ORGANISATIONAL OVERVIEW

“When I set up the African Women in the Media Facebook group in 2016, it was because I was looking for a supportive network for women in the media. I started the AWIM group just before I won the CNN African Journalist Award for Sports Reporting. In my acceptance speech, I dedicated the award to all African women in the media: “I would like to accept this award on behalf of all female African journalists especially those who are mothers of young children and understand the challenge of keeping a foot in the industry while trying to raise a young family.” (Dr. Yemisi Akinbobola, AWiM Co-founder and CEO)

Today, AWIM has become a lighthouse and a platform where women in media can inspire, support and empower each other.

History

African Women in Media started as a Facebook group in August 2016 with the aim to positively impact the way media functions in relation to African women. Our members are African women from a diverse range of media backgrounds. AWiM held its first convening event in July 2017 in Birmingham, UK, and continues to organise its annual conference which tours African countries. AWiM transitioned to an international non-governmental organisation in 2019 and collaborates with a variety of partners to achieve its vision.

VISION: One day,  African women will have equal access to representation and opportunities in media industries and media content.

MISSION AND VALUES

African Women in the Media (AWiM) aims to contribute to the creation of enabling environments for African women who work in media industries, and to change the way African women are represented in media content. It does this through research, advocacy and partnerships that impact positively the way media functions in relation to African women. Through AWiM events we create opportunities for knowledge exchange, building networks, and economic empowerment of women in media.

GOALS AND STRATEGIES

Priorities

1. To support media associations, networks and groups in Africa who seek to support African women working in media industries, so that they can effectively deliver their objectives and share their knowledge;
2. To work with media content producers and publishers in developing strategies and policies on the representation of African women in their content;
3. To guide policymakers towards decision-making that is informed by the lived experiences of African women working in media industries, and that functions in the best interests of our members and wider media industries;
4. To publish research, and develop academic pedagogy and training programmes informed by the lived experiences of African women working in media industries;
5. To administer projects that support African women in the production of media content, and projects that support productions that contribute to changing the narrative about African women.

Goals

1. Community: Build a community of one million African women working in media industries anywhere in the world, and have an AWiM champion in every media organisation across Africa.
2. Connector: Deliver the largest gathering of African women working in media in order to facilitate knowledge exchange and the building of new networks
3. Insight: Partner with and support relevant organisations, associations and networks to execute and share empirically grounded research and insights on the lived experiences of African women working in media industries, and execute projects that address key issues.
4. Advocate: Develop research-backed advocacy agendas targeting policymakers and top management to effectively provide for female media workers in policy and agendas for and including the media
5. Economic: Develop a Stringers’ platform through which members can pitch their ideas to commissioning editors and funders, get access to training, and build teams around their projects. Partner with funding bodies and investors to create an enabling environment for more African women who own media organisations