Capacities required 

Creating a successful edutainment TV show requires a dynamic media team that is able to harness the required resources and capacities – directing, researching, production, scriptwriting, and editing. It is important that scriptwriters have an understanding of agriculture and familiarity with the target audience (e.g. smallholder farmers), including their resource constraints and needs. Other capacities required are in campaigning, publicity, fundraising/resource mobilisation, and partnership building. 

Figure 1. Capacities required to develop a successful edutainment TV show

Costs 

Costs will vary depending on the scale of the project and services provided, but generally include equipment and procurement of licences; staffing; research, development, filming, and broadcasting; promotion; maintenance of equipment; and monitoring and evaluation. 

Costs of producing a show are relatively high in terms of absolute cost, but low in terms of cost per household reached. For example, engaging Shamba Shape Up to film five six-minute segments costs US$50,000, with an audience of 3.5 million households – only US$0.014 per household.

Strengths and weaknesses 

The major strengths and weaknesses of edutainment TV programmes for agricultural information are shown in Table 2. 

Table 2. Strengths and weaknesses