A delegation of 19 journalists representing mainstream media houses across seven African nations concluded a 10-day media tour of China on Tuesday, pledging to report on China-Africa relations with greater local context and independence from Western media narratives.
Delivering the delegation’s closing remarks to Ma Hui, the Vice Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (IDCPC), delegation head Idehai Frederick stated that African media has historically been heavily influenced by Western perspectives regarding China.
”For a long time, news stories written by the African media were highly influenced by narratives from the western media, but today, we know better,” Frederick said.
He noted that the participating journalists hailing from Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya, and Ethiopia now carry a responsibility to “bridge understanding” and highlight direct opportunities for mutual cooperation.
During the 10-day engagement, which included seminars on China-Africa relations and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), the delegation urged Chinese authorities to sustain the bilateral relationship by deepening direct cooperation with African media organizations.
Frederick expressed appreciation to the IDCPC for the exchange program, noting that the partnership is successfully evolving beyond traditional infrastructure and trade into the realms of culture, technology, and people-to-people exchange.
