Reality Television for Community Development: The Kwanda Initiative in South Africa

This 14-page article, published in the Glocal Times, shares the evaluation findings of Kwanda, a community development initiative of the Soul City Institute and partners in which five deprived communities were challenged to make their areas "look better, feel better, and work better" by addressing health and development issues. Responses to this challenge were documented in a 13-episode reality TV series that culminated in a viewer vote for the most successful community. According to the article, the evaluation of the initiative concluded that Kwanda offers possibilities for using the reality TV format to foster community development and the scaling-up of development messaging.

Kwanda used the reality TV format for a "community makeover" show, combined with community training and support to promote change in both individuals and the broader community. The project focussed on four main, interlinked development goals: to prevent new HIV infections; to address alcohol abuse, violence and crime; to take care of vulnerable people in the community; and to foster engagement in projects that strengthen livelihoods by generating income, encourage the growing of food, or in other ways improve the quality of life in communities. The report states that while the Kwanda format was criticised for using a competitive rather than collaborative model, the competition was used as a tool to motivate teams to stay in the Kwanda process until the end and to hold audiences. Kwanda differed from the conventional reality TV shows in that there was no elimination, and teams won small rewards for the best efforts with various projects during the course of the series.

After a community mapping exercise, each team was split in two, with 50 members attending an intensive training course around HIV and HIV prevention and 50 attending the Kwanda Learning Camp, where they lived and worked with each other for one month. The Kwanda Learning Camp used a methodology called the Organisation Workshop. The key objective of the Learning Camp was to enable Kwanda participants to learn how to organise their communities to address specific social challenges. The organisers provided tools and equipment and negotiated contracts with the participants, who were paid as an enterprise for work that they contracted to do. Participants were encouraged to take ownership of the organisation of the camp and to evolve more democratic systems. Teams were filmed both during the Learning Camp and for four months afterwards, as they implemented various activities and challenges. After the series ended, the work of the Kwanda teams was extended through the South African government’s Community Work Programme (CWP). This programme provides ongoing opportunities for useful work in communities by paying stipends.

In the community level assessment, evaluators examined the social and development changes within the Kwanda communities, on the four development areas identified. They are outlined in the article as follows:

• Prevention of HIV/AIDS - The results indicated that the HIV /AIDS prevention activities conducted within communities fostered discussion and awareness about the pandemic as well as about responsible sexual behaviour and sexual rights. The results of the evaluation suggest that the leadership skills participating communities gained through the Kwanda process, and the support they received, increased their likelihood of success with HIV and AIDS activities.
• Reduction of alcohol abuse, violence, and crime - The activities to address crime and violence were generally successful. In most communities, this was because of the focus on partnerships, good leadership, and community participation. Activities focused heavily on establishing partnerships between the police and local community policing forums (CPFs), and on re-establishing and strengthening the CPFs. One of the more difficult problem areas was alcohol abuse. Activities designed to address this issue involved getting cooperation of tavern owners in reducing operating hours, and minimising overall alcohol consumption and underage drinking. These activities were not always successful, but they did heighten awareness and reduce the acceptance of underage drinking and drinking-related violence.
• Support for Vulnerable People in the Communities - All the community teams conducted door-to-door visits to do home-based care. Teams identified vulnerable people, including orphans and sick people. Food gardens were planted, and people were given clothes and others household items. The teams essentially acted as a link between local government and the community. This was in stark contrast to the non-participant control communities, where limited assistance was received from local authorities when residents tried to help vulnerable people such as orphans.
• Strengthening of Livelihoods - Activities designed to strengthen livelihoods included food gardens, breeding chickens, planting trees, and any other projects that could contribute to basic household survival. During the Kwanda process, it was found that these activities were more likely to be effective when undertaken on a more collective basis and with community support.

The Kwanda series was intended to expose the circumstances of different communities in a way that encouraged other communities to identify and feel inspired to act. At the audience level, the evaluation assessed the extent to which Kwanda inspired people in other areas to be more aware of the social challenges facing their communities, and whether they were more willing to talk about these issues.

• Viewership and Audience Reception - The results indicate that viewers identified with the social issues facing the participating communities and were inspired and motivated by the message that communities can help themselves. The reality format also encouraged viewers to think about issues such as personal accountability and teamwork.
• Viewer SMS Responses - A total of 6776 SMSs were sent by viewers to the live comment crawler during the series. In general, the SMS indicated that the Kwanda series content touched on social issues that were important to viewers. The SMS responses also indicated that the series was pitched at the right level and encouraged viewers to think about social issues in their own communities.
• Letters Received from Viewers - A total of 94 letters were received, from both individuals and organisations. Most letters received from organisations included requests for assistance with funding and material. In response, Soul City sent the Kwanda resource booklet, which includes a section on places where communities can receive help. The Kwanda TV series seems to have had particular appeal for individuals who were already working for community-based organisations or already starting their own enterprises.

The article explains that extensive change at the community level requires that there is social learning, where many people learn and change behaviour at the same time. Many participants point to the month-long Learning Camp as the time and process that galvanised the teams to launch the activities necessary to change the way of life in the Kwanda communities. The article concludes that the Kwanda initiative was successful because it showed what communities can achieve if they organise themselves. It also showed how television can be a useful tool for making authorities and leaders more accountable.