The Third African Media Convention (AMC) has opened in Accra with interesting and thought-provoking plenary sessions to strengthen media freedom in Africa.

About 2,000 participants drawn across the continent, including policymakers, Ministers of State, researchers, academics and media practitioners are attending the Convention.

The three-day conference will be opened officially by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the Special Guest today at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC).

Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, the President of the Ghana Journalists Association, and Co-Chair of the Local Organising Committee, said all the necessary logistics, transportation and accommodation for participants had been secured to ensure a successful event.

The Convention is on the theme: “The African Media We Want: Enhancing Freedom, Innovation, and Environmental Sustainability in a Dynamic Media Landscape”.

Mr Dumfour noted that the theme was apt as it resonated with the 2024 World Press Freedom Day global theme.

There would be a Gala Night and field trips to some of the historic sites in Ghana including the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and Osu Castle.

The African Media Convention is an annual conference providing a platform to reflect on the fundamental role of journalism on the continent, celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom and deliberate on measures to safeguard media freedoms.

It also focuses on promotion of access to information, the safety of journalists and media viability in the African Union Member States.

Some of the topics discussed by the participants during the six plenary sessions were: Media Information Digital Competencies: The pan-African Strategy, New Model for Media Financing: Exploring New Approaches to Media Economic Resilience and Promoting Media Freedom: Access to Information and Safety of Journalists in Africa through Country Assessment.

Other topics were: Strengthening Partnership: A Synergy with CSOs, National Human Rights Institutions, African Information Commissions and Journalists Associations in AU Member States, Strengthening Mechanism for Monitoring, Reporting and Advocacy on Journalists’ Safety in Africa and Mis/Disinformation & Democracy in Africa: The Threats and Dimensions of Disinformation Campaigns in Africa and Disinformation Actors and How They Operate, and Enhancing Professional Media on Disability Quality with Focus on Gender, Youth and Media Professionals with Disability in AU Member States.