China-Africa media cooperation: Building skills for the AI era

Africa and China are deepening cooperation in the media sector as digital transformation and artificial intelligence reshape how news and content are produced.

The 7th Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation opened in Beijing under the theme “Share Development Opportunities, Shape the Audio-Visual Future,” bringing together media leaders and professionals from across Africa and China.

For Gregoire Ndjaka, CEO and Director General of the African Union of Broadcasting, media cooperation goes beyond technology — it is also a bridge between cultures.

He highlighted growing opportunities for African journalists to receive training in China and across Africa, including recent programmes focused on using artificial intelligence to produce content.

Ndjaka stressed that Africa must not simply consume AI technologies, but develop the skills to understand, adapt and use them for its own development.

For him, AI represents a potential shortcut to accelerating Africa’s development — provided African media professionals are equipped to master the technology.

As the media landscape becomes increasingly digital and intelligent, the message from Beijing is clear: skills, technology and knowledge-sharing will be central to Africa’s ability to shape its own digital future.