African Media Initiative in partnership with Deustche Welle Akademie (DW-Akademie) has announced that a new platform which will enable the sharing of high quality PanAfrican TV content between regional and global media organizations is set to be launched as part of the African Stories project.
AMI explained that its choice to partner with DW-Akademie was based on the intent to significantly increase the production of made-for-TV stories on Africa.
According to the organization “the African Stories III project aims to give African TV professionals the skills and opportunities to tell stories from an African perspective, while delivering high quality TV packages. The project is a continuation of African Stories I & II, a programme initiated by DW Akademie in 2011, to give television reporters, camera operators and film editors additional training in TV production.”
AMI and DW Akademie recently held a three-day conference in Nairobi, Kenya that brought together representatives from member TV stations to agree on the technical framework of an online content exchange platform.
The conference also discussed the modalities for establishing a training program that would enable alumni of the African Stories I and II series to share their knowledge and TV production skills, and to train other journalists from across the continent.
Members of the network will be able to share content for re-broadcasting amongst themselves and with other interested TV outlets around the world.
Speaking during the conference, AMI’s Chief Executive Officer, Eric Chinje said, “AMI is happy to host African Stories III, as the project falls in line with our drive to create networks of specialists in the media, and to ensure that the African experience is brought to new audiences around the world.”
AMI said the African Stories III will be a strong network of broadcast partners currently drawn from Tanzania (STAR TV), Bénin (ORTB), Ghana (MULTI TV), Guinea (RTG), Kenya (KTN), Sénégal (RTS), Malawi (MBC), Mali (ORTM), Namibia (NBC), Cameroun (Canal 2 International), Nigeria (AIT), and Congo Brazzaville (Télé Congo).
The members have developed a profound knowledge of TV production for international audiences through their participation in African Stories I and II. AMI will be the lead partner in operationalizing the network’s agenda, and ensuring its long-term survival on the continent, by providing a technical platform as well as the necessary infrastructure needed to ensure the long term survival of the network, the organizer said.
Natascha Schwanke , DW Akademie’s deputy head, Africa division said “DW is happy to partner with an African based institution that will bring a perspective to the African Stories initiative that is anchored in Africa’s reality.”
