AUB General Assembly promotes innovation and media resilience in combating climate change

Experts at the African Union of Broadcasting, AUB General Assembly held in Gaborone, Botswana made a case for the media in Africa to build their resilience in the face of climate change and its devastating impacts to position them for efficient service to save lives and property.

At a Super Panel on climate change focused on the “Resilience of African media in the face of climate change” experts including Maha Chrabie, Sales Director, MEA- Broadcast Distribution; Emmanuel Wongibe, Deputy Director General, Cameroon Radio Television, CRTV and Mary Daraja of the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation, KBC exchanged views on how the media in Africa can survive during climate emergencies so that personnel and infrastructure can remain operational to share information to save lives at all times.

Moderated by AUB’s Head of English Desk, Onengiye Fyneface, conversation in this panel was with the understanding that during climate emergencies, no one is spared, not even the media. Media practitioners, like other citizens, suffer the impact; broadcast and other operational facilities, including buildings are impacted as well.

The panelists recommended the adoption of contemporary broadcast technology that are climate smart and capable of withstanding climate shocks while also paying close attention to the experiences and concerns of media workers as they go about their private lives as citizens and their professional lives in providing the people with critical information.

Media practitioners, the experts insisted, must be conscious of their own environment at all times, especially during climate crisis so as not to endanger themselves because no story is worth dying for- the most important concern at such times for workers and management should be first to protect lives of practitioners and operation facilities so that the personnel and other resources will be available to continue providing the needed service to society.