Union des Radios Associatives et Communautaires

The Union of Associative and Community Radios — in French, Union des Radios Associatives et Communautaires (URAC) — brings together 132 community radio stations. URAC is present in the 14 regions of the country and its member radios broadcast in all the languages in Senegal. The member radios were created by grassroots community associations and are dedicated to the progress, education, and empowerment of populations by promoting good governance and the consolidation of local democracy. URAC is made up of free, independent, and secular radio stations that are committed to the observance of human rights, the promotion of women and vulnerable groups in particular, and the preservation of the environment. They are independent, pluralistic, and refuse commercial communication. URAC has three main objectives: (a) make community radio a tool that encourages citizens to take part in the public debate by allowing them to own and control their means of participatory and pluralistic communication; (b) encourage active participation of the community in the process of creating relevant news, information, and entertainment by promoting content based on the needs, interests, and priorities of listeners; and (c) be a consultation framework for all community radios, which on the one hand creates favorable conditions for the capacity development for member radios’ staffs and on the other hand works in synergy with state authorities, local authorities, and development partners for advocacy actions. With this support, URAC will continue establishing participatory governance that favors new mechanisms and practices to guarantee power sharing and decision-making processes among the various actors in Senegalese society. URAC will do so by strengthening the capacities of community radios to produce content on participatory and inclusive governance, providing accurate and inclusive information to local communities, and creating spaces for inclusive dialogue among different segments of the population. (Strategy: Inclusive Governance)

The Union of Associative and Community Radios — in French, Union des Radios Associatives et Communautaires (URAC) — is a coalition of 100-plus community radio stations. URAC is present in the 14 regions of Senegal and its member radios broadcast in all the various languages of the country. The member radios were created by grassroots community associations and are dedicated to the progress, education, and empowerment of populations by promoting good governance and the consolidation of local democracy. URAC is made up of free, independent, and secular radio stations that are committed to the observance of human rights, the promotion of women and vulnerable groups, and the preservation of the environment. They are independent, pluralistic, and refuse commercial communication. URAC will continue to work on its overall goal of strengthening legal, economic, and governance frameworks favorable to the development of community media and citizen participation. (Strategy: Inclusive Governance)

The Coalition of Associative and Community Radios (in French “Union des Radios Associatives et Communautaires” (URAC)) is a consortium of community radios in Senegal. URAC seeks to encourage citizens to engage in public debate and to own and control their means of participatory and pluralistic communication. URAC provides strategic support of multilateral advocacy coalition networks and community engagement on gender-sensitive natural resource management within the energy transition context. URAC’s work promotes a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges of the energy transition in West Africa, particularly for women and builds on recent changes in the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative's standards on gender to inform gender-responsive strategies and action plans for energy transition in Africa. (Strategy: International Women’s Economic Empowerment)