Africa’s Media Deficit and Access to Knowledge

Russell Southwood, Balancing Act

Policy Context Article 19(2) of the International Covenant on Civil

and Political Rights – The Right To Information“Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice”.

Also African Platform on Access to Information (APAI) Campaign in its Application of Principles on Disadvantaged Communities

Policy in practice Government, civil society and NGOs require media that

can reach all levels of society and allows them to hear responses back from them irrespective of geographic location, education and wealth.

In many areas of development like education and health, media carries messages that improve life chances and counter myths that destroy opportunities. Changing behavior.

A new generation of citizen initiatives (like Mzalendo and Follow The Money) rely on the power of media to change the behavior of African politicians towards their citizens and local communities.

Definitions and Methodology Media Deficit: 1. Where a group of people have no access to media or

media devices of any kind. 2. Those people who have relatively low access to media:

for example, they only have access to one type of media or media device.

Media is defined broadly and encompasses all online and offline media, including SMS news and information services on mobile phones.

Methodology: Use available data irrespective of year back 3-4 years. Remarkable consistency.

Starting Point – Media Rich vs Media Poor - 1

Example of Nigeria

Starting Point – Media Rich vs Media Poor - 2

Starting Point – Media Rich vs Media Poor - 3

Geographic distribution

Example of Nigeria.

One End of the Spectrum…South Sudan

The Other End of the Spectrum – South Africa

Example Vodacom 3G coverage BUT 8 million people without electricity

Implied Media Deficit

Language, Income, Education and Gender

Women less likely to use mobile phone or Internet.

InfrastructureOverview

Absence of hard infrastructure means people receive less mediaM-Kopa solar TVs – 48 cents a day payment plan

Players who can address this issue - 1 Private sector: Services to those who can afford –

addressable markets. But interest in long-term market growth

Media owners: No media equivalent of universal access. Some have pioneered but most stay in urban areas.

Government: Addressing the market gap. Universal service taxes. Language gaps.

Donors and Government: Focus on national infrastructure, not so much on rural. Few countries with TV coverage targets.

Players who can address this issue - 2 Regulators: Little or no interchange between

telecoms & media regulators about the cost effectiveness of delivering content to schools, community viewing spaces and health clinics

Civil society and NGOs: Focused on media freedom and related but much less time to thinking about who is able to access basic news and the pattern of inequalities that exist in media access in all African countries.

BUT possible to imagine a policy that addresses this media deficit