Mass media and information permeate the 21st century more than ever before. They—not parents, teachers, nannies or the clergy—are the main socialising agents of this century that is referred to interchangeably as the Information Era and the Digital Age because of its reliance on information, communications and technology (ICT). It is the media, driven by ICT, that shape the understanding of reality and provide identity and validation to today’s individuals and societies.

African Media Development Initiative, one of the most comprehensive  independent surveys of the state of the media across 17 sub-Saharan African countries at the threshold of the 21st century concluded that mass media are “an indispensable part of tackling poverty, improving development and enabling Africa to attain its development goals.”

Access to—and use of—mass media by individuals and organisations to disseminate information in the contemporary world is increasingly being viewed as a human rights issue.

However for anyone to access and use the media effectively calls for one to understand not only their role but also how they work. This understanding is referred to as media literacy—the art and science of enlightening individuals on the opportunities and threats inherent in modern mass media.

A media literate person is one who possesses the ability to collect, process and disseminate messages that bring about change in society. Media literacy equips individuals with the skills to decipher images, analyse media content, understand the human dimension in cyberspace and demystify any myth created by the media in a way that is beneficial to the wellbeing of society.

It is equally important for one to understand how to craft and pass on information or messages in order to achieve the desired aims. Knowing how to communicate in this manner is referred to as information literacy. The media in themselves can’t do much without information being communicated through them.

A media and information literate person understands the symbols used to communicate messages and also how to access and retrieve any information for onward transmission from archives and libraries. MIL, experts contend, is as basic a skill as reading,writing and  arithmetic that educationists say contribute to development of societies.

Success in socio-cultural, political and economic spheres can be achieved only if media literacy and information literacy are integrated.

This is the background of  an  international conference on media and information literacy and inter-cultural dialogue scheduled for June 26-28, 2013 in Abuja, Nigeria.  Organised by UNESCO, the theme of the three-day forum is “Promoting media and information literacy as a means to cultural diversity.”

UNESCO, in collaboration with the United Nations Alliance of Civilization, the Swedish International Development Agency, the governments of Saudi Arabia and Nigeria and other major players around the world, shall launch an initiative called Global Alliance for Partnerships on MIL (GAPMIL) during the Abuja conference.

UNESCO says the envisaged global alliance shall give MIL its rightful place in development, give MIL practitioners a unified voice on policy issues, amplify the impact of MIL in development around the world, and produce consensus on what shape GAPMIL should take.

Among the issues expected to be tackled at the Abuja forum are putting media and information literacy in context, viewing cultural diversity as media and information literacy, linguistic diversity and information literacy, media and information in education, youth and children’s rights in a changing information age, and media and information literacy and freedom.

UNESCO, that has been working in the MIL field for more than four decades, argues there can be little success in educational, cultural, scientific, economic or political development without the incorporation of media and information literacy in it.

“ICT training (digital literacy/ICT skills),” UNESCO contends, “should not be limited to technical competence but should also include awareness of other competencies included in MIL.”

It is perhaps not a coincidence that this GAPMIL meeting is the first global partnership project and it is expected to set the way forward for future partnerships around the world; UNESCO treats Africa as a ‘Global Priority’.

Prior to the Abuja conference, UNESCO has, among other things, already prepared a MIL curriculum for teachers, drawn up guidelines for broadcasters on promoting user-generated content and MIL,  and drafted an international online course on MIL and intercultural dialogue.

Four interesting exhibitions on durable architecture, building better cities, Nairobi in pictures and Conservation and Restoration of Historical and Cultural Assets dominate exhibitions in Nairobi in June 2013.

Alliance Francaise set the ball rolling on June 5 with three exhibitions that are running concurrently till June 30.

Running at the University of Nairobi’s Department of Architecture & Building Science June 18-28, 2013 is yet another exhibition tackling the themes of conservation, restoration, history and culture.

The inauguration of the exhibition at the University of Nairobi at 4.00PM on June 18 shall be preceded by a talk by Prof Giovanna De Palma of ISCR in Rome at 2.30pm.

