Kenya Community Media Network (KCOMNET) is a non-profit organization and the national networking association for community media sector in Kenya. Community media engaged by KCOMNET include:

Community Radios

CBOs, KCCB & RANET community radios stations.

Community newsletters

Newsletters addressing socio-economic and local governance issues in the grassroots communities

Community artists

Community based theatre, creative writers, musicians, painters etc

Community resource centres

Community based resource centres and telecentres

Community cinema

Community based cinemas

Community noticeboards

Other community based information outlets

Who are we?

KCOMNET was founded by a voluntary group of individuals, media practitioners, NGOs, and community media groups with an interest in development communications and promotion of community media in Kenya.

Over the years, KCOMNET has focussed its engagements on the development of community media in Kenya. The Network provides a platform for networking between community media, with other media stakeholders, and the general public.  It also mobilizes resources for the development of community media in Kenya.

What we do

Why community media?

Community media are widely recognized as the most basic, most connecting and most essential forms of community communication for the development of grassroots communities.

The focus of community media  on issues of utmost priority and concern to communities valiantly distinguish them from the mainstream commercial media. Owing to the fact that community media are established and sustained by non- profit entities means a media that is free and independent from commercial and state control other than the communities served.  Community media is then the kind of media that is located in the deepest endeavors of human kind to be free from want of any kind.

Meet our team

The network is governed by a Steering Council and its secretariat based in Nairobi.
Our team

Radio Stations

Counties

Journalists

Community media forms

Potential audience

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is KCOMNET?
Kenya Community Media Network (KCOMNET) is a non-profit organization and the national networking association for community media sector in Kenya. It was founded by a voluntary group of individuals, media practitioners, NGOs, and community media groups with an interest in development communications and committed to support the promotion and development of community media in Kenya.
What does KCOMNET do?
Since its inception, KCOMNET has focused its engagements on the development of community radio in Kenya. This is due to the weaknesses and sluggish development of the community radio sector in this country. Besides, community radio is considered as the flagship of community media as they are able to effectively integrate and promote other forms of community media.

The Network provides a platform for networking between community media, with other media stakeholders, and the general public. It also mobilizes resources for the development of community media in Kenya.

Initially, KCOMNET saw as its core mandate the need to push for a regulatory framework that would suit the needs of community media. The network led in drafting a community broadcasting bill for presentation before a Presidential Task Force on Media Law that then was appointed to collect views on the possibility of drafting a new media law.

Our work 1996 - 2002
Between 1996 – 2002, KCOMNET prioritised its work along two crucial areas:

  • Training and capacity building and
  • Lobbying for an overall regulatory framework for broadcasting with special emphasis to community broadcasting.

KCOMNET’s work has over the years focused on advocacy to promote an enabling environment for community media. KCOMNET started by demanding constitutional and legal amendments, repeals and additions, which guarantee the freedoms of expression, information and communication. KCOMNET in particular examined the Kenya Broadcasting context and toward this end developed a position paper that was presented to the Kenyan Task Force on the Media Law and the Attorney General. Thereafter, the Network came up with a Bill on Community Broadcasting which was presented to the Task Force on Media Law. KCOMNET also generated position papers on the meaning of community media to remove the misconceptions that existed in the minds of most that equated community media to vernacular or tribal radio.

Our work 2003 - 2008
Between 2003–2008, KCOMNET held several sub-regional workshops to discuss experiences, legislative development, challenges and strategies for strengthening the community media sector in Africa. The network was part of several engagements globally that sought to popularise and make the sector stronger. The network coordinated the East African Community Media Network and led the establishment of two founding radio stations in Uganda and Tanzania. The network played a key role in the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters AMARC and chaired the forum for one term. The network also held several media debates on the issue of community media, met with several officials to advocate and lobby for the sector.
Our work 2008 - to date
To date, KCOMNET supports community media stations in Kenya to address pressing socio-economic and local governance issues in the grassroots communities. These issues include those on community health, peace building, entrepreneurship, community education, development of independent and progressive civil society, social justice, good governance, transparency and accountability, among other issues affecting grassroots communities.

KCOMNET has been supporting community radio stations in Kenya for the purpose of enabling them to take their rightful place as a distinct sector of the media that addresses pertinent and pressing issues at the grassroots communities. Community radio is distinct from the private and commercial media in that they are non-profit broadcasting initiatives that are established and sustained by civil society organisations at the grassroots communities.

The establishment and development of community radio station is based on five principles which are recognized globally as being the key pillars of community broadcasting: These are Community ownership, community service, community participation, a non-profit business model and independence (Coyer 2009, Fairbairn 2009).

Our attention is now focused  in the consolidation and strengthening of community media sector in Kenya through four programmatic interventions: Networking, capacity building, content development and policy advocacy

How is KCOMNET governed?
Over the years, KCOMNET has collaborated with a variety of local and international development partners to build the capacity of community based media and their practitioners in Kenya.

The network is governed by a Steering Council comprised of 12 members (7 males and 5 females). Its secretariat based in Nairobi.

KCOMNET is affiliated to Amarc and East Africa Community Media Network.