The ‘Turudi Shule na Tumaini campaign’ supported by UNICEF was implemented for 10 weeks from the 21st of December 2020 to 28th February 2021, using the DigiRedio SBC platform in 40 counties through 43 community radio stations. The campaign had four main objectives; firstly, to ensure that parents, children, and all community members had the right information regarding when children are going back to school, address myths and misconceptions etc. Secondly, to provide strong desire for children to report back to school and stay in school despite the challenges being experienced such as shortages of amenities, economic hardships etc. Thirdly, enhance skills by learners to protect themselves from COVID-19 infections when in school, parents involvement in modelling/teaching their children how to protect themselves etc. Fourthly, enhance community participation in addressing issues such as shortage of desks, lack of water in schools, classrooms etc. And lastly, address social norms- that affect children’s rights to education such as early marriage, child labour etc.

The community engagement process was successful in generating evidence through social listening and feedback processes that was instrumental in informing programming, with some other key issues emerging such as parents not having enough money to send their children back to school due to the hard economic times. There were also concerns that schools were not prepared to handle the large numbers of learners neither did they have enough funds to improve infrastructure and facilities for physical distancing and provide masks, hand washing facilities and water. There were also significant worries that children and teachers with underlying health conditions such as diabetes, asthma may be affected. Some teachers and parents were concerned about the rising number of indiscipline cases amongst children in schools.

The ’Turudi shule na Tumaini’ campaign also addressed issues on child protection with many children more vulnerable to abuses due to the prolonged school closures. Teen pregnancies had also sharply increased, and some of the learners were having challenges with their mental wellbeing due to social isolation and other challenges. Through Digiredio, experts were able to provide solutions that included linkages to appropriate services, as well as coping mechanisms for parents and learners.

The campaign shaped perceptions, knowledge, attitudes and practices through the daily interactive engagements and thought-provoking questions. These challenged the communities to generate their own solutions and ways of overcoming barriers. The programme also built the capacity of radio presenters to enhance accurate and quality programming in community radios.