Voices of Africa Media Foundation
Goal
The Voices of Africa Media Foundation's mission is to strengthen media in Africa by stimulating individual African media talent. The foundation offers media talent (African film-, radio- and television makers, developers and distributors of websites, photographers and journalists and reporters) the opportunity to gain experience and to build up a career.
The foundation does so by encouraging and training African media talents, in interaction with the foundation’s international network of volunteer media professionals. The foundation provides resources, equipment and training, depending on the project involved.
Platform
The Voices of Africa Media Foundation will initiate various projects in many African countries, enabling young Africans to produce their own content. This content, articles, photographs and videos will be published on the website www.africanews.com
The main goal of those projects will be to provide young and starting media talents with the possibility to gain practical experience, produce their first paid- assignment and enrich their achievement portfolio, indispensable in finding a job or further assignments. By so, many more reporters and journalists will strengthen the media scene and this is expected to contribute to better democracy in Africa.
Projects
1.Voices of Africa
Thanks to tremendous progress achieved by the General Packet Radio System (GPRS), the wireless communication protocol, it is now possible for Africans to send articles and images (still and moving) about events taking place in their countries without using a computer and without having traditional internet connection. Under those circumstances, the bigger the number of people expressing their opinions through that technology, the stronger becomes democracy, and the more valuable is the contribution to good governance efforts in Africa.
Initiated by the Africa Interactive Media Foundation, the Voices of Africa project was launched in late May 2007 for a preparatory phase. In Kenya, Ghana, Mozambique and South Africa reporters were hired to master the technology and to get experience in uploading texts, photos and videos. A great part of their results and work are being published on this website.
In Kenya things had developed very well and November 2007 the Voices of Africa project in Kenya will start a new phase. Project coordinator Evans Wafula has recruited 4 young mobile reporters ( camjo’s), two male, two female and these four people will be reporting their news for a period of six months. This project has been made possible with financial support of the ASN Foundation.
The intention is to start preparatory work in other African countries, like Tanzania and Nigeria. In the end the Foundation hopes to have the Voices of Africa project running in all African countries.
Click here to see a report on Voices of Africa that was broadcasted on Dutch tv-station RTL4.
Voices of Africa honoured by Webby Awards
10 April 2008. The mobile project Voices of Africa is recognized as an Official Honoree by the Webby Awards 2008, the leading international honor for the Web. Voices of Africa gives African reporters the opportunity to report with mobile phones about events in their country... Read more on Africanews.com.
Background
The development of Internet and mobile communication in Africa has impressively progressed , thereby putting Africans in a much better position to take part in discussions that have been taking place about their continent for centuries without their knowledge and participation. This trend is very promising as communication and interaction among people are preconditions for reinforcing democracy and greatly contribute to good governance and the rule of law.
Although the communication channels are making considerable progress, the number of African journalists, reporters, photographers, film makers and internet experts taking advantage of them is still relatively very low. Also, the number of citizen journalists - who are very active in Western countries through mobile communication and internet is very low.
Objectives
The objective of the Voices of Africa Project is to help talented Africans build a career in media, using currently available technologies that are not yet financially affordable in Africa.
The Africa Interactive Media Foundation initiates this project because it falls and fits in its initial mission. The Foundation believes that by stimulating ( citizen) journalism, democracy will be served and this may have a contribution to better government in Africa. The Foundation endeavours to find donors in order to have necessary funds for the implementation of this project. In practice, the Foundation collaborates both with Africa Interactive - one of the largest international online communities grouping people interested in Africa – and Skoeps.com – a Dutch news website exclusively publishing pictures and short videos made by eyewitnesses using mobile phones.
How is the project planned?
The ultimate goal is to select, in each African country, a number of skilful (young) men and women (with the help of a local coordinator) and to equip these people with high-technology mobile phones (with a small foldable keyboard) where a special piece of software is installed to permit direct uploads of photos, texts and videos to the Skoeps server, from where they are transferred to the Africa Interactive website for publication. Once online, those stories and images are meant to trigger reactions from users and community members. The project´s selection policy gives a bigger chance to skilful women in an effort not only to have diversified contents but above all to contribute to their emancipation efforts through media.
