... Subhed A few years ago, Kettler was wading through literature from the coffee industry when, near the bottom of the pile, he noticed a human-interest story about the hardships facing Ethiopian coffee farmers. The article said growers were being taken advantage of by collectors. They were told that the price of coffee had dropped, even when it hadn't. The daily closing price of coffee was broadcast on national radio, but only 2 percent of 700,000 farmers had access to one.
Kettler hit upon the idea of bringing wind-up radios to farmers as a way to alleviate isolation of coffee co-ops, which often are made up of hundreds or thousands of farmers.
He found a partner in the Freeplay Foundation, is a registered charity in South Africa and the United Kingdom. He was drawn to the organization because of its past work in linking communities. The colorful, rugged Freeplay Lifeline radios rely on a crank and solar-panels for power, rather than batteries. It can receive AM, FM and shortwave stations.
Kettler approached industry leaders looking for donors to help pay for radios, and soon had enough for about 60 units, at a cost of $50 each. (Since then, the price has gone up to about $65.) But he had estimated he would need 10,000 radios to cover all of Ethiopia.
So he turned his sights to Rwanda, because it is small, the size of Maryland, and about 90 percent of the people are subsistence farmers. The country has been trying to rebuild its coffee infrastructure since the 1994 genocide decimated its economy.
In 2005, he distributed 60 or 70 radios to listening groups in Rwanda, each made up of about 20 farmers and their families. But he realized that the project could be even more effective if radio programming included more than just coffee prices.
"Radio is still the No. 1 vehicle for communicating," Kettler said. "Usually everyone would listen to the radio between eight and nine hours per day, even when out in the fields. That's all they've got."
So he started working with a community radio station associated with the National University of Rwanda to create a radio show specifically for coffee farmers. It includes market and farming tips, information for getting certified as organic and Fair Trade. It also features information on AIDS and women's health, and a children's segment.
The radio show, which translates roughly into "bright future," started broadcasting May 5. He has also collaborated with the Population Media Center, which received a grant to broadcast a serial radio drama about a Rwandan coffee farmer. ...