Presented by the Istituto Superiore per la Conservazione e il Restauro (Advanced Institute for Conservation & Restoration) and running daily—including Saturdays, Sundays & public holidays—from 8.00am to 5pm, the theme of the exhibition is the activity of conservation and restoration of cultural assets with particular significance given to the role of the Istituto Centrale del Restauro (ISCR), a centre of excellence at the sector’s global level. There is no gate fee to view the exhibition.

The three photo-text exhibitions at Alliance Française are ‘People Building Better Cities: Participation and Inclusive Urbanization’, ‘Architecture=durable’ and ‘NYROBI in Pictures: from a Swamp to a Capital City’.

NYROBI in Pictures, that is expected to end on July 7, 2013 not only highlights the growth of Kenya’s commercial and political capital from a papyrus swamp to present day modern skyscraper city, but also provides historical and architectural information on the city’s built heritage using historical photographs from private collections and the National Museums of Kenya as well as recent photographs by Yasuyoshi Chiba and Lydia W Muthuma. This photo exhibition is put together by Dr Lydia Muthuma and Evelyne Wanjiku in partnership with the Godown Art Centre and the Embassy of France in Kenya.

The Global Studio in partnership with Technical University of Kenya-organised People Building Better Cities, on the other hand, is expected to travel to 10 countries to exchange knowledge, build networks, and promote dialogue among communities, urban professionals, universities, non-governmental organisations, and policy makers on the challenges of inclusive urbanisation and climate change. The exhibition tackles urban issues.

Architecture=durable is both a photo-text and multi-media exhibition organized by the Pavillon de l’Arsenal and sponsored by the Institut Français. The projects presented in it amplify the shared values of tomorrow’s sustainable urban community.

“Transcending technical and doctrinaire discourses”, the organisers say, “these projects are above all architectural and urban…address environmental concerns with a global vision that incorporates technical devices in an urban context. This exhibition is a demonstration of solutions to the equation architecture=sustainable.”

Filmmakers in Africa have till July 30, 2013 to submit their work to the 3rd Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) that is set for November 10-17, 2013 in Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria.

Chioma Ude, Founder and Director of AFRIFF, says films submitted to the festival will compete for US$2,000-US$6,000 cash prizes in four categories–Fiction, Documentary, Animation, Shorts–and that “the awards for excellence in the four film categories at AFRIFF have been increased from five to 11.

The awards structure is from 2013 starting to give prizes to “Best Fiction Film, Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress under the Fiction Film category while the Documentary and Animation categories will offer awards for Best Documentary and Best Animation, respectively. The Short Film, on the other hand, is now offering two awards: Best Short Film and Best Student Short Film,” Ude says. “The latter is a new award created as an incentive to students and young filmmakers aimed at recognising and encouraging their creative expressions.”

A new prize, the Special Jury Award, has also been created and will be given to the producer of “the most outstanding film, cutting across all the categories of the movies submitted”.

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The Audience Choice Award is to be given to “the producer of the movie voted as the most liked by viewers”.

Ude says film application forms are available for downloading from africafilmfest.org till July 30, 2013.

She says she conceived AFRIFF as “a world class showcase that presents a complete immersion into the world of filmmaking with participation from local and international actors, directors, scriptwriters, cinematographers, sound engineers, musicians, editors, light engineers, students, equipment manufacturers and businesspeople with the aim of developing the film industry to a level where the products compete favourably globally.”

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Speaking at the launch of the third edition of AFRIFF in Victoria Island, Lagos, Ude announced that “the acclaimed festival city of Calabar in Cross River State would host AFRIFF in 2013. “The synergy created by experiencing the festival in Calabar,” she said, “will be something to cherish for a lifetime; it will be the ultimate experience for all participants from home and abroad.”

Some 765 youth in Nairobi have graduated from a 24-week programme that equipped them with the skills to improve their employability and rescue them from unemployment that plagues 40% of young people in Kenya. This was the second batch of youth to have passed through Kenya Youth Empowerment Project, a four-year pilot initiative of the Government of Kenya with the support of the World Bank that provides skills and experience within the private sector.

