Ice FM: The story of Nigeria’s first campus digital radio

The building housing the 96.1 Ice FM situated at the University of Jos (Unijos) is a modest one but one would not believe the waves the station makes in entertaining and informing students of the university and the general public could come from there. The station which became the first digitalized campus radio in Nigeria […]

The building housing the 96.1 Ice FM situated at the University of Jos (Unijos) is a modest one but one would not believe the waves the station makes in entertaining and informing students of the university and the general public could come from there.
The station which became the first digitalized campus radio in Nigeria was commissioned in 2011 by the then Vice Chancellor Professor Sonni Gwanle Tyoden.
The building, rounded by iron fence and the grounds paved with interlocked blocks, consist of the office of the station coordinator, station engineer, production room, studio, reception desk, among others.
The station coordinator,Mr. Dan Mallum, disclosed that the idea by the university to set up the station was first discussed in 1996, but due to some reasons, it did not come up until 1998, when the university set up a committee to decide how the radio station would be established.
The committee which was headed by the then DVC, Prof. Musa Enah, went to the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to get the license. “We got the license in 2009, we completed setting up the station in 2010 and commissioned it in 2011 and precisely we did test transmission in February 2011,” Mallum said.
The main aim behind establishing the station was to give proper training on broadcasting to the students from the Department of Mass Communication, Theatre Arts, Information Communication Technology, (ICT), Engineering, Advance Studies and other relevant departments.
This objective was the very foundation of its name, “Ice” which was taken from the words informing, communicating and educating.
“We want them to have a practical knowledge of what their profession is all about; that’s what matters to the university,” he explained.
The station has three dedicated staff on the university’s pay roll. They are the station coordinator, his secretary and the station engineer; while the remaining members of staff are mostly volunteers and students on Industrial Training (IT).
He added that the station creates few programmes and leaves most of the airtime to the students to work on their talents and demonstrate their creativity. The programmes include entertainment, sport, music, current affairs, news, health, quiz; Q and A, business IQ, leadership style, among others.
Mallum said the greatest challenge the station faces is not finance because the university runs the station like any other department, but the license issued by the NBC which limits the station’s operations to the university campus.
He said people from outside the campus want to advertise their products and services due to the large number of listeners, but cannot because the operation is limited.
The Head of Mass Communication Department of the university,Mrs. Sarah Iwa, said the station had helped students from her department, especially those into news writing, radio production, news casting, presenting and  news reporting.
“We inculcate flair, discipline and communication skills into our students. We also teach them how to do live reporting, news casting, and so on,” she said. 
She said the station was open to students outside the Mass Communication department, adding that people with interest in broadcasting come around.  “And every year, 300-level students of Mass Communication from universities across the nation come to the station for training. But the highest number of students we train any particular time is between 50 and 60,” Mrs. Iwa said.
Mallum said the station had turned out students who had become professional broadcasters. “Many of them are now working with different media organizations across the country and abroad and Ice FM is their stepping stone,” she said.
A 400-level student of Mass Communication of the university, Nanret Samuel, who presents  a programme“Love Connect” said the programme is about connecting people with their loved ones while good songs are played in the background.
Another presenter, Alice Hassan, a 300-level IT student from University of Maiduguri, said her programme titled “Health Issues” enables her to carry out researches and helps to develop her communication and delivery skills.
James Deborah, a 300-level Mass Communication student of the University of Jos who anchors the programme titled “Peace of my Mind” explained that it is about sharing people’s experience, especially on the challenges they face while listeners call or send text messages and advise them on what would add value to their lives, or what they should do to overcome their challenges.
On his part, Adewale Amos, a 300-level student from Department of Mass Communication, said the desire to help people out of their shells inspired him to present the programme, “Fact Talk.”
Also, Gift Gyang, a volunteer and presenter of a business programme, stated that a lot of students had been inspired to set up small scale businesses before their graduation as a result of the programme.
Ibrahim Muhammad, a listener of the FM station, said the entertainment and sports programmes are second to none, as according to him, the presenters exhibit unique talents.
Another listener, Halima Kabiru, said she loves the programme, “Love Connect” because it connects her with loved ones.