China Radio International

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China Radio International

• A New Presence In The African Media Market

Allen Cooper InterMedia UK Presented at
China-Africa What does it mean for the media?
University of Westminster, 17th September 2008
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Outline of presentation

• International radio broadcasting in Africa
• China Radio International (CRI)
• Awareness and reach of international broadcasters
  in selected African countries
• CRI in Kenya
• Conclusions

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International radio broadcasting in Africa

• A continent where international radio
  broadcasters reach some of their highest
  audiences - and actual
• Audience success strongly correlated to colonial
  history RFI dominates Francophone W.Africa RDP
  Angola and Mozambique BBC its former colonies
• Historically Russian and Chinese broadcasters
  have had little audience impact, as measured by
  surveys
• Long tradition of international religious
  broadcasters FEBA, TWR
• Highest audiences achieved in local languages
  Hausa in Nigeria Amharic in Ethiopia Swahili in
  Tanzania
• Local languages and colonial languages attract
  different audiences
• Shortwave still important but local FM dominates
  in urban areas importance of gatekeepers

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China Radio International (CRI)

• Founded in 1941. Broadcast as Radio Peking from
  1950, renamed Radio Beijing in 1983, and China
  Radio International in 1993
• 290 hours of programming per day in 43 languages
• Swahili, Hausa, Portuguese, French and English
  for Africa
• Extensive network of shortwave broadcast
  facilities, supplemented by some local FM and
  rebroadcasts/placements
• No history of audience success in Africa

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Data sources

• Media surveys commissioned and managed by
  InterMedia and partners
• Annual programme of media surveys covering
  approx. 7 African countries/year
• Samples nationally representative, n 2,000
  (Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania) or 3,000 (Nigeria)
• Angola (n1,500) representative of Luanda
  province only
• Multi-stage random probability samples.
  Households selected by random walk method,
  respondents via Kish grid

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Angola (Luanda) 2006
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Nigeria 2007
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Ghana 2006
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Tanzania 2006
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Kenya 2007
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Why does CRI have such a high profile in Kenya?

• Several factors contribute to a situation unique
  in Africa
• Local FM frequency CRI 91.9 FM launched in
  2006, carrying Swahili, English and Mandarin
• Daily programming on KBC Swahili radio channel
• CRI material also present on KBC English channel
• Radio presence supported by regular airing of
  CCTV feature material on KBC Channel 1 TV

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Kenya 2007 weekly listening by language
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Kenya 2007 trustworthiness of radio stations
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Kenya 2007 most important radio stations for
news
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CRI audience profile

• Comparing CRI listeners with the general
  population
• Same age structure ca. 60 lt35
• CRI listeners slightly better educated
• Standard of living broadly similar
• No preponderance of CRI listeners in Nairobi, but
  some differences in regional distribution
• CRI listeners significantly more likely to be men
  than women

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Conclusions

• When circumstances are right, CRI can achieve
  significant audience penetration in Africa
• Partnership with strong local broadcaster
  essential allows audience to be inherited
• but this may not be the audience desired
• Kenyan experience suggests that CRI brand
  recognition is quite strong
• Healthy reach let down by relatively poor
  trustworthiness ratings
• Close association with state/public broadcaster
  may miss opportunities presented by burgeoning
  private sector
• Does CRI have a targetting strategy?