International influence on radio and family planning communication in Kenya: an historical assessment

Abstract

This study investigates the history of family planning communication in Kenya and the role of international aid and radio broadcasting in that history. It focuses on family planning communication as a component of development communication that was woven into Kenyan nation policy shortly after Independence. It draws on the records of the Ford Foundation and other international agencies available at the Rockefeller Archive Center, along with radio programme recordings, government reports and other sources. This study identifies three cases that correspond to three historical periods of family planning communication in Kenya: the 1960s-1970s; the 1980s-1990s; and the 2000s-2010s. These cases allow us to explore how the Ford Foundation and other agencies worked with Kenyan organizations and state actors to develop large-scale family planning campaigns targeting different segments of society. This history provides an important context for understanding radio’s current role in reproductive health communication in Kenya.