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China Media Group (CMG) set up a new collaboration platform with Africa and signed a joint declaration on November 26, 2021.

Africa

How African media can contribute to continent’s development 

Around the world, mass media plays an important role in educating and informing the audiences about issues of common interest. Media largely shapes public opinion on a myriad of issues affecting society. It can rally people together in pursuit national development goals; inspire individuals to reimagine lived experiences for the greater societal good. At the same time, the media can be used to spread disinformation, apathy, stereotypes and hate messages. It has therefore become customary for different societies to constantly examine how to harness the power of the media for a country’s good.

A new synergy is unfolding among Chinese and African media to share knowledge, experience and content in order to drive transformative conversations and agendas for respective societies. The recently staged media forum that brought together the China Media Group and tens of media outlets in the continent is a good step in hoisting the role of the media in China-Africa cooperation.

The media forum came at the right time when China and African countries are revamping their relationship towards greater outcomes and inclusive benefits. Ahead of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation to be held in Senegal on November 29-30, China has released a new white paper to guide its relations with the continent in which the role of the media has been amplified.

The media has played a key role in the economic transformation of China by creating harmony, educating the masses, and dispensing truth while safeguarding the moral character of the nation. In the process Chinese people were able to trust their media and unleash their full potential to build a society that is today admired universally.

Africa too can leverage the media in its quest for development. The continent is still facing many socio-economic challenges such as the struggle against poverty and ill health; weak industrial chains, inadequate infrastructure and conflict. These concerns have stayed with Africa for a long time and should be prioritized by the media in the continent.

China, Africa and other developing countries have for long suffered from global discourse hegemonies in which media agendas were set by the developed countries. In the process, African media lost focus on the underlying development needs of the continent and instead continue to project aspirations and views of other societies. Like their Chinese counterparts, local press should tell stories that touches on Africa’s development priorities as well as strides made.

African media should drop the spectacle that is now defining the western world such as those touching on conspicuous consumption. The truth is that African countries are still at a different level of development and the media enterprise should reflect the immediate as and long term concerns of the continent. Globally, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals forms a good benchmark for media preoccupation. At the regional level, we have the Africa Agenda 2063 at country level, for example, in Kenya, we have Vision 2030. All these development blueprints have rich catalogue that can drive content generation and national narratives.

For a shift in media coverage of Africa to happen, there is need for substantial investments in the infrastructure that can facilitate news gathering and dissemination. In the digital era, African media must be competitive, especially the state owned media outlets. China has emerged as a strong partner for Africa in media infrastructure upgrades and such cooperation should continue.

Secondly, African countries should rethink how they train their journalists. Both the syllabus and contemporary discourse should be aimed at fashioning Africa’s development aspirations and domestic political, cultural and social conditions. That shift will enhance local media capacity to better serve their societies.

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Finally, as captured in the forum’s declaration the African and the Chinese media platforms should jointly work together to bridge the divide, dispel long held stereotypes that risks smooth implementation of China-Africa cooperation. The media should see through the fabrications and distortions generated outside Africa and bring to an end, the longstanding discourse hegemony against Africa, China and other developing countries.

Africa and China have already formalized many avenues to implement long-term cooperation in the media space. These include the China-Africa Media Summit, the Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation, and the Belt and Road News Alliance. A number of bilateral arrangements also exist across the continent to promote capacity building, technology upgrades and content sharing. Guided by the shared vision of economic transformation, societal stability and collective human progress, the media can be a strong pillar in the actualization of Africa’s transformation agenda.

The writer is a scholar of international relations.

Twitter: @Cavinceworld.

Email: ocadhere@gmail.com 

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