African Media Development Initiative (AMDI)

AMDI is a consortium of partners that are working to provide funds and expertise to create an African media development facility. Their work revolves around the following three components:

Research and analysis:
Underpinning the work of the initiative was what organisers describe as the widest independent assessment of media development undertaken in recent years. This was based on a survey of the media landscapes across the continent as well as sub-regional and sector reports. This "mapping" of the media landscape included qualitative interviews with practitioners - including public broadcasters, as well as private and community media, large and small. In addition, a set of overview assessments by leading practitioners was sought.

The findings emphasised lessons learned and critical gaps, and set out areas for reform and development. The research activity generated 17 individual country reports (covering Angola, Botswana, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and one stand-alone report that summarised the key findings across the 17 countries.

Sector Planning:
The research was considered at a high level technical workshop led by the members of the Advisory Group, which was held in mid-2006. This workshop reviewed the reports, and identify the priority areas which the initiative should address. It set out options for the design and logistics of the AMDI facility to be presented to stakeholders at a Media Development Forum. The aim of the technical workshop was to agree on an overview analysis. Yet to be determined is an outline of costed, specific programme activities which support the three sub-sectors (public, private, and community media).

Mobilisation:
A joint committee called Africa Media Initiative (AMI) has now been formed, bringing together AMDI with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) process ("Strengthening African Media - STREAM"), and they are working on detailed research specifications for a facility, and possibly a Media Development Forum to be held in the future.

Democracy and Governance, Media Development.

The overall goal of the project is to promote the development of pluralistic media as a key information and accountability mechanism for democratic development in Africa. The project will aim to generate a common understanding of and agreement on specific steps to:

• Provide support for the development of more effective and responsive public service models of broadcasting
• Stimulate a better investment climate and operating environment for private media
• Improve the range and scale of professional media training (to include journalism and media management) and a system of accreditation
• Improve advocacy with African and multilateral bodies to develop policy in favour of a strengthened and more pluralistic media throughout Africa.