LocationsReshaping Africa’s Development Story: Inside UNDP’s Media Clinic in Addis Ababa
November 13, 2025
In an era of misinformation and polarised narratives, African media holds the power to reclaim agency and shape a future characterised by solutions, innovation, and hope. Aware that the media is not just a messenger—it is a driver of accountability, a catalyst for policy change, and a bridge between institutions and citizens, in early November, UNDP’s Regional Service Centre for Africa became the testing ground for reimagining development storytelling through media. For three days, more than 50 leading African journalists, editors, and media executives from across the continent engaged in candid, insightful, and thought-provoking conversations with representatives from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the African Union Commission (AUC).
There was one mission for everyone in the room: to interrogate how Africa’s development journey is presented, packaged, and communicated—and who has the authority to tell that story.
While the UNDP Media Clinic was conceived to build mutual understanding, identify partnership models for sustained collaboration, reposition UNDP as a trusted partner and convener in the information ecosystem at a time of growing misinformation, declining institutional trust, and shifting geopolitical narratives and interrogate how to strengthen solutions-oriented and people-centred reporting; This was not a typical conference.
It was a co-creation space where participants analysed the challenges of crisis communication, explored the power of narrative, and debated the future of Africa’s information ecosystems. From radio and television news anchors and editors to digital creators, independent media owners, champions of African storytelling, and development communicators, the diversity in the room reflected the rich tapestry of Africa’s media landscape.
“Africa is not where it should be in its development journey—and that’s a story worth telling. But it’s not just about what’s wrong. We need the media to help shape better choices, influence better policy, and offer the evidence of what’s working.”Dr. Jide Okeke, Director of UNDP’s Regional Programme for Africa
The sessions were dynamic and hands-on, with participants tackling critical questions that could shift perceptions of the role of media and its connection to development. Participants were clear: media should not be recruited merely to “amplify messages.” Instead, they must be engaged as co-creators of ideas, evidence, and advocacy. This shift moves away from transactional publicity toward long-term partnerships built on trust and shared purpose.
There was also a call for greater transparency and access—such as regularised media briefings/sessions, early field data, and multimedia press kits—to ensure that whatever stories are covered by the media are timely and accurate. Participants advocated for increased access to field data and community-level evidence to support these stories, ensuring that development reporting is grounded in facts and lived realities. They called on UNDP and the AU to simplify communication protocols by providing access to a pool of experts ready for real-time engagement to enrich the stories covered by the media. The Clinic emphasised that African stories must go beyond deficit or crisis narratives to highlight agency, innovation, and resilience. UNDP’s role as a knowledge broker was also recognised as vital in helping to reshape Africa’s narrative more comprehensively, with the understanding that there is no single African story.
As part of the hands-on technical exchange, deep-dive sessions produced prototypes for development-oriented story pitches and “story packs”were explored to give insight into what makes a good story for the media.
The message from the media clinic was clear and decisive: reshaping Africa’s development narrative will require more than good intentions. It will require institutionalised, Africa-focused media collaborations that go beyond ad hoc press briefings and the distribution of press kits and releases. It will demand a commitment that extends beyond a three-day Media Clinic to create a model where media becomes a core actor in development.
From these insights, it is clear that a new era of how development intersects with media is beginning. To advance this agenda, bold proposals were tabled for consideration: launching storytelling grants to build capacity and identify new talent to keep African media competitive; establishing structured collaboration and developing long-term partnerships with mainstream broadcasters and digital platforms to promote ethical storytelling; and committing to African-led action.
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