CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: Workshop on Reporting Africa-China Engagements, Ethiopia, August 2017

Reporting Africa-China Engagements in Agriculture, Industrialisation & Sustainable Development. 

A joint workshop for African and Chinese journalists by the Wits Africa-China Reporting Project and the Oxfam Africa-China Dialogue Platform.

Date: 23-25 August 2017

Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Africa-China relations have witnessed rapid development over nearly two decades. What do these relations portend for the two partners but more so for Africa, perceived as the weaker partner? The media plays a pivotal role as platform for debate on these issues, and will continue to shape the contours of Africa-China engagements. Both the Wits Africa-China Reporting Project and the Oxfam Africa-China Dialogue Platform have these issues at the core of their missions and visions. In this joint and synergistic workshop the Africa-China Reporting Project will draw on its experience in the field of media and communications, while the Oxfam Africa-China Dialogue Platform will leverage its unique location in Addis Ababa as well as track record in the Africa-China policy space.

African and Chinese journalists are invited to apply for attending this workshop, please see the section How to apply below.

Focus areas

The workshop will bring together selected African and Chinese journalists to equip them with knowledge, skills and training for covering current Africa-China engagements. The workshop will focus on the crucial sectors of agriculture and industrialisation/manufacturing. Agriculture is crucial in Africa for its direct link with food security. Industrialisation on the other hand is important because it has been elevated in recent Africa-China policy promulgations, specifically the Johannesburg Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit in 2015. Industrialization is seen as an antidote to the high levels of poverty in Africa, which is manifest in frequent cases of famine. These two areas deserve more focused journalistic reporting than is currently the case.

Underlying the focus on agriculture and industrialisation are three broad policy frameworks that influence and shape Africa-China relations: Agenda 2063, the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as Agenda 2030.  How do these policy frameworks affect the implementation of agricultural and industrial projects and programmes in African countries?

Key questions:

• Does Africa-China cooperation help impoverished African communities to overcome poverty?
• What is the impact of Africa-China agricultural engagements on food security in Africa? What is the evidence?
• How is the Africa-China industrialisation programme being implemented in Africa from one country to another and from one community to another?
• Are there any links between completed and ongoing projects and Agenda 2063, FOCAC and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?

The Workshop

• About 20 journalists from Africa and China will be invited to attend the three-day workshop in Addis
• Selected journalists will be provided with airfares to/from Addis and accommodation and catering in Addis
• The workshop programme will include excursions to the African Union (AU) headquarters and other significant locations in Addis Ababa, as well as a day trip to one of the Chinese industrial parks in Ethiopia
• Selected journalists are expected to apply the knowledge, skills and training acquired by undertaking investigations and publishing in their media. The Wits Africa China Project will financially support some of the journalists to do fieldwork on specific stories after the workshop

Programme:

Day 1: Visit AU headquarters and other important Africa-China locales in Addis Ababa

Day 2: Workshop outline:

• Session 1: Official opening: Senior official from the PRC Embassy or AU representative (“Role of journalists and media in the Africa-China relations”)
• Session 2: Reporting Africa and China from the perspective of Agenda 2063, FOCAC and SDGs (Speaker from academia or civil society)
• Session 3: Africa-China linkages in the agricultural sector: Case-based challenges and opportunities (Speaker from UNDP China)
• Session 4: Reporting Africa-China industrialisation: The pros and cons, based on case studies (AU representative)
• Session 5: Practical session; participants work in groups to discuss reporting angles on topics of their choice within agriculture and industrialisation
• Session 6: Plenary session and feedback from group work
• Session 7: Closing remarks

Day 3: Day trip to a China-built industrial zone

How to apply

African and Chinese Journalists are invited to send applications addressing the requirements below in an email entitled “APPLICATION: ADDIS WORKSHOP 2017” to africa-china@journalism.co.za BY NO LATER THAN 18 JULY 2017.

Applications should contain the following:

• Applicant CV
• List of applicant’s previous published reporting on Africa-China, especially on agriculture, industrialisation and sustainable development
• Reporting proposal for a topic relevant to Africa-China agriculture, industrialisation and/or sustainable development, indicating clearly the country/region focus, along with a budget for costs relating to the reporting grant (please refer to the Africa-China Reporting Project’s guidelines for reporting grants)

Only shortlisted candidates will be notified. For any further questions please email Project staff at africa-china@journalism.co.za.