Research

Including audience voices
Femina HIP builds on systematic research and best practices in the field of behaviour and social change communication. Evidence shows that Femina HIP has impact, empowering and inspiring youth and their communities across the country to reduce risky behaviour and change the course of their lives.

At Femina HIP, we are in constant touch with our target groups, ensuring that their questions, needs and VOICES shape the form and content of our media products.

Audience feedback is collected regularly through focus group discussions and surveys. Each month, we receive more than a thousand text messages, e-mails and letters from audiences all over the country. These voices are actively fed back into the production process ensuring that products remain relevant to local contexts and stimulate change processes.

Estimating reach, effect and impact
Another key purpose of our research is to develop a clear and compelling case for reach, impact and effect through various qualitative and quantitative studies.

In 2007, Femina HIP was part of the Tanzania All Media and Products Survey (TAMPS). This comprehensive survey of media consumption in Tanzania proved that Femina HIP’s media products are among the most recognized and consumed in the country.

We estimate that our two recurring magazines Fema and Si Mchezo! per issue have approximately 2.5 and 2.6 million readers respectively. Around 800,000 Tanzanians tune in on our weekly TV talk show and chezasalama.com has more than 28,000 registered users, making it one of the most visited Tanzanian webpages. A recent study suggests that Pilika Pilika Radio Show has more than 5.4 million listeners in mainland Tanzania – and that half of them listen on a regular basis.

As our capacity to conduct large-scale research is limited – and in order to secure impartiality and objectivity – Femina HIP participates in tie-ins with national and international research institutions, including the University of Dar es Salaam. Femina HIP has on several occasions been the object of study for large research projects and will again, staring in December 2009, be the focus of study in a comprehensive, international research called ‘People Speaking Back? Media, Empowerment and Social Change.’ This is a Danida-funded research project exploring questions of participatory governance around civil society driven media platforms in Kenya and Tanzania.

Monitoring
Monitoring progress against our Strategic Plan 2006-2010 (14) is central to measure our performance and guide new strategies. Femina HIP has developed a rigorous monitoring system. Our research and evaluations feed into the organisation’s log frame as means of verification of the target indicators and results, allowing us to assess program performance and use lessons learned when formulating new strategies.

You can download some of our most recent studies and key documents: