It is our immense pleasure to inform you that Bangladesh Pre Consultation on 2nd World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) Asia Pacific Conference (Bangalore, India) will be held on 13 February 2010 at 10: 00 AM to 2:00 PM. The focus of the consultation is the Progress of Community Radio in Bangladesh.

Honorable Secretary for Ministry of Information Dr. Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury has kindly consented to be present as Chief Guest in the Pre Consultation.

The Pre Consultation will organized by Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC) with support from UNICEF Bangladesh

The 2nd World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters - Asia Pacific (AMARC-AP) Conference: Community radio for Sustainable Development and Good Governance will bring together community radio broadcasters, activists, academics, policy makers, and representatives of the donor community and governments to review the development of the community broadcasting in the Asia Pacific region in the last 4 years.

It will take a careful look at thematic areas of development such as the empowerment of women within the CR sector, the role of community broadcasting in peace building, it’s role in the face of global climate change and at times of natural disasters as well as for poverty eradication. The regional conference will address practical issues such as capacity building in areas of management, technology, community participation, monitoring and evaluation, media convergence, and networking and the conference will recommend steps that will ensure the way forward for the CR sector in the region.

The overall theme of the Bangladesh Pre Consultation will be the progress of community radio in Bangladesh. There are both challenges and opportunities to establish community radio in Bangladesh. Lots of initiatives are under processing and hopes are there to have community broadcasting soon.

This consultation will create an enabling environment for initiators, advocates, academicians, practitioners, development partners and researchers to interact with policy makers and implementers. This intended coalition will generate idea and working partnership for better and effective community broadcasting system in the country. Broadly MDG and our own development roadmap will be focused as well to address in the said broadcasting system.

Distinguished Member of Parliament (MP), Policy–Makers and Representatives from Government, Media, Academia, CSOs, and Corporate Sector are expected to join the Bangladesh Pre Consultation.

Outputs of Bangladesh Pre Consultation will present to 2nd World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) Asia Pacific Conference (Bangalore, India) on 20-23 February, 2010.

We strongly believe, Outputs of Bangladesh Pre Consultation will add a new and positive dimension towards building the knowledge based society and Digital Bangladesh through Community Radio in Bangladesh.

For more information regarding Bangladesh Delegation@AMARC-AP E-Mail is This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The Chief Executive Officer of Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC), AHM Bazlur Rahman, met M. Azizur Rahman, the Chief Information Commissioner, Information Commission Bangladesh, on August 30 2009 at Information Commission Office, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

At the meeting Chief Information Commissioner was congratulated by Mr. Rahman for taking responsibility as Chief Information Commissioner of Information Commission, Bangladesh. BNNRC hopes that Information Commission will play a significant role with his dynamic leadership.

In the meeting CEO of BNNRC briefed him regarding some agendas: Community Radio installation, broadcasting and operation policy, 2008 has already been drawn up with an endeavor of Ministry of Information. Just after the declaration of Community Radio policy, Information Ministry invites application for installation of Community Radio from 18 March, 2008. Gradually, National Regulatory Committee, Technical Sub Committee and Central Monitoring Committee are formed as per the said policy.

A promise was expressed in Article 19.1 of Bangladesh Awami League’s Election Manifesto named “Din Bodoler Sonod” in which they expressed endeavor to open up Community Radio at local level apart from National Mass Communication for ensuring freedom of mass communication and free flow of information.

Community Radio Academy has already been set up for building capacity of Community Radio stakeholders. Training workshops, seminars etc are being held one after another with the endeavor of Community Radio Academy. We think, there now remains manpower, preparation, and capability of operating 40/50 Community Radio all over the country.

Having realized everything, Chief Information Commissioner emphasized that Community Radio undoubtedly can play a dynamic and far reaching role in establishing Right to Information at grass root level and without Community Radio, it is quite impossible to establish Right to Information at grass root level so easily and at a low cost.

In that connection, he will employ his effort to make installed more Community Radio stations individually and officially. At that period, Mr. Mohammad Abu Taher, Information Commissioner, was also present.

CEO of BNNRC also re-expected Mr. M. Azizur Rahman’s personal endeavor to accelerate the Community Radio broadcasting process for ensuring Access to Information and Good Governance as well as Development.

Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC) organized training workshop on Community Radio: Operation, Management and Sustainable Planning supported by Free Voice. The workshop was organized from 14-16 June, 2009 in Dhaka.

The objective of the workshop is to clarify the Community Radio concept and its strategies of operation, different aspects of CR management and sustainable planning.

Thirty high officials from twenty eight applied organizations attended the workshop. Mr. Sohel Aurongojeb, the consultant of Community Radio Academy, facilitated in the workshop.

The issues discussed in the sessions of workshop are: What CR is and why it is essential; the present position of CR in perspective of Bangladesh; CR by laws; Structure of CR Management Committee; CR Station Structure (Administrative); Job Description Manual-HRD, Gender; Finance (with content list); Regulatory Affairs (license fee, license renewal, reporting etc.); Programs to be Broadcast/ not to be Broadcast (on the basis of government policy); Information, Education, Entertainment, Development Motivation ; Daily and Weekly Cue Sheet; Costing Plan for Programs; Volunteer Management; Program Resource Management (Human Resource, Financial Resource etc.) and feedback from audiences; Management Planning; Financial Planning; and Strategic Planning.

The organizations which participated in the workshop are: Speed Trust, Bangladesh Scouts, BRAC, BCDJC, Krishi and Samajik Unnayan Songstha, TMSS, South Asia Partnership- Bangladesh (SAP- Bangladesh), Young Power in Social Action(YPSA), CDA, D.Net, COAST Trust, Come to Work, Pirojpur Gono Unnayan Society, LDRO, Srijoni Bangladesh, POPI, CCD Bangladesh, Sankalpa Trust, Proyas Manobik Unnayan Society, MMC, Gono Unnayan Kendro, Kiraro No Ki, RDRS, Deep Unnayan Songstha, Jugantor Somaj Unnayan Songstha, Samadhan, NHRDA, Nolta Hospital and Community Health Foundation.

MR. Shamim Ahsan, the Communication Officer of UNESCO, and Mr. Mostafa Kamal, the Administrative Chief of Coast Trust, were also present in the closing session.

A two- day workshop on “Asia Calling Bangladesh: How to get started and keep going in Bangladesh” jointly organized by Asia Calling Radio, an Indonesia based radio program broadcasting news in Asian countries, and Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC) was held at BRAC Inn Center in Dhaka on June 22 and 23.

The aim of the workshop is to broadcast radio program in Bangla. Katie Hamann, Jakarta representative of Asia Calling, conducted the workshop.

To run Asia calling Bangla service, ten journalists from different print and electronic media participated in the workshop. The workshop was conducted on different aspects of radio programs including short packages, feature reports, and radio documentary. Technical aspects regarding making radio news, techniques of voiceover, voice training, audition in adobe addition, radio features etc were the major demonstrated attention of the workshop.

Primarily, in coordination with BNNRC, Asia Calling radio program will be broadcast in Bangla using web radio. It may be mentioned that Asia Calling is broadcast in English and Indonesian on 135 stations throughout the Indonesian archipelago. Besides, the program also extends beyond Indonesia and is broadcast in local languages in Australia, Thailand, Cambodia, The Philippines, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar and Timor Leste.

The participants think, on the eve of Bangla service of Asia Calling, this kind of training will obviously enrich the Bangla division of Asia Calling.