The graduation ceremony, held at Kabete Technical Training Institute in Nairobi on June 7, 2013, was presided over by James Waweru, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports who urged the graduands to apply the skills they had acquired in starting small enterprises as not all of them could be employed in the formal sector.

Though more than 100,000 youth graduate from universities and colleges every year in Kenya, the country has limited employment opportunities. Idleness resulting from unemployment often lead many young people into vices like robbery, drug abuse and immoral behavior that ruin their lives.

The reality addressed above is likely to be what jolted the Government into coming up with strategies that could empower the youth to be self reliant through the introduction of Kenya Youth Empowerment Project in 2011 to provide skills in self reliance in case one does not secure employment. The project aims at having at least 50% of those who pass through it to secure employment or start their own businesses within six months after graduation.

This pilot project was introduced in the capital, Nairobi, before being extended to the second and third largest cities, Mombasa and Kisumu, as most employers are concentrated in these urban centres. The programme, that targets six sectors—Finance, Tourism, Information Communications Technology (ICT), Energy, Manufacturing, Micro and Small Enterprises—considered as being crucial to economic development, is expected to ensure Kenya attains a double digit annual growth from the current rate of 5.4%.

The project equips participants with basic skills in self esteem, vocation and entrepreneurship on the realization that the prosperity of any nation depends on the skills-base of its citizens, the quality and transfer of those skills as well as a sound policy and legal framework to sustain quality growth in skill-development and linkages within the production sector. This ensures increased production and employment opportunities and reduced dependency levels.

Though the programme targets to have equipped 11,000 youth by the time it ends in 2014, only about 3600 have passed through it. The project also appears wanting as it fails to meet the expectation of many of those who pass through it; after the six months of training, the government does not provide any help to the youth. The US$75 allowance per month given to each participant for fare to and from the work place during internship is too little for one who lives in Nairobi where the cost of living is very high.

Sarah Kimani is a Journalism and Public Relations Intern at ArtMatters.Info.

The first-ever Fashion Week Zanzibar that celebrates local and locally-inspired fashion design in Zanzibar is set to
premiere in October 2013.

This October, the all-new Fashion Week Zanzibar will take over Stone Town’s prolific Mtoni Palace in a celebration of local fashion and unique East African design. The new initiative is dedicated to showcasing fashion created in or inspired by the beautiful island of Zanzibar, Tanzania.

The island’s homegrown fashion industry has been developing in exciting new ways in recent years. One-of-a-kind designs pulling from the varied influences of Zanzibari culture and island life, mixed with the brightly coloured patterns of kanga and kitenge, create a strong sense of place and culture in the local fashion industry.

The event is founded and organized by photographer and businessman Javed Jafferji,
internationally renowned designer Farouque Abdela, and budding photographer Adnan Abbas.

“We decided to celebrate Zanzibar’s up-and-coming fashion and create a festival dedicated to our one-of-a-kind fashion flavor,” says Jafferji.

“The decision”, says Abbas, “was made on the spur of the moment and the whirlwind hasn’t stopped since.”

“We hope to encourage the local fashion industry and empower young designers,” says Abdela.

As a part of the community, the organisers say the event will continue to grow and shape the potential of this promising industry in Zanzibar’s future.

A lot has been said about the lessons learnt from the violence experienced in the aftermath of the disputed Presidential poll in Kenya in December 2007. Ghanaian Kofi Annan, who facilitated the formation of a Grand Coalition Government if only to stop the violence in the country, observed, “When you are riding in a train, and the train gets derailed, you are well advised to look backwards at the twisted rails to find out how you got to where you are, and then look ahead to find out how you now get to where you want to go. For Kenyans today, it is a question of doing just that: looking to the past to determine when and where the country got derailed. Once that is determined, you must fix and adjust the rails towards the direction of peace, justice and prosperity.”

