Submitted by Benita Nsabua on Thu, 06/09/2011 - 11:03
- Harmonize and reinforce training and other capacity building programmes for African journalists on major AU/NEPAD Agency activities.
- Publish major information and pubicity materials, to the extent possible, in the AU working languages in order to reach out to broader section of the target audience in Africa.
- Target youth as one of the key audiences for information dissemination.
- Take advantage of information technologies by setting up a small advisory team on training AU/NEPAD communication personnel in the use of social media tools.
- Develop strategies or programmes that encourage interaction with selected public groups and empower them to convert important messages into action.
- Team up with other organizations and explore further training opportunities in journalism and social media.
- Set up a network of stringers in Africa on thematic issues to contribute relevant stories to various publications on AU/NEPAD initiatives and programmes.
- Identify a core group of senior editors who would serve as a mechanism for cooperation between AU/NEPAD and the media in projecting a better picture of the continent.
- Invite international news organizations to the next media dialogue for robust discussions on the reportage of African issues / affairs.
- Expand, improve and be pro-active in the provision of credible information to the media on AU/NEPAD initiatives and programmes. The focus should be on sustainable projects with consistent messages on what the AU and its NEPAD programme are doing to improve local communities.
- Designate high level champions who can promote and speak authoritatively about AU/NEPAD programmes.
- Plan for events to mark important AU/NEPAD milestones.
- Introduce or expand the awarding of prizes in different categories or sectors to encourage reportage of AU/NEPAD initiatives and programmes among the African media. This could also serve as an incentive to encourage coverage of development issues.
- Mobilize African media in the diaspora to contribute to the portrayal of a positive image of continent – both inside and outside of the continent and to engage foreign media as allies.
- Develop measurable outcomes with targets and timelines to report progress on opening up media space for public discussions in print or electronic media. Devise simpler ways of evaluating the impact of AU/NEPAD that the public could understand.
- Expand the existing AU database of journalists to facilitate contact with journalists across the continent and abroad.
- Improve the packaging of AU/NEPAD stories by using a less technical approach that enables the stories to be easily understood by the mainstream public. Find a bridge between what the experts are working on and what would interset the media.
- Encourage South-South media dialogue for sharing experiences and lessons learned.
- Support the development and sustenance of community media in rural areas using local languages and introduce new technologies at the local level.
- Finalize and distribute the writers’/journalists manual African issues.
