Mbathio Diaw is the director of RAES, an NGO and production company specializing in engineering communication projects for behavioral change through education and entertainment.
What types of organizations do you work with? What types of content do you produce?
We work with national and international NGOs, private foundations, public agencies, government agencies, and traditional community organizations.
We produce educational content that addresses major development issues such as health, democratic governance, and citizen participation. Most of the time, our content is based on the method of education through entertainment via television series, radio soap operas, web series, games, etc.
Can you tell us about your latest production,
Renaissance, broadcast on TV5Monde?
Renaissance
is a television series consisting of 10 episodes of 26 minutes each. The series tells the story of five drug users who fight to reduce their addiction in a treatment center. The series highlights the key role of family, police, and the justice system in the social reintegration of drug users.
In terms of budget, what does a project like this represent?
This project cost us €300,000. The series was entirely produced and post-produced in Senegal. It's a very small budget for a production of this quality, but we were able to count on the commitment of the technicians and actors, who accepted lower fees than usual simply because they were so enthusiastic about the idea behind the project.
What is your view of the audiovisual production sector in Senegal? Is the sector doing well? Is it undergoing major changes?
I am optimistic. The sector is doing well. The state is increasingly supporting the audiovisual industry and the private sector is starting to support young producers through sponsorship. There is a new momentum.
Is project financing the main challenge?
The main challenge is to implement an economic model that works for financing productions. Without this, it will be difficult to have solid, high-quality projects. It is also necessary to strengthen local production on a technical level (scriptwriting, production quality) and, above all, to strengthen the local post-production sector, as few structures offer services that meet international standards.
In your opinion, what is the most popular audiovisual content in Senegal? What are its specific characteristics?
Television series are particularly popular with audiences in Senegal. Their specific characteristics are that they are local stories produced by Senegalese people, with a certain sensitivity in the way they tell stories and, above all, a commendable effort to design attractive formats with respectable quality. The era of Brazilian and Mexican soap operas is over.
What are your next projects?
Our group is preparing to launch new productions. The aim is to provide educational content related to current and priority issues for Africa and the world.
For television, we are currently working on a new production designed around the theme of democratic governance and citizen participation. It is a political series aimed at encouraging civic engagement among young people and women in the Sahel. We are also working on season 3 of C'est la Vie
, which will be broadcast next July.
We have just released two radio series in a new format through C'est la vie and the series Dianké. We are also working on the production of programs on COVID across six African countries in collaboration with 15 partner radio stations that produce programs in local languages and 34 radio stations that broadcast them.
We would like to invest in the environmental sector, but also work on new content formats, still in the field of education through entertainment, and perhaps produce content for new age groups.
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