Politics and Society
African Media Leaders Forum: Shaping Development Conversations in Africa
African society is at a historic turning point, with its citizens caught between rapidly growing economies, morphing political landscapes and technological innovations that are impacting all pillars of tradition and culture
Media constitute the most powerful known instrument for achieving harmonious and sustainable social transformation.
Current social conversations across the continent, mostly carried on media platforms, are generally lacking in depth and are uninformed. Do media professionals in Africa have a role or a duty to enhance the quality of these conversations? Should the role of media in western and eastern societies be exactly the same in an emerging Africa? Is the role of the journalist in this new
Africa a passive or an active one, and what exactly would that role be?
These are the questions asked during the first Plenary Session titled ‘Media and development: Shaping conversations in Africa’ at the African Media Leaders Forum currently under way in Johannesburg, South Africa. Listen to the audio recordings of the discussions below.
Minister in the Presidency, Jeff Radebe, formally opening the AMLF 2015 on behalf of his excellency, Jacob Zuma, President of South Africa. Photo: Nancy Onyango/This Is Africa
Left, Thebe Ikalafeng (Founder and Chairman, Brand Leadership Academy) and right, Tarek Atia (CEO and Founder, Egypt Media Development Programme) . Photo: Nancy Onyango/This Is Africa
Left, Jane Murago-Munene (Executive Director, Pan African Federation of Film Makers) and, right, Dr. Iqbal Surve (Founder, Sekunjalo Investment Group). Photo: Nancy Onyango/This Is Africa
H.E. Dr. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, President, Republic of Mauritius. Photo: Nancy Onyango/This Is Africa