FY2018 Annual Progress Report: Strengthening Free and Independent Media in South Sudan (i-STREAM)

The project's goal is to strengthen a free and independent media in South Sudan, with an emphasis on the independent radio sector. The project supports local partner radio stations and focuses on improving the professional preparation of journalists, the economic self-sustainability of media houses, the enabling environment for a free media, and the support institutions for a freer media. The project views media development as a holistic process that encompasses several key interlinking factors that together enable a healthy media system. These factors include the production and distribution of quality content, the financial sustainability of media outlets, a fair and predictable legal environment that encourages their development, and the existence of strong support institutions that can advocate on their behalf. High-quality, localized information is a key component to democracy and development, and the project's approach is holistic, collaborating with media houses to produce and distribute high-quality content, providing advice and support to those media houses as they strive to become their own self-sustaining institutions, and advocating for the entire media sector to ensure that journalists and media houses are protected and can operate freely and credibly. In FY2018, the project made notable progress towards its overall objectives. Eye Media continued to position themselves as a prominent public broadcaster both in Juba and beyond, conducting a nationwide upgrade to their repeater network and relaunching the Eye Radio Shortwave Service. The Radio Community successfully managed their first subgrant from Internews and transitioned to their own national NGO, reconstituting their board of trustees, revising their constitution, and setting forth strategic plans for setting up their future as a sustainable, self-sufficient media organization in South Sudan. The project continued to support the work of crucial media organizations in FY2018, including Internews's strong partnership with AMDISS and the Media Development Institute, who graduated their second cohort of journalism students and enrolled 36 more students for the 2018-2019 cohort. Internews also extended subgrants to four new partners, including Radio Jonglei in Bor, Good News Radio in Rumbek, Active Youth Agency in Mundri, and Foundation for Youth Initiative in Jubek state, supporting the launching of targeted women's empowerment and HIV/AIDS radio programming, peacebuilding cultural events, and innovative agricultural information sharing. The project's key achievements in FY2018 include delivering quality news and programming via its award-winning 24-hour FM station in Juba, transmitted across its repeater network to major population centers and online. The station focused on the peace process and continued political turmoil in South Sudan. The Radio Community continued supporting four network community radio stations throughout South Sudan with a subgrant from i-STREAM, focusing content on relevant issues such as peace, health, gender issues, and the economy. The project also mentored 58 journalists, including 16 female journalists, and supported the production of 3,278 new stories, 4,177 programs, and 368 items on peace. The project's approach to media development is contributing to a healthier media environment in South Sudan, undoubtedly a crucial part of the country's democratic progress. The project's support for local partner radio stations and focus on improving the professional preparation of journalists, the economic self-sustainability of media houses, the enabling environment for a free media, and the support institutions for a freer media are key components of its success. The project's holistic approach to media development is enabling a healthy media system in South Sudan, with a focus on the production and distribution of quality content, the financial sustainability of media outlets, a fair and predictable legal environment, and the existence of strong support institutions.