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RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 DAKAR 002011 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR AF, S/CT, AF/PDPA, AF/W, AF/RSA, AND DRL/IRF 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR COURVILLE 
AID/W FOR AFR AND AFR/WA 
IBB FOR VOA 
EUCOM FOR COL. JOHN METZ 
ACCRA ALSO FOR IBB/VOA AND USAID/WA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS:              
SUBJECT: PROMINENT SENEGALESE MUSLIM LEADER REQUESTS USG 
SUPPORT FOR FM RADIO PROPOSAL 
 
 1.  (U) This is an action request; please see para 11 
below. 
 
 2.  (SBU) SUMMARY: Post has received a USD 1.3 million 
request for financial support from prominent Senegalese 
Islamic leader Cheikh Hassan Cisse, to expand the 
broadcast capability of his community radio station, 
Medina Baye FM, affiliate with Voice of America, and focus 
on development and socioeconomic issues.  Cisse heads the 
non-profit African-American Islamic Institute (AAII), 
which has an extensive record of activity in human rights, 
education, health, and poverty reduction.  While 
ambitious, his proposal holds considerable promise in 
terms of countering Wahabist/Salafist influences in the 
region and mitigating conditions that can give rise to 
extremist views.  Post recommends USG funding support for 
this proposal.  END SUMMARY. 
 
CISSE AND THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN ISLAMIC INSTITUTE 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 3.  (U) The Chief Imam of the Grand Mosque in the regional 
capital of Kaolack, Cheikh Hassan Cisse, is a prominent 
leader in the Tidiane brotherhood, the largest of 
Senegal's four principal Sunni (Sufi) communities.  With 
academic degrees earned in Cairo and London and doctoral 
work at Northwestern University in the U.S., Cisse travels 
frequently throughout West Africa as a spiritual leader 
and assistance donor.  He is also an influential and 
widely respected voice for religious moderation and 
tolerance.  For example, Nigeria's political leaders 
recently invited him to participate in talks in Abuja 
aimed at reducing tensions between Christian and Muslim 
communities in northern Nigeria. 
 
 4.  (U) Founded by Cisse in 1988 and registered as a non- 
profit NGO in 1998, the African-American Islamic Institute 
(AAII) seeks "to develop a capability for sustainable 
human and natural resource development that focuses on 
human rights, education, health care, food and water 
availability, alleviation of poverty and the promotion of 
peace."  AAII has an extensive record of activity in many 
areas of human development, from digging wells and 
supporting orphanages to campaigning against female 
genital mutilation and drug abuse.  Based in Kaolack, 
Senegal's third- largest city, AAII boasts affiliate 
organizations in ten African countries and several cities 
in the United States.  It has a documented history of 
grants management and cooperation with donor assistance 
organizations and United Nations bodies, notably UNICEF 
and UNFPA. 
 
MEDINA BAYE FM'S CURRENT STATUS 
------------------------------- 
 5.  (U) Since 2004, Medina Baye FM (90.1) has broadcast at 
the 30w level on an intermittent basis as a community 
radio station in Kaolack with a range of 30 kilometers 
(estimated potential audience: 275,000).  The station's 
manager, Moustapha Sane, works part time for the station 
and is the Director of Studies at the British-Senegalese 
Institute in Dakar.  Medina Baye FM also employs a 
consultant, Ousmane Djiba, who works for the local firm 
Radio TeleAfrica Technology and serves as VOA technical 
advisor to one of Senegal's leading Dakar-based stations, 
"Top FM." 
 
CISSE'S EXPANSION PLAN: NO MODEST PROPOSAL 
------------------------------------------ 
 6.  (SBU) On July 14, post received a cover letter and 30- 
page, itemized budget request of USD 1.3 million detailing 
the initial capital investment and overhead costs needed 
to transform Medina Baye FM into a nationwide commercial 
radio station during a three-year period of expansion. 
After consulting with Cisse and his representatives, post 
received a detailed prospectus with budget items broken 
down by year, outlining an "evolutionary" process toward 
Cisse's desired end-state. 
 
