AUB to organise summit on impact of Artificial Intelligence on African media.

The AUB’s Director General and his partners of the Ministry of Communication and the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications made the confirmation in Yaounde Wednesday.

This was during a press conference also attended by the representative of the Head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO in Cameroon. 

The AUB group which is a composition of African media organisations with its main specialty being the acquisition of broadcast rights for major global events, will also launch a foundation for the fight against cancer in Africa during its stay in Cameroon for the summit. 

Speaking during the presser, the AUB and its partners said the summit will be a perfect platform to address the multiple significant challenges of navigating the daily technological advancements especially in terms of Artificial Intelligence, AI.

The summit, AUB chief said, will bring together leading scientists in the field of artificial intelligence who will duel on presenting and debating research findings and applications of Artificial Intelligence within the media on the African continent.

Discussions, per the institution, will more specifically focus on ethical considerations in automating editorial processes and the impact of AI on information diversity and integrity. 

This will be in the presence of institutions like the World Intellectual Organisation and the International Communications Union. 

Per officials of the AUB, participants will equally have the opportunity to focus on strategising on how the future African media can embrace Artificial Intelligence as a powerful tool for innovation, information dissemination and inspiration.

AI session timely, crucial

According to officials of the AUB, the upcoming gathering will be a very timely meeting for the media on the African continent as it battles to tackle the usage of Artificial Intelligence.

According to the Secretary General of the Ministry of Communication, Prof Felix Zogo, the summit will help in addressing AI issues which has come to mount more pressure on an African media that is already sweating on issues brought about by social media and other technological advancements. 

Top among them, he said are challenges of fake news and hate speech made more wilder by the spread of social media.

The arrival of AI which gives way for platforms like ChatGPT, used in engaging conversations, gaining insights and automating tasks, AUB chief said, leads to multiple inaccuracies that must be addressed. 

This, the official said, must be addressed through a proper use of the AI by African media practitioners who must not only see the tool as a blessing but as a need to be more careful.

“This is going to be a major platform to address these concerns. Journalists will be trained on how to use the AI notably on differentiating fake and real while,” Ndjaka said.

MINPOSTEL frontline actor 

During the three-day conference, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications led by Minister Minette Libom Li Likeng will be accompanying the AUB as one of its major actors as it schools and brief participants on the AI tools.

The ministry will be accompanying the broadcasting union as government’s official arm in charge of the information and communications, ICT sector under which the AI scheme is based.

Speaking during the press conference, the Director of International Cooperation at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, Fotindong Cornelius, said the institution will be keen in following the proceedings of the summit and the implementation of lessons learned.

According to Fotindong, the event will be crucial as it falls within the line of multiple activities launched by the ministry to boost the digital economy in Cameroon notably through the proper use of tools like artificial intelligence.

He said the ministry has launched a strategic development plan in that regards focused on among others, englobing the infrastructural, contents and governance aspects of boosting the digital economy. 

These efforts, he said can be justified by the setting of a world-class optic fiber system in the country among other strides.

AUB to combat cancer

Besides the summit on artificial intelligence, the AUB will also launch a foundation specialised in fighting cancer. 

The foundation, authorities stated, will be geared towards addressing the disturbing nature of cancer globally characterised by thousands of deaths annually.

The foundation will focus on leading African media houses to carrying on sensitisation on cancer.