BEIJING June 27th (ABP) – Some officials in the ministry responsible for communication and journalists have been in China from June 24 to July 5, 2023, for a seminar to exchange experience on development in different fields of bilateral cooperation, including the media domain.
During the official opening ceremonies of that seminar, Mr. Wang Yuning, director of the International Studies and Training Center of the China International Communication Group (CICG), the main organizer of that seminar, recalled that the friendship between China and Burundi has a long history. He described such a cooperation as exemplary in the context of South-South cooperation, especially media cooperation.
Mr. Yuning said that the media is important in the Sino-Burundian cooperation because they help the populations of the two countries to understand each other better.
Based on those exchanges of experience, he hoped that the news professionals of the two countries would invest more “so as to promote mutual understanding, peace and friendship between the two peoples”.
The CICG specializes in communication exchanges with the media, and has been established 70 years ago, Mr. Yuning revealed, adding that this center is the largest comprehensive communication agency in China. The latter combines the publication of books, periodicals, the Internet, video and heavy media.
Mr. Thierry Kitamoya, assistant to the Minister in charge of communication in Burundi affirmed Burundian media acknowledge the contribution of China in the development of the media sector in Burundi. It is known that the Chinese government has granted Burundi equipment in the form of donations or capacity building.
Through companies based in Burundi, the People’s Republic of China contributes greatly to the development of the Burundian media sector, he said. In this regard, he cited the contribution of the StarTimes company based in Burundi, which remains the first in the field of digital TV: through the 10,000 villages project, including 300 African villages of the digital TV project.
Chinese TV, he also cited, has implemented a project to digitize Burundian TV and 190,000 decoders have been granted by China to support the process of digitizing Burundi’s national TV.
Mr. Kitamoya acknowledged that the media sector still faces challenges. He hoped that with Sino-Burundian cooperation, these challenges can be overcome. For him, the trips of Burundian officials are “of great use for the development of the media sector”.
In the specific case of that seminar, the assistant to the Minister in charge of communication indicated that the achievements will enable ministry officials and media professionals to develop appropriate leadership in the management of the media sector. He challenged the seminar attendees to get involved for the interest of the sector.
The assistant to the Minister in charge of communication in Burundi thanked the organizers of the seminar who thought of that category and reiterated the thanks of the government of Burundi to China which continues to support it.