Calendar of events

 27-30 April, 5th annual conference of the African Forum for Utility Regulators, Accra, Ghana.
 28 April, African Water Facility meeting, Maseru, Lesotho.
 29-30 April, SADC scientific symposium on land and water management, Lusaka, Zambia. Source : NEPAD, april 21, 2008

NEPAD TV schedule

The next programme schedule for the NEPAD TV slot on the SABC Africa channel (DSTV Channel 286) is :

African Views
 23 April, 8pm-9pm (SA time)

This phone-in panel discussion will be led by Boitshepo Giyose, NEPAD advisor : food and nutrition security. The topic for discussion : The challenges of malnutrition in Africa.

The panel will include : Larry Umunna, Regional Representative for Africa for GAIN (Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition), Heidi-Lee Robertson, key account manager DSM Nutritional Products, and a representative of UNICEF. Source : NEPAD, april 21, 2008

TV and radio journalists praise NEPAD’s "train the trainer" programme

A 10-day "training the trainer" workshop organised by NEPAD in collaboration with the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) has ended in the Ghanaian capital Accra. The workshop brought together 12 television and radio personnel from the five English-speaking West African countries — Nigeria, Liberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone and the Gambia.

The participants – six men and six women — were taught the dynamics and the process of training by a renowned training consultant, Daniel Danov of the Sofia Media Development Centre in Bulgaria on behalf of the Deutsch Welle Academy.

Speaking at the close of the workshop, Louis Gnagbe, NEPAD media manager, urged the participants to put into action the knowledge and skills acquired at the workshop, part of a series of training seminars which NEPAD has been organising since 2006 to bring the activities of NEPAD to the people of Africa.

More than 50 African journalists had been trained so far, he said and the training had begun to bear fruit. Journalists who had participated in the workshops had formed themselves into networks for sharing information.

During the Accra workshop the journalists were taken on a tour of the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum and also toured the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation’s radio and television facilities including its radio training school.

For their final workshop project the participants were divided into three working groups and demonstrated their understanding of the training skills acquired by presenting a report on how to organise a training workshop.

In a resolution adopted at the end of the workshop, the journalists launched the Network of African Broadcast Trainers and agreed to publish an electronic newsletter for sharing information.

Dr. Kojo Assan, Chair of the NEPAD Steering Committee visited the workshop during one of the sessions and urged the journalists to utilise their knowledge for the development of Africa.

Earlier Ms. Sina Eckhoff, representative of GTZ based in South Africa said GTZ had been sponsoring NEPAD programmes in several areas including gender, good governance and the Pan-African Parliament.

Journalists give their views on the workshop

"Compact, concise and comprehensive. I have gained more knowledge and organising skills than I thought possible. NEPAD and GTZ could not have done anything better than bringing together an assembly of West African journalists to learn the how-to of training television and radio broadcasters."

James Wolo : UN Mission in Liberia

"Logistics arrangements have been excellent. The sessions have been engaging with lots of group activities which encouraged interaction and lively debates. The trainer is experienced and knowledgeable and made every decision a collective one." Tunde Aina : NigerianTelevisionAuthority

"The training accorded me the opportunity to broaden my knowledge and organising skills. It was really a worthwile venture. The contributions by the participants were interactive. The trainer was knowledgeable and friendly. I commend NEPAD and GTZ for bringing all of us together to share experiences and exchange ideas."

Edna Musu Jassy : The Gambian Radio and Television Services

"I have learned more about training in two weeks than some do in four years. The information was concise and humorous. The practicals were done with examples from our own experiences. The logistics were excellent and the group just the right size and mix."

Eva Afua Akuley : Ghana Television, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation

"The value of such a training programme is immeasurable. Those of us who attended will surely benefit in terms of career advancement and increased ability to bring positive changes in our immediate working environment."

Harold Williams : TV producer, Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation

"I am pleased I participated in the workshop which was an eye-opener. It has added new ideas and dynamism in my ability to train others. The presentations were great and the facilitator was superb. The materials gathered at the workshop will go a long way in helping to improve the training needs of my colleagues in my organisation. I am grateful to NEPAD and GTZ ".

Maxwell Johnson : Liberia Broadcasting Corporation

"I am very impressed with the workshop. I admire the presentations by the facilitator with his excellent approach. He was very concise and his presentations constructive. The topics were very interesting."

Akai Awuletey : Power TV/FM, Liberia

"In view of the fact that training opportunities are hard to come by the training was timely and relevant. The workshop will help build capacity in our respective institutions since the wealth of knowledge we acquired will be shared with our colleagues who were not fortunate enough to attend the workshop."