One way of determining “when and where the country got derailed”, is Civil Conflict Management of the Post Election Violence, a study carried out in 2012 by students of University of Trier in Germany and Kenyatta University of Kenya in co-operation with 22 Civil Society Organisations in Kenya dealing with the effects of the post election violence with the aim of finding out the lessons learnt from the post-election chaos and what can be done for the country to enjoy peace and stability.

The result of that study was a book, Peace Building and Conflict Management in Kenya–a publication on peace and reconciliation as the cornerstones for social stability and democracy of a multi-ethnic state–that was launched at Goethe-Institut in Nairobi on February 13, 2013. The publication is divided into three sections: Way Forward for Reconciliation and National Healing, The Root Causes of 2007 Post Election Crisis in Kenya, and Peace Making Initiatives.

Reconciliation is a metaphysical process that is spiritual, social and cultural and deeply touches on emotional and physical being. This, according to the book, can be achieved only when the concern for justice is given priority in the hope of eliminating or minimising hate, suspicion, resentment, and revenge among communities.

The 2007 dispute was inevitable in a country that has failed to resolve long standing conflicts and disputes such as negative ethnicity, unfair land distribution and marginalisation of some communities.

The survey found out that the formation of criminal gangs such as Mungiki, Jeshi la Mzee, Mombasa Republican Council and Chinkororo are used in carrying out acts of harassment, intimidation and killing against people who are perceived to be in opposition to the dominant political party. These militia groups come as result of unemployment and idleness, hence the survey recommends for the need to create jobs to keep the youth busy.

Establishment of Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation process was initiated to achieve sustainable peace, stability and justice and to safeguard the rule of law and respect for human rights in Kenya. Civil society organisations , NGOs and the media would play vital roles in uniting Kenyans through sensitising people to refrain from hate speech and engaging youth in activities such as community work, seminars, networking and sports to promote integration among different communities.

The book illustrates various efforts put in place by various groups to ensure peace returns to Kenya.

The use of graffiti to illustrate the different scenes that were witnessed in the aftermath of 2007 presidential elections help readers to have a deeper understanding of the situation and reflect on building a peaceful Kenya. The graffiti such as ‘The leaders we want’ by Birgit Dankert states the attributes of a good leader, such as being visionary, honest, competent and patriotic; this message enlightens Kenyans to elect people of integrity besides encouraging them to shun tribalism.

The 39 students who worked on the project remained optimistic that through the implementation of the research, the country would rise above the highlighted challenges to become a united nation.

The 300-page Peace Building and Conflict Management in Kenya was edited (compiled, really!) by Johannes Michael Nebe who teaches political science at the University of Trier and who has established relations with fellow lecturers  in Kenya.

Though an important publication, the quality of Peace Building and Conflict Management in Kenya could have been enhanced through some tight editing and appealing layout and design.

Sarah Mokobi Kimani, from the Kenya Private Sector Alliance’s Youth Empowerment Project, is an intern in Journalism and Public Relations at ArtMatters.Info.

Qatar Airways (QR), whose  scheduled flights was delayed in 2012 over what appears to have been a traffic right issue, is from August 30, 2013 starting a daily service to Mombasa in Kenya using Airbus A320 aircraft.

This service will put Qatar into direct competition with Ethiopian Airlines, which also serves Mombasa on a daily basis, but regularly uses the slower Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft, and with Turkish Airlines, which uses a B737NG version – currently the only two foreign airlines serving Mombasa on scheduled flights besides national airline Kenya Airways. Tanzanian airlines flying into Mombasa are not considered ‘foreign’ under East African Community rules.

A further expansion into East Africa would see Qatar Airways face up directly to Turkish Airlines’ relentless rollout into Africa, which is pursuing a similar market strategy and also uses a narrow body aircraft like QR does. It would also show the airline’s priorities for catching future traffic from what has been described as ‘a region rich in newly discovered oil, gas and other natural resources, undertaking massive infrastructure investments over the coming years in highways, railways and pipelines’.

