Many girls and women in East Africa do not have equal opportunities to exercise their legally-recognised rights and face social exclusion, “honour” killings, female genital mutilation, trafficking, restricted mobility and early marriage. Broadcasting organisations, which play a central role in shaping public perceptions of gender, can either worsen the situation (by portraying stereotypical, sensational images of women) or ameliorate it (by providing balanced coverage that empowers women, while exposing acts of gender bias); in recent years, East African media have mostly been doing the former. 
 
This project aims to build the capacity and receptiveness of East African media to broadcast quality gender-sensitive content by supporting television and radio in Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda to produce fair and gender-balanced content. This will be achieved by developing a gender analysis framework for the media and examining good and bad practices. The project will examine how culture and religion impact gender portrayal and how the media can be advocates for equality through the stories they produce. It will examine gender awareness across editorial content and fair portrayal in all broadcasted content. The project will facilitate greater engagement between NGOs working with women in the communication for development sector and with mainstream broadcasters in East Africa. The project will specifically address the third MDG, “Promote gender equality and empower women”.