SPECIAL FEATURE
The link between perception and investment
“The Business in Africa Narrative Report”, published by the non-profit organization Africa No Filter , provides a comprehensive analysis of the portrayal of business in Africa and its impact on investment perceptions. The report, which came out in 2022, analyzes over 750 million stories published between 2017 and 2021, sourced from more than 6,000 African news sites and 183,000 global sites. Seven key frames in stories about business in Africa emerged, shedding light on the prevailing biases and gaps. Here are some of the key findings:
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More negative coverage: International media tends to negatively frame issues impacting business in Africa, with African media twice as likely to reference corruption. Foreign powers scramble for Africa: 70 percent of international coverage revolves around references to foreign powers like China, the USA, Russia, France and the UK. Africa is two countries: Media coverage disproportionately focuses on South Africa and Nigeria, neglecting smaller successful states such as Mauritius, Botswana, Seychelles and Namibia. Silencing creativity, amplifying technology: Despite the global influence of creative industries and music, creative businesses receive only 1 percent of media coverage.
Youth and women underrepresented: Despite Africa having the highest concentration of women business owners and the youngest population globally, youth and women are underrepresented in media coverage. Government dominance: Approximately 54.5 percent of business news is framed through government action and policies, with African media emphasizing government themes over entrepreneurship. Missing free trade area and investment: Despite its potential to alleviate poverty and significantly boost Africa’s income, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as the largest free trade area globally, receives less than 1 percent of coverage in both global and African media when it comes to business news and analysis.
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GLOBAL COMMUNICATORS WORKING TOGETHER TO RAISE AWARENESS ACW has been partnering with the OECD Development Communication Network (DevCom) to increase awareness about Africa among global communications professionals. OECD DevCom is a global network of communications professionals and advocates for sustainable development and international co-operation. It promotes peer learning and provides practitioners with the latest advice from experts in policy and politics, campaigning and advocacy, digital media, journalism and marketing, public attitudes research and behavioral science. In 2022 and 2023, ACW and OECD DevCom co-hosted workshops for broader audiences on “Africa’s Agency on the Global Climate Stage: What Role for Strategic Communication?” and “Boosting Investment in Africa: How Communicators Can Help?” The OPEC Fund is a member of OECD DevCom.
The OECD DevCom 2023 annual meeting, hosted by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation in Madrid in October, brought together some 40 global development communications professionals
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