AllAfrica Hosts Inaugural Media Leaders' Summit in Nairobi
Complementing the summit, AllAfrica launched a Newsroom Innovation Youth Challenge calling on Africans ages 18-30 to envision new ways media can engage the continent's burgeoning youth population.
NAIROBI, Kenya— AllAfrica Global Media is launching its inaugural AllAfrica Media Leaders' Summit from May 8-10 in Nairobi, an event featuring innovations to navigate the rapidly changing media landscape transformed by technologies like artificial intelligence and virtual reality, writes Winston Mwale.
The summit, themed "Re-engineering African Media in Times of Critical Transformation," will convene global media leaders, development experts, academics and corporate executives to share best practices for upholding ethics and combating misinformation to advance Africa's economic growth and human development.
Luminaries slated to speak include Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank Group; Dr. Benedict Okey Oramah from Afreximbank; Dr. Sidi Ould Tah of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa; and Claver Gatete, U.N. under-secretary-general and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa.
Complementing the summit, AllAfrica launched a Newsroom Innovation Youth Challenge calling on Africans ages 18-30 to envision new ways media can engage the continent's burgeoning youth population.
The top three winners will attend the Nairobi event to showcase their concepts.
"Young people represent more than 70% of the continent's population - Africa's demographic dividend," AllAfrica said in a statement Wednesday.
"AllAfrica is listening and has launched the Digizens' Circle to ensure the world hears Africa's youth."
The Digizens' Circle on May 8 at the University of Nairobi, themed "What is the Youths' Place in African Media?", will feature a public debate among digital natives on staking their claim in African media using technology.
AllAfrica Global Media chairman Amadou Mahtar Ba said the inaugural summit "promises to be an innovative and thought-provoking event that will yield impactful solutions to improve the current African media landscape."
Other co-chairs include media mogul Nduka Obaigbena, Dr. Vera Songwe of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility, and corporate leaders Ziaad Suleman and Mamadou Biteye.