Gambia: Algeria at the Heart of the Global Debate on Co-Production and Media Content Sharing

The 17th General Assembly of the African Union of Broadcasting, held in the Republic of The Gambia under the theme “African Union of Broadcasting: 20 Years in the Service of African Media: Heritage, Innovation, and Transformation,” gave Algeria a prominent place in its proceedings. During the third discussion session dedicated to boosting exchanges—covering sharing platforms, co-production, cloud computing, smart archiving, South-South partnerships, professional mobility, and the content market—two Algerian representatives addressed a high-level global panel alongside the BBC, the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union, and the Latin American Broadcasting Union.

Karima Chelbi, Director of the Content Exchange Center in Algeria under the Arab States Broadcasting Union (UAR), and Adel Kansous, Director of the Arab Center for the Exchange of News and Programs, also based in Algeria (ASBU), thus carried Algeria’s voice in a session moderated by Emmanuel Juma of the China Media Group (CMG). Their joint presence on the same panel illustrates the pivotal role Algeria plays in the architecture of media exchanges between the Arab world and the African continent—a strategic position embodied daily by these two institutions, both hosted on Algerian soil.

The discussions in this session built on the key directions set at the opening of the Assembly, where Gambian Minister of Information Ismaïla Ceesay urged African media institutions to “go beyond their traditional roles to become true drivers of democracy, accountability, and development,” while the President of the African Union of Broadcasting, Cleophas Barorot, called for “innovation, content sharing, and investment in technology so that African stories are told by Africans, for African and global audiences.” These ambitions were translated into a concrete roadmap by the Union’s Director General, Grégoire Ndjaka, who stressed the urgency of “strengthening capacities to keep pace with the rapid evolution of media worldwide.” Through the voices of its two representatives, Algeria fully aligned itself with this continental momentum, confirming its role as a media crossroads between Africa, the Arab world, and beyond.