MUMBAI: Community Radios in African Human Development: Strengthening Networks, Empowering Women and Improving Content... was the title of the workshop that took place last week in Johannesburg, South Africa. The event was organized by the AMARC Africa Bureau and funded by UNESCO's Windhoek Office.

The workshop examined the situation of the various national community radio networks, and discussed current and future activities focusing on HIV and AIDS, water and sanitation, women empowerment. It tried to identify the methodologies, technologies and best practices for the coverage of issues related to human development in Africa.

The event gathered 25 delegates, representing community radios and national networks, from 13 countries: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Participants identified tutoring and knowledge-sharing mechanisms able to reinforce the existing networks, improve the community radio's contents and facilitate their contribution to human development in Africa. They also determined the priorities in the implementation of the AMARC Africa Strategic Action Plan for 2010-2014.

This training workshop was sponsored by the UNESCO International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC), which is the only multilateral forum in the UN system designed to mobilize the international community to discuss and promote media development in developing countries. The Programme not only provides support for media projects but also seeks to secure a healthy media environment for the growth of free and pluralistic media.