the course of 51 weekly episodes, Nisaa FM put focus on entrepreneurship and leadership in Palestine with a specific emphasis on the opportunities available for Palestinian women to start their own businesses. The program was sponsored by the US Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI). Nisaa FM hosted a workshop in connection with the program.
 

2015 Yad-byad (Hand-by-Hand)

A weekly one-hour program with the aim of strengthening the basic business and management skills of entrepreneurial Palestinian women. The program was funded by the Canadian Developent Fund, and developed in cooperation with the Palestinian Business Women’s Association (ASALA).
 

2015 Sanabel Al Ard (Fruits of the Earth)

A weekly program of 10 one-hour episodes, aired from March to May 2015. The program focused on developing the role of women in Palestine’s agricultural sector, as well as highlighting the importance of agriculture in resisting occupation of Palestinian land. Sanabel Al Ard was developed in cooperation with the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC).

 

2016 Training Programs

Deutsche Welle and Radio Nisaa hold training for launch of “Speak Up!”

The Deutsche Welle Cooperation and Radio Nisaa FM held training sessions at the Heinrich Boll Foundation in  Ramallah for eight journalist students from different Palestinian universities, including Hebron, Bir Zeit and Nablus. The students was trained to teach at the upcoming “Speak Up! Palestinian youth goes radio” summer camp which took place in the end of July 2016, aiming to increase media literacy among young Palestinians. 

 

Speak up! Palestinian Youth goes Radio

In cooperation with Deutsche Welle Radio Nisaa hosted a summer camp in Ramallah for young Palestinians between the age of 14-16 in July 2016. The aim was to increase media literacy among the youth. 

The workshops focused on strengthening their skills to access, analyze, and evaluate how media messages affect culture and society whilst preparing for 14 weekly radio sessions which were broadcasted from August till November. The topic for each show reflected upon the main theme “Youth in the Palestinian society” and was choosen by the youth during the summer camp.

In each show experts, decision-makers, teachers, students, NGOs etc. were invited to discuss the weekly topics.