African Media Barometer (AMB)

In developing the ABM, the organisers had five main stipulations: it could only be a qualitative tool, as they wanted to encourage debate and discussion among media practitioners; it had to be home-grown in order to counter the argument that Western observers would be judging African practices; it had to be based on African standards to allow civil society and media groups to hold their governments accountable to signed declarations and protocols; it had to reflect a focus on media policy, regulation, and public broadcasting; and it had to be practical.

According to the organisers, the tool works as follows: every 4 to 5 years, a panel of 10 to 12 local experts, consisting of at least 5 media practitioners and media experts and 5 representatives from civil society, meets to assess the media situation in their own country. For one and a half days, the panellists discuss the national media environment through the lens of 39 predetermined indicators. The discussion and scoring are moderated by an independent consultant who also edits the country report, written by a trained AMB rapporteur following the AMB panel discussion. After the discussion, each indicator is scored based on how well it has been met in the country. Released every 4 to 5 years, the country reports measure the media development in each country and are meant to form the basis for political discussion and advocacy on media reform. The results are presented to the public of the respective country to push for an improvement of the media situation using the African Union (AU) Declaration as a benchmark. They are then integrated into MISA's advocacy work in Southern African Countries and into the programme of the local FES-offices in sub-Saharan Africa. Click here to read more about the AMB methodology [PDF].

In 2008, a review of the AMB was conducted during which the developers improved the input of facts and figures into the discussion and standardised the procedure to reduce the "subjectivity factor" in debating, scoring, reporting, writing, and editing. In addition, indicators were extended to cover recent developments in communication technology, and training was intensified for rapporteurs and moderators. A Moderator's Guide was also developed to ensure a more standardised practice from country to country and from year to year. Another review was conducted in 2013.

In 2011, the AMB brief "ONE STEP FORWARDS, TWO STEPS BACK: Trends in Access to Information from the African Media Barometer 2005-2010” was published. The brief provides a closer look at the state of access to information in countries covered by the AMB, thereby complementing numerous freedom of information initiatives taking place across the continent.

Media Development, Democracy and Governance.

According to AMB developers, unlike most other press surveys or media indices, the AMB is a self-assessment exercise based on home-grown criteria derived from African Protocols and Declarations like the "Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa" (2002) by the African Commission for Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR). It takes up the idea of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) on good governance and applies it to the media at a national level.

By the end of 2013, AMB had been held in 30 African countries, in some of them already for the fourth time. The AMB methodology and concept are now being used in Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Find out more about the AMBs of the Asian region by clicking here.