Members of the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) and the Pan-African body of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), met with Claver Gatete, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), on Wednesday, November 4, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss strengthening media engagement in Africa’s development priorities and journalism’s role as a public good. The FAJ delegation was led by its president, Omar Faruk Osman, among other leaders like its Treasurer Maria Luisa Rogério and Steering Committee Member Jean-Claude Coulibaly. “Independent journalism plays an important role in helping people understand the decisions and policies that shape their lives and in supporting informed public debate on Africa’s development. People-centred development and homegrown solutions are strengthened when citizens, including journalists, have access to reliable information and can contribute fully to public life,” said Osman. According to a statement from FAJ, Gatete’s speech focused on UNECA’s commitment to facilitating journalists’ access to information and evidence to help amplify African perspectives. He also emphasised the role journalists play in shaping the African narrative and telling the continent’s story in ways that advance people-centred development. Osman welcomed UNECA’s recognition of the role journalists can play in its work on Africa’s development priorities, adding that closer institutional engagement can help African journalists explain the developmental priorities and bring African perspectives into public debate. “We remain committed and effectively mobilised to advancing public interest journalism and ensuring journalists partake in conversations about the continent’s future while fulfilling their crucial watchdog role, he noted.