 7.  (SBU) During the first year, Cisse proposes the 
expansion of Medina Baye FM's reach to 200 kilometers, 
which would increase its potential audience to more than 
 
DAKAR 00002011  002 OF 003 
 
 
500,000 listeners.  Top-line first-year budget items 
include a technical platform (transmitter) - USD 470,000; 
physical plant (construction) - USD 130,000; technical 
facilities (studios and offices) - USD 130,000; and 
personnel (journalists, producer/editor, technicians, 
administrative) - USD 135,000.  (NOTE: As a first step 
towards expanding its operations, Medina Baye FM obtained 
in July a commercial radio license authorizing broadcasts 
at 2kW.  END NOTE.) 
 
 8.  (SBU) Cisse also seeks to establish a partnership with 
Voice of America (VOA), which in accordance with the 
budget would entail the purchase of a decoder/receiver 
(USD 20,000), as well as a publicity campaign to launch 
the service (USD 72,000). 
 
 9.  (SBU) In years two and three, Cisse seeks to expand 
Medina Baye FM's reach with a network of relay stations 
that will cover all of Senegal and even reach into 
neighboring countries.  In addition, he plans to offer 
Internet-based broadcasts through AAII's website, 
www.aaii.info. 
 
CISSE'S FORMAT: COMMERCIAL RADIO WITH A SOCIAL CONSCIENCE 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 10.  (SBU) Cisse proposes a 24-hour a day/7-day a week 
program format focusing on girls' education; environmental 
protection/management; health issues, including 
maternal/neonatal care and HIV/AIDS prevention; economic 
development; and civic education.  (NOTE: One of Dakar's 
most popular community radio stations, Radio Oxyjeunes, 
follows a format similar to Cisse's proposal and has 
enjoyed considerable success in heightening awareness of 
health and women's issues.  END NOTE.)  In addition to 
some religious programming, the proposed format also 
includes the traditional elements of news, sports, music 
and cultural segments, to be aired in French as well as 
the national languages of Wolof, Pulaar, and Serer. 
 
MEDINA BAYE FM: DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH? 
------------------------------------- 
 11.  (SBU) ACTION REQUEST: Cisse's proposal is fully 
consistent with the aims of the Trans-Saharan Counter- 
Terrorism Initiative (TSCTI).  Post believes this request 
for USD 1.3 million to expand broadcast capability and 
programming by Medina Baye FM merits USG support.  As a 
moderate Muslim figure whose leadership holds sway in not 
just Senegal, but the region as a whole, Cisse and AAII 
have the institutional track record and bona fides to 
merit serious consideration for USG funding.  END ACTION 
REQUEST. 
 
 12.  (SBU) COMMENT: With the reach and efficiency of a 
commercial station, Medina Baye FM's expanded programming 
would direct a secular focus on many of the socioeconomic 
conditions considered to be among the root causes of 
extremist views.  Cisse's proposal would create a media 
outlet clearly inclined to collaborate with post in 
advancing health, education and human rights priorities 
among youth and under-served populations outside of Dakar. 
Under Cisse's leadership, Medina Baye FM's proposed 
expansion also stands to contribute significantly to the 
propagation of a moderate Muslim perspective in Senegal 
and even neighboring countries.  Though Senegalese are 
generally resistant to religious extremism and Islamic 
fundamentalism, Medina Baye FM's presence could help to 
challenge radical Wahabist and Salafist messages and 
deflect inroads in Senegal, which is 95 percent Muslim. 
The proposed expansion of Medina Baye FM would also be a 
useful addition to Senegal's media landscape in the run-up 
to Dakar's hosting of the Organization of the Islamic 
Conferences (OIC) Summit, slated for early 2008. 
 
 13.  (SBU) If full or partial funding is obtained from a 
single source, post recommends the Department of State 
serve as the implementing agency, with post's Public 
Affairs Officer assuming primary responsibility for 
monitoring the grant.  If mixed USG funding sources are 
used, post has a standing Interagency Media Advisory Group 
(a committee consisting of section/agency heads) that 
 
DAKAR 00002011  003 OF 003 
 
 
could serve as the coordinating body.  While post's budget 
cannot accommodate Cisse's start-up costs, post is 
prepared to support Medina Baye FM through U.S. Speaker 
Programs, Information Resource Center assistance and other 
public diplomacy tools used to support independent media 
and conduct Muslim outreach.  END COMMENT. 
 
JACOBS