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This, however, comes only weeks after Qatar Airways announced their withdrawal from the Seychelles after serving the archipelago uninterrupted since 2004.

In 2012 a row was reportedly brewing when Qatar’s plans to fly via Nairobi to Kilimanjaro, were thwarted by Kenyan authorities which, in an inexplicable turnabout at the last moment, withdrew verbal promises made that the airline would be given 5th freedom rights between Nairobi and Kilimanjaro.

Unlike on the route between Entebbe and Kigali, which Qatar Airways also serves daily, and where full traffic rights have been extended to the airline by both governments, Kenya appears to have backed out of their initial commitment, bowing to pressure from other airlines flying on the route.

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This resulted at the time in a hectic last minute operational switch which saw Kilimanjaro combined with Dar es Salaam, and a subsequent drop of plans to fly to Mombasa, which was due to be served, again with full traffic rights, via Dar es Salaam.

It could not be established which final routing Mombasa flights might take, if combined with either Dar or Nairobi, but a Mombasa airport source insists that flights are indeed due to commence on August 30, 2013.

An eturbonews.com article.

Despite the global air transport industry achieving a record improvement in jet safety performance, the high airline accident rate in Africa is still a concern, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

IATA said that the total accident rate for all jet airliners in Africa during 2012 was 10.85 accidents per million flight hours, compared to a world average of 2.00. The European Community (EU) has even gone as far as banning a large number of African airlines from operating within the UE due to safety concerns over alleged poor maintenance and regulatory oversight.

Speaking at IATA’s 69th Annual General Meeting in Cape Town in South Africa, Gunther Matschnigg, Senior Vice President in charge of Safety, Operations & Infrastructure, explained that, “the total accident rate for Africa has improved compared to last year, but at 7.98 accidents per millions flights, they are still more than four times the global average.”

The global average airline accident rate to end of April 2013 stands at 1.73. IATA member airlines, who are held to stricter safety standards, currently have a figure of 0.97.

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Tony Tyler, IATA’s Director General and CEO, said that safety is one of the issues preventing Africa from reaching its full potential. Safety is the biggest challenge facing African aviation.

In light of the high African accident statistics, IATA and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), in partnership with various African aviation organisations, established a Task Force to investigate the matter.

After analysis, the Task Force found that the main influencing factors responsible for accidents in Africa were:
• Lack of effective regulatory oversight
• Lack of implementation of flight Data Analysis
• Lack of Safety Management System implementation

The two predominant accident types were runway excursions and loss of control in flight.

As a result, the Africa Aviation Safety Summit was convened in Johannesburg in May 2012 and presented an African Strategic Safety Improvement Action Plan for 2012-2015.

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This Action Plan subsequently became part of the Abuja Declaration on Aviation Safety in Africa, endorsed by African Ministers responsible for transport, in Abuja in July 2012. The African Union Executive council endorsed the Abuja Declaration and associated Plan of Action during the 22nd Session in Addis Ababa in January 2013.

As Matschnigg said, “it’s a piece of paper, we need to make a commitment out of it.”

The result of IATA’s activities is the African Strategic Safety Improvement Plan 2012-2015, which aims at tackling the poor safety performance in the region.

Referring to the European Union’s banning of certain airlines in many African countries, airlines plan to roll out a safety management system in accordance with the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA). It is widely recognised that the IOSA, which is mandatory for all IATA member airlines, is a significant contributor to IATA members’ low hull loss rate.

“IATA’s 20 sub-Saharan members are performing in line with the global average on safety as are the 24 sub-Saharan airlines that have met the 900+ standards of the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA),” Tyler said.

“But if we look at the entire African industry, safety remains a challenge with an overall accident rate many times the global average…World class safety is possible in Africa and that we support their commitment to achieving it by 2015.”

The benefits of using IOSA are numerous, with IATA members and other IOSA-registered carriers in Africa registering zero accidents in 2012 and through to 30 April 2013.

