"Participation Builds Unity"
"MADE IN AFRICA - FOR AFRICA"
"Participation Builds Unity"
"MADE IN AFRICA - FOR AFRICA"
PRESENTS
NEPAD - THE GOOD NEWS
NEPAD DIALOGUE
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31 MARCH 2004
Nepad for Africa's prosperity. This was recommended as the theme for future
communications at the end of a New Partnership for Africa's Development
continental advocacy campaign workshop held in Bamako, Mali, on March 23 to
25 2004.
Six countries were represented - Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, South Africa
and Rwanda - with delegates from Nepad focal points, civil society, the UN
agencies and the African Union (AU).
The daily discussion sessions of the workshop were focused on communicating
Nepad to Africa and beyond.
Main recommendations were: all country structures, Nepad secretariat, AU and
the UN need to develop advocacy and communications strategies based on
information sensitisation; mobilisation of support; popularisation;
monitoring and evaluation.
To communicate consistent messages three types of meetings should be held on
a regular basis: The Nepad secretariat and the Nepad country structures for
planning and implementation purposes; Nepad secretariat, AU and UN for
policy co-ordination; all stakeholders involved in the communications and
advocacy for Nepad (should be held every three months).
There must be African passion when communicating Nepad. Messages need to
appeal emotionally to Africans, touch their hearts and generate change in
their behaviour. Africans need to know and feel how Nepad can affect their
individual lives in order for them to defend it and make a positive
contribution.
Nepad goals and objectives should not be transmitted as givens to people but
as vehicles to change their lives.
All Africans have the responsibility for making a contribution to achieve
the Nepad dream of developing a new Africa.
Nepad must be projected as a home-grown programme of Africans by Africans if
it has to generate the passionate appeal and succeed.
Co-ordination between Nepad, the AU and the UN should continue to ensure
that Nepad was at the forefront of policy making and public agenda. The
co-ordination should also maximise the use of existing communications and
advocacy networks, UN and non-UN.
UN and the office of the special adviser for Africa should ensure that the
issues of Africa are firmly kept on the agenda of the rest of the world,
particularly the Group of Eight.
Nepad communications should be substantiated by real life success stories to
ensure credibility. This should include the use of local languages to reach
grass roots and rural communities.
Communications in Africa should reduce the impact of negative reporting
about the continent including negative aspects of globalisation.
The Mali workshop was organised by the Nepad secretariat as a preparatory
workshop for a future communications conference. It was recommended that a
follow-up be held in June before the AU summit.
Africa's regional economic communities (RECs) have a major role to play in
seeing that Nepad objectives, goals and strategies are translated into
practical programmes, projects and activities at the subregional and
member-state level.
During an Abuja meeting in October 2003, the chief executives of the RECs
made a commitment to take steps to promote the ownership of Nepad in their
respective organisations and member countries by placing the implementation
of the Nepad programmes and projects as a standing agenda item at the RECs
summits and meetings of other key committees or institutions; establishing a
Nepad focal point for advocacy, liaison and co-ordination with
member-country agencies and stakeholders and; promoting the establishment of
similar Nepad focal points or desks in the member countries.
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