Media forum “Russia — Africa” held at RUDN University
A discussion and expert platform was organized at the forum to identify effective forms of interaction and deepen positive information exchange between Russia and African countries in the field of education and mass communications.
On the first day, the information space of the participating countries was discussed. Participants noted the need for a comprehensive exchange of information to improve mutual understanding between the peoples of Russia and Africa and looked for ways of effective interaction between African and Russian specialists in the field of mass communications, education and youth policy.
RUDN Rector Oleg Yastrebov noted an important aspect of the media forum, i.e. the development of youth cooperation.
“Young people are the driving force of our society and a key resource for achieving sustainable development and prosperity. Russia and Africa have a rich cultural heritage and talented young people,” said Oleg Yastrebov, Rector of RUDN University.
“Cooperation between Russia and African countries is expanding every year. At the moment, 35,000 young people from 30 countries of the friendly continent study at Russian universities,” said Olga Petrova, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, delivering a welcoming speech.
“You, young journalists and researchers, are the future of our nations, and it depends on you what kind of world we will live in and how well we will understand each other,” said Konstantin Kosachev, senator of the Russian Federation, addressed the participants of the media forum.
At the end of the first day, young journalists indicated that strengthening friendship and cooperation is important for the qualitative growth of the media industry in Africa and Russia. It is necessary to support the development of African journalism through the creation of associations and socio-cultural exchange programs. It is important to provide software and conduct training workshops for journalists, editors and emerging media professionals. African colleagues appreciated the efforts of Russian media organizations, in particular the Sputnik news agency, to promote multilingualism in the media environment. It was recommended to organize broadcasting in a wider range of dominant African languages.
“This will only encourage the participants to exchange objective and high-quality information about the current development and prospects for cooperation between Russia and Africa in educational, scientific and other fields of activity. Such an open and friendly format of interaction always works to strengthen the international image of our country,” said Larisa Efremova, RUDN Vice-Rector for International Affairs.
The second day of the forum was devoted to discussing achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the role of journalists in promoting these initiatives. The participants noted the difficulties in highlighting the problems associated with the SDGs, and suggested possible options for overcoming them. The joint communiqué, which was prepared by foreign journalists on the results of the work, will be handed over to the participants of the second RUDN conference — “Africa’s path to the 17 SDGs: an integrated approach”. It will take place November
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The international youth media forum “Russia — Africa: through the prism of education and communications” was held with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.
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