At its recent General Assembly in Gaborone, Botswana, the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB) highlighted the critical issues of digital transformation of media on the continent through a panel on the theme: ‘’Optimizing Production Processes with AI, Audience Measurement, Data Collection: Evaluation and Feedback’’
This high-level panel, moderated by Mactar Silla, President and CEO of Label Media Plus, addressed the challenges and opportunities related to the integration of artificial intelligence in production and broadcasting processes.
Five speakers each addressed one aspect of the issue: Dr. Ayub Robia, Director General of Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation (TBC), Dr. Christopher Mokone, Head of Transformation at the Ministry of Communication of Botswana, Prof. Antonin Bossoto, Lecturer and Researcher at the University of Brazzaville in Congo, Mr. Abdou Salam Fall, Engineer, Founder and CEO of SeneWeb, the first digital information portal in French-speaking Africa (Senegal) and Mr. Li Peichun, Africa Director of China Media Group (CMG).
These experts stressed the importance of domesticating AI in Africa to adapt tools and technologies to local specificities. The promotion of national languages in media productions was also at the heart of the discussions, as was the challenge of producing quality content that meets the expectations of African audiences.
In addition, the panelists stressed the need to strengthen the presence of African media on global digital platforms to reach a wider and more diverse audience. The fight against fake news was also at the heart of the discussions, stressing the importance of developing tools and methods to verify information and ensure the credibility of the media.
