The 3rd edition of the annual African International Media Summit (AIMS) is scheduled to hold in Tunis, Tunisia, 27-30 March, the organisers said.
In a statement made available Tuesday, the African Communications Agency (ACA) said the summit would bring together Ministers of Information and Youth; media magnates and media policy-makers with professionals in journalism, broadcasting, Internet media and management and marketing, from all over Africa and the Diaspora.
It said the theme of AIMS 2008 would be the African youth, in line with the African Union declaration of the year 2008 as the ‘Year of the Youth’
The summit will be hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB ).
”This is an important subject and the African Development Bank is proud to be a sponsoring partner of AIMS 2008 with African Union, ACA, ECOWAS and our other distinguished partners,” the statement quoted an official of the bank as saying.
”Misperceptions about Africa don’t end with concerns about Africa’s image in media. We also have much work to do in the ways Africa is perceived in the world of economics and high finance. But it all begins with information. And that’s where a committed and integrity-driven media comes into play. As we look forward, we must all think about the African world that our children will inherit,” the official added.
ACA Vice Chair, Dr. Erieka Bennett, questioned whether African entrepreneurs, media owners and Ministers of Information shouldn’t be investing more in original programmes designed to help guide children and young people to a bigger world view and healthier self-perceptions.
”We are delighted to have UNICEF (Speak Africa initiative) and Plan International, Association of Tunisian Mothers (ATM) involved in this critical conversation this year.
”Who is listening to today’s youth? Media has a responsibility to uplift the generations, not tear them down,” Dr. Bennett said.
”Therefore, I suggest that any truly serious campaign to ‘rebrand Africa’ must look to the future of Africa, and the future of Africa is the African child. That’s a responsibility ACA, or any of the rest of us in media, can’t ignore,” she added.
The last edition of the summit was held in Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja and hosted by ECOWAS.
