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Mende’s signature propels 5 new serial dramas in D.R. Congo

Jun 27, 2014

Kinshasa, D.R. Congo – Tuesday in Kinshasa marked a pivotal point for Population Media Center (PMC), as Lambert Mende, the Congolese Minister of Media, signed a Protocole d’Entente that will allow PMC to launch five new radio serial dramas in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Not only will PMC be producing more shows in a single country simultaneously than ever before, but programs will air in five different languages, targeting the Congo’s pressing health and human rights concerns related to reproductive, maternal, and child health.

Pascal Amasi, Mende’s deputy chief of staff and a former journalist, was the major actor in obtaining the signature that sets PMC’s new collection of projects in motion. Mende discussed the value of PMC’s work with Congolese media and encouraged them to promote healthy behavior through their own productions.

Present at the 30-minute ceremony were representatives from UNICEF; UNFPA; UNAIDS, Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development; and UN Women; as well as PMC staff Kriss Barker, Gabin Kifukiau, and Philippe Ntonda. Kriss Barker, PMC Vice President of International Programs, told the minister that Population Media Center is looking forward to a long and fruitful collaboration with the Congolese government.

“This gives us the green light to proceed,” said Barker with a smile, as Mende signed the document in green ink.

ABOUT POPULATION MEDIA CENTER (PMC):

Population Media Center (PMC) is a nonprofit, international nongovernmental organization, which strives to improve the health and well-being of people around the world through the use of entertainment-education strategies, like serialized dramas on radio and television, in which characters evolve into role models for the audience for positive behavior change. Founded in 1998, PMC has over 15 years of field experience using the Sabido methodology of behavior change communications, impacting more than 50 countries around the world. www.populationmedia.org