The President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour has stated that the 3rd African Media Convention will not only promote networking amongst participants but will also promote tourism and boost the Ghanaian economy.
He said this at the launch of the 3rd African Media Convention held in Accra on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, the GJA and Information Ministry launched the third African Media Convention.
At the same event, the 19-Member Local Organizing Committee, Co-Chaired by the GJA President, Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour and the Deputy Information Minister, Fatimatu Abubakar was also inaugurated by the Minister of Information to see to the successful execution of the Convention.
The Convention which will be held in Ghana for the first will start from May 15 to May 17 in 2024.
The African Media Convention is currently the largest gathering of media stakeholders and policymakers in the continent.
The Convention, an initiative of The African Editors’ Forum (TAEF) is designed to safeguard the hard-won media freedoms and safety of journalists on the continent. The maiden edition of the Convention was held in Arusha, Tanzania, in 2022.
The Convention brings together media experts, scholars, students, journalists, journalists’ unions and associations, editors, public and private sector, including cooperating partners from around the African continent and beyond as well as representatives from UNESCO and the African Union Commission.
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Speaking at the launch, Mr Dwumfour mentioned that the conference will bring lots of benefits to the country.
“It will help us a lot, it will help journalists to network, we can take advantage of the convention to network, to build that relationship and also to socialize with the international community. Also, it will bring investors because if all journalists in Africa are looking for a place to meet and the African Union Commission and UNESCO are looking for a place to host this big event and they choose Ghana, it will help boost the confidence of investors to come here,” he said.
He continued, “Also, it will boost the economy because the 600 people who are coming will sleep in hotels, buy food, buy other stuff and use transportation and all these will bring in money which will also boost the economy. It will also project Ghana as a beacon of Democracy.”
He thanked the Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah for his support saying it is his cooperation and support that has brought the GJA this far.
“When we were going to do the bidding, it was difficult and we called on the Government to help us and the government accepted to support us and because of that, we had confidence and we attended. There were about seven other countries but God was on our side and we won,” He said.
Mr Dwumfour also noted that the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo has promised to take care of the financial obligations of the convention and will come and open the conference on May 15th and also close it on May 17th.
“We commend the President and we thank him for the support given to Ghanaian media,” he said.
Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour therefore urged all media houses and practitioners to take part in the convention.
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