Afghanistan 's Media and Civil Society Forum

Media is Development: Afghanistan Media and Civil Society Forum

March 28-29, 2007 - Intercontinental Hotel, Kabul

Organizers: The Killid Group and IPS-Inter Press Service

Objectives:

The main objectives of the Afghanistan Media and Civil Society Forum is to reflect on the pivotal role played by the media and civil society in the country's efforts to transform from a war-torn country towards the building of a peaceful democracy and to assess the roles these two sectors can play to prevent a regression to conflict. The possibility of Afghanistan regressing is real and could be accentuated in the absence of Afghan-led confidence-building efforts facilitated by the media and civil society.

The Forum is expected to a) review the achievements of Afghanistan's media sector and reflect on its needs, in the context of the challenges it must overcome if it is to play a central role in re-building public confidence through the facilitation of independent, professionally-led and respected debates in the public sphere; b) objectively assess the current state of the Afghan media including existing and future opportunities and challenges; c) discuss specific threats facing the media and civil society and recommend measures to avert these while identifying concrete steps to facilitate sustainable growth and development of the two sectors; and d) be a platform for open interactions between various stakeholders, including donors, policy makers, development practitioners, civil society and private sector actors with the aim of placing media and civil society at the centre of debate on development and better governance.

Specifically, the Forum will:

review the achievements of Afghanistan 's media sector in terms of audience reach and coverage
highlight the expectations of the public with regard to the role of the media which also provides a unique means for people to vent frustrations with the slow pace of change and corruption in public life
explore Afghan-led, civilians potential to contribute to the country's transformation from war to a sustainable peace
review the role of public policy and donor support in the context of the need for support to further develop and sustain an independent and professional media; the representatives of private and public media are expected to outline and discuss their challenges to financial self-sustainability, including plans and time frames
explore potential partnerships between media, civil society groups and donors and government for complementing efforts, particularly support to media which in turn can complement all development actors' efforts, towards building a peaceful and democratic Afghanistan .
assess the role of the private sector as a potential partner in media development and the public policy requirements for facilitating this process