It gives me immense pleasure to welcome you to this consultation on capacity building for potential centres of Excellence and Reference in journalism training in Africa. I would like to thank our hosts and partners in this meeting, Rhodes University and Highway Africa, who have collaborated closely with UNESCO in order to make the initiative possible. I would like to thank you, the experts and training practitioners from around the world, for having accepted our invitation to come to South Africa and share your knowledge with us. Over the next two days, we will be working together to exchange knowledge and explore partnerships with a view to enhancing professional standards of media professional in Africa. We at UNESCO believe that fostering journalist-training institutions is key to development as a whole, whether for ushering in democratic practices, tackling Africa’s poverty or promoting social change. UNESCO is proud to be able to provide a platform to discuss how these African journalism institutions can better realise their development potential. The World Summit on the Information Society recognised the essential role that media play in development. This role goes beyond reporting news and events; it contributes to the freedom of expression and the plurality of information, to engage and empower communities and to underpin sustainable development and good governance. The Geneva Plan of Action adopted by the WSIS provides an excellent roadmap for all stakeholders to to media development and capacity you know, “contribute building”. As UNESCO was designated the lead facilitator in the implementation on of the Action Plan aimed at the promotion of freedom of expression and universal access to information and knowledge. Without the freedom to express and to access information and knowledge it is not possible to empower people and ensure their participation in sustainable development. Current issues and trends are redefining journalism practices. Globalisation and the subsequent rise of global media networks have been accompanied by the emergence of multimedia platforms that are opening entirely new avenues for broadcasting and reaching a great variety of audiences. At the same time, new forms of ‘personalised’
It gives me immense pleasure to welcome you to this consultation on capacity building for potential centres of Excellence and Reference in journalism training in Africa. I would like to thank our hosts and partners in this meeting, Rhodes University and Highway Africa, who have collaborated closely with UNESCO in order to make the initiative possible. I would like to thank you, the experts and training practitioners from around the world, for having accepted our invitation to come to South Africa and share your knowledge with us. Over the next two days, we will be working together to exchange knowledge and explore partnerships with a view to enhancing professional standards of media professional in Africa. We at UNESCO believe that fostering journalist-training institutions is key to Africa’s development as a whole, whether for ushering in democratic practices, tackling poverty or promoting social change. UNESCO is proud to be able to provide a platform to discuss how these African journalism institutions can better realise their development potential. The World Summit on the Information Society recognised the essential role that media play in development. This role goes beyond reporting news and events; it contributes to the freedom of expression and the plurality of information, to engage and empower communities and to underpin sustainable development and good governance. The Geneva Plan of Action adopted by the WSIS provides an excellent roadmap for all stakeholders to “contribute to media development and capacity building”. As you know, UNESCO was designated the lead facilitator in the implementation on of the Action Plan aimed at the promotion of freedom of expression and universal access to information and knowledge. Without the freedom to express and to access information and knowledge it is not possible to empower people and ensure their participation in sustainable development. Current issues and trends are redefining journalism practices. Globalisation and the subsequent rise of global media networks have been accompanied by the emergence of multimedia platforms that are opening entirely new avenues for broadcasting and reaching a great variety of audiences. At the same time, new forms of ‘personalised’