Francis Mendy : The Gambian Radio and Television Services

"The workshop was an eye-opener because it gave the opportunity to broaden our training techniques. I am impressed with the coordination and presentations at the workshop, through which we will be able to share the knowledge acquired with others."

Hawanatu Conteh : Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service

"The workshop has been very worthwhile in terms of the skills we were exposed to. At my station I shall be using the experience gained to maximum effect. On the level of networking and contacts, the group has been diverse and interesting. Such a workshop will be very helpful for all trainers in the future."

Kojo Larbi : Head of News, Happy FM Accra

"The workshop improved my competence and made me understand the need for future training especially for African women to excel in the broadcast media. It has also exposed me to understand the importance of teamwork and the significance of introducing training at my station. The experience I have gained will be put to good use."

Yvette Cole Smith : Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service

"The workshop has been a great experience for me. I believe I can confidently organise a training session without any hindrance. I was immensely impressed with the organisation of the workshop and most importantly with Daniel Danov our facilitator. I believe NEPAD and GTZ will continue to impart more knowledge among African media practitioners for their development."

Edwina Oppong : Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, GTV Accra. Source : NEPAD, april 21, 2008

Trained by NEPAD – a young reporter from Ghana tells about the Pan-African Parliament

The 9th ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament : will be held in Midrand, South Africa from 5-16 May 2008. As in the past, the NEPAD Secretariat in co-operation with the Pan African Parliament (PAP) and the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) will be running a two-week on-the-job-training programme on parliamentary reporting for young African journalists from all over the continent.

Rebecca Quaicoe of the Daily Graphic newspaper in Accra, Ghana, took part in the training session held during the 6th sitting of PAP. Here she reports on the upcoming May sitting.

"The 9th ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament will bring together five parliamentarians from each of the countries across Africa.

The Pan-African Parliament, also known as the African Parliament, with its current President Gertrude Mongella from Tanzania, is the legislative body of the African Union and was inaugurated in March 2004.

At present it exercises oversight and has advisory and consultative powers which will last for the first five years of its existence ; after that time period it will exercise full legislative powers.

Its 265 parliamentary representatives are elected by the legislatures of the 53 member states of the African Union rather than being directly elected in their own capacity.

Its aims are to implement the policies and objectives of the African Union, cultivate human rights and democracy in Africa and also make sure member states adhere to good governance, transparency and accountability.

One noticeable feature which has become associated with the PAP sessions is the sponsorship of journalists from across the African continent by the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) and the NEPAD Secretariat in South Africa.

GTZ and NEPAD have come together in the last two years to offer up-and-coming journalists the opportunity to attend the PAP sittings and at the same time provide a platform for the journalists to get to know the work of NEPAD as an African entity.

NEPAD is a vision and strategic framework for Africa’s renewal, arising from a mandate given to the five initiating Heads of State (Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa) by the African Union to develop an integrated socio-economic development plan for Africa.

NEPAD is designed to address the current challenges facing the African continent. Issues such as escalating poverty levels, underdevelopment and the continued marginalisation of Africa needed a new radical intervention, spearheaded by African leaders, to develop a new vision that would guarantee Africa’s renewal.

In May 2007, a group of journalists, with myself and others from Kenya, Angola, Egypt, Gabon and a local reporter from South Africa, were privileged to be sponsored to attend the seventh session of PAP where topical issues such as the call for the formation of an African Union government, the crises in Zimbabwe and the dumping of toxic waste in Cote d’Ivoire were discussed.

The six journalists, under the supervision of two instructors from Senegal and Sudan, were taught how to report accurately on the proceedings for the PAP website as well as to feed our various newspapers and TV stations with what transpired in the House.

The biannual parliamentary sessions which normally run for 10 working days are very informative as the journalists are privy to first-hand information on what is happening on the African continent and beyond.

The Parliament has 10 permanent committees and we sat through all the meetings of each committee where they discussed issues from conflict to peace building.

One exciting experience was that we had the opportunity to cover the then Chairman of the African Union, President John Agyekum Kufuor, of Ghana, when he opened the session with a call on African leaders to allow human rights and the rule of law to rule in their respective countries and on the continent as a whole.

The group also had the opportunity of visiting the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) where we were conducted round the newsroom, which was exciting as most of us were introduced to journalists within the SABC who were from our respective countries.

We also had the opportunity to visit the NEPAD Secretariat where we sat in a meeting between the AU Chairman and members of staff of the NEPAD Secretariat as they discussed issues affecting the continent as well as some of the challenges that the Secretariat was facing. Source : NEPAD, april 21, 2008 m m m m

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