The Africans who take part in this project are known as ‘camjos’, a short combination of ‘camera’ and ‘journalist’. A camjo writes, takes photos and makes videos about daily life in Africa, on subjects that she finds newsworthy. Each camjo receives a training on the use of the phone and is coached during the first six months. With this initiative, Africans, whether in cities or in the countryside, will have the opportunity to have their voice heard all over the world.
The implementation of this project is only possible in African regions covered by the GPRS.
The Africa Interactive Foundation is trying to gather funds for the project Voices of Africa. To be able to start new pilots in various African countries and to roll out the project in the countries were the pilot project has become successful.
Visit the Voices of Africa website.
2. Soccer from the Slums ( in preparation)
Concept
A (weekly) reality television series starring Metro Sports, a football team from the slums of Nairobi.
Produced by local media talent, supervised by the Africa Interactive Media Foundation. Broadcasted at www.AfricaNews.com
The team
Metro Sports, a football team from Mathare, Nairobi works hard to become the best football team in Kenya. They are young, talented and very motivated. We will follow the team striving for promotion.
The series will show us the progress of the team. The viewer will get to know the players and coaches, their joys and their difficulties. The footage will not only be taken on the field, but also at their homes in the neighbourhood. Raw, fast and real. All episodes will be made by a film director and film students from Kenya. Students will gain a lot experience by participating in this project.
A pilot version has been produced already as you can see above!
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Voices of Africa Media Foundation
Voices of Africa Media Foundation is an initiative of the founders of Africa Interactive BV, a media company that provides online channels with a focus on Africa.
By publishing content of African media talents on the websites 'Africanews.com' and 'Africa-Interactive.net', the organisation aims to not only offer a platform for these reporters to publish their stories, but also to provide an opportunity for the general public to react to their publications and opinions.
It is the initiators' belief that this will allow the public to obtain a more objective and balanced view on Africa, and will give them not just the standard news on wars and catastrophes, but will show them the more positive aspects of Africa, as described by the Africans themselves.
The foundation, which has been established on 13 April, 2006, is situated in Haarlem, The Netherlands.
Office
Board of Trustees
The Foundation's Board of Trustees is constituted of media experts and representatives from government, politics and non-profit organisations.
The Board's mission is to:
- Stimulate and facilitate fund raising
- Further develop collaboration with other media experts and organisations
- Assess and approve projects
- Actively lobby to propagate a more positive image of Africa
The Foundation's Board will consist of no more than 12 members.
Currently the Board Members are:
Chairman of the KRO (Catholic Radio Broadcast); also chairman of the Supervisory Board of Cordaid, chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Dutch Open University, chairman of the Foundation Katholieke Noden (Catholic Relief Services) and chairman of Stichting HBOVangnet.
Founder and President of 'Women in Leadership', an organisation dedicated to empower women in developing countries stimulating them to become successful entrepreneurs that run their businesses in a meaningful sustainable way; also member of the Supervisory Board of the Triodos Bank Microfinance funds.
Member of the Provincial Executive of Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands, holding the Portfolio for Environmental protection, Safety and security; and also chairman of The Dutch National Swimming Association (KNZB), chairman of the Environmental Protection Agency (DCMR).
CFO and Member of the Executive Board of Telegraaf Media Group; and also member of the advisory body of Weathernews Benelux and Wereldhave NV, member of the board of the World Association of Newspapers.
Director/owner Kam Holding bv and charmain Mesics Foundation.
Lot Carlier, Publisher specialized on new media and media focused on young people.
Give African media talents a chance!
The more African reporters can make their voices heard, the more democracy in Africa will be served. Would you like to support this goal directly? Your financial contribution will allow our Foundation to help more young Africans to get a job in the media.
If you would like to donate you can make your contribution to:
Voices of Africa Media Foundation
Haarlem, The Netherlands
Bank : ABNAmro 45 78 20 004
Post adress:
Jansweg 42-E
2011 KN Haarlem
The Netherlands
Phone: +31 (0)23-531 50 40
E-mail: info@voamf.org