Activity reports
2020 Annual report
Highlights included:
Welcoming 28 new members to the GFMD network, which means we now have over 200 journalism support and media development organisations represented in our network
Launching an Emergency Appeal for Journalism and Media Support on World Press Freedom Day (3 May), signed by more than 180 organisations
Developing resource centres dedicated to funding media during COVID-19, covering the pandemic, tackling COVID-19 disinformation, and more
Launching a series of COVID-19 virtual town halls to help members tackle the issues they were facing related to COVID-19
Hosting a series of webinars on COVID-19 related topics
Celebrating GFMD’s 15th anniversary by organising two events that gathered approximately 70 members, partners, colleagues, and those that took part in building and establishing GFMD
Beginning co-facilitation of the International Civil Society Organization on the Safety of Journalists (ICSO SoJ) Coalition
Launching the inaugural annual report of the Dynamic Coalition on the Sustainability of Journalism and News Media (DC-Sustainability) at the 15th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in November, and helped facilitate the appointment of one of the DC-Sustainability’s co-chairs to the IGF Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) – the IGF’s steering/programme committee
Furthering our engagement with the Global Network Initiative (GNI) and the Christchurch Call Advisory Network
Co-hosting a session on media sustainability at the 2020 World Press Freedom Conference
Developing a policy paper on media sustainability for the second annual Global Conference for Media Freedom
Acting as a channel of communication between GFMD members and Twitter, leading to our members and their partners’ accounts being verified on Twitter
Serving as a co-chair for the media and content track of RightsCon Online 2020
Establishing an EU Media Advocacy Working Group with more than 115 individuals representing more than 40-50 organisations across Europe and beyond.
Contributing to the European Partnership for Democracy’s (EPD) publication "A comprehensive plan to innovate democracy in Europe," published in September 2020
Submitting a draft joint response to the European Democracy Action Plan (EDAP) consultation, as well as draft responses to the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) consultation
Joining the International Press Institute (IPI) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) for a meeting on media market competition with EU Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager
Hosting a public webinar with IAMCR focusing on the future of media development post-COVID-19
Conducting a survey on GFMD’s members’ capacity to administer emergency grants
Joining the #HoldTheLine Coalition to defend the prominent Filipino-American editor Maria Resa and supported numerous other advocacy initiatives
Organising three GFMD IMPACT co-design sessions, gathering 23 representatives of various stakeholders (donors, implementers, practitioners, and academics) together
Contributing to the design and implementation of the next stage of the Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) through our involvement in #JTI-Campus – a modular toolkit of instruments to achieve the project's objectives
2019 Annual report
Highlights included:
Welcoming 11 new members into the GFMD network
Co-organising and participating in multiple meetings with donors and governments regarding media sustainability
Advising the Department for International Development (DFID) and the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on the Global Conference on Media Freedom, and securing as well as participating in a panel on media sustainability
Meeting with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern about journalism and news media perspectives on violent and extremist content (CVE) online, and joining the Christchurch Call Advisory Network
Launching the Dynamic Coalition on the Sustainability of Journalism and News Media (DC-Sustainability) within the Internet Governance Forum (IGF)
Organising events and coordinating our network’s engagement at the 63rd UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW63)
Organising events and coordinating our network’s engagement at the 2019 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF), along with launching a joint report on the state of public Access to Information (ATI) in 10 countries
Launching our members-only webinar series
Commissioning research on Recipient Perceptions of Media Development Assistance, facilitating a working meeting on the potential establishment of a fund for investigative reporting, and launching a GFMD community consultation on the International Fund for Public Interest Media along with supporting the fund’s feasibility study
Co-organising sessions with our members at World Press Freedom Day (WPFD), RightsCon Tunis 2019, and the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG)
Coordinating a joint advocacy strategy with our members and partners in the EU
2018 Annual report
Highlights included:
Being granted special consultative status by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Launching our newly redesigned website in August 2018
Establishing five working groups: Impact and Learning, Internet Governance, Women in Media, SDG 16.10 – Access to
Information, and Local and Community Media
Introducing our Capacity Building Programme for members
Launching our issue paper on Internet governance and media development at the 13th global Internet Governance Forum (IGF), and
starting a process to establish a Dynamic Coalition within the IGF
Submitting two rounds of joint comments to UNESCO towards their initial template on the methodology for measuring the SDG
16.10.2 indicator, and celebrated Right to Know Day in collaboration with members
Implementing a GFMD membership survey “Recipient Perceptions of Media Development Assistance: A GFMD Study,” which will be
presented during the donor meeting on 31 January 2019
Welcoming three new team members to the GFMD Secretariat
2017 Annual report
Over the period covered by this report, the efforts of the previous and incumbent Steering Committees and Executive Directors succeeded in making GFMD a stronger organisation which enjoys better brand recognition and which has developed a solid track record in key thematic areas. Significant progress was made in all areas, thereby promoting GFMD’s role as a thought leader in the media development community and highlighting its ability to facilitate constructive discussion around key topics of interest. GFMD continues to provide an important service to its members, reflected by the increase in membership and by invitations to take a leading role in ongoing efforts to address burning challenges for journalism, media, and the development community around the world. There is now a clear imperative to ensure that the conclusions and recommendations of sector-related discussions are translated into projects and knowledge-sharing initiatives and brought to the attention of policymakers.
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