IOSA has been offered to African governments and airlines free of charge, with various workshops held with airlines, regulators and stakeholders. IATA hopes to bring 10 additional African-based airlines onto the IOSA registry by 2015.

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To date, 10 carriers have been identified and six operators have received the first of three workshops they require to enable them to prepare for a successful IOSA audit outcome.

It is clear that that IATA is committed to supporting these airlines, but requires the commitment of the airline’s senior management to make changes.

“We will do our utmost to help them to pass by the end of 2015,” Matschnigg says. “What will happen if they don’t is up to the individual regulators.”

Book Café presents its first ever Rock Show on June 8, 2013 at 8.00PM; it features what is billed as the best rock music bands on the Harare music scene today. Music-lovers can expect to rock out to the music of mbira punk band Chikwata.263, metal and rock band Footloose and the premiere performance of Book Café Open Mic stars, Acid Tears.

This is the first show the Book Café is hosting solely dedicated to rock and metal music, with a dynamic line-up of the bands at the forefront of the genre all under one roof. Acid Tears will introduce a new sound to audiences. As one of the highlights of Book Café’s weekly Open Mic show on Monday night, Acid Tears bring a fresh new take to classic rock and roll. Essentially defined as a rock band, Acid Tears call their music style a type of “Euro Sungura”, mixing rock with the rhythms and signature guitar riffs of sungura music.

This will be followed by a performance by one of Harare’s favourite rock bands: Footloose. This more experienced band has made waves with its charismatic lead singer and stellar back-up band. Presenting mostly classic rock and metal favourites of yesteryear and present, this rock jukebox has a huge following. Fresh from their performance at Miombo Magic Festival, Footloose will take you on a trip down memory, rocking out to some of rock and metal’s legendary bands, including: Nirvana, Green Day, Blink 182 and Jimi Hendrix.

The third band in the line-up is mbira-punk outfit, Chikwata.263, Zimbabwe’s first and only mbira-punk band. A Book Café favourite, this band has proved itself time and time again, offering a fresh new creative sound that defies genres and always leaves you dancing. Featuring mbira player and ethnomusicologist, Hector Rufaro Mugani and charismatic lead singer Tomas Brickhill delivering catchy lyrics, the show will also feature bass player Ray Mupfumira fresh from a successful tour in New York City. The band opened for music superstars Sulumani Chimbetu, Jah Prayzah, Oliver Mtukudzi and Alick Macheso at their historic Glamis Arena concert. Chikwata.263 have a loyal following and brought the house down at l Miombo Magic Festival.

The three live bands will be followed by performances by ZiFM DJ’s, Love Jones and Kimble Rogers. Popular radio DJ at events around the city, Kimble Rogers will play a pop-rock VJ set followed by Love Jones who has something special in store for the audience. Lastly, DJ Lutuli will close out the evening, playing tracks from Zimbabwean artists and bands in the diaspora. Featuring the music of bands such as The Noisettes, Tinashe, Mobile Jazz Café and The Kamikaze Test Pilots, DJ Lutuli promises a rocking finale to The Book Café Rock Show.

Agatha Juma, the Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Tourism Federation, has been elected to the Board of the East African Business Council (EABC) in Arusha, Tanzania, the main private sector representative body at the level of the East African Community (EAC).

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Her election signals the greater recognition of tourism as a key pillar of the East African economies, and a main contributor to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), job creation, and foreign exchange earnings. She is the only tourism representative on the Board of the EABC from among the five member states of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

As a member of the Board of the East African tourism platform, East Africa’s regional private sector umbrella organisation for the national tourism associations and their membership at large, she is now uniquely positioned to help shape the EABC’s way forward, vis-a-vis tourism, for the next year, as all elected officials have a one-year term of office. The chairmanship of the EABC is held for the next 12 months by Kenya’s Vimal Shah, the CEO of regional oil and edible fats giant BIDCO who is also Chairman of Kenya’s Private Sector Alliance. The chair is a rotating position among member states to ensure equal opportunities for leadership for each country.
An eturbonews.com Article.