PAMRO conference promotes development through research

“Harnessing the Power of Research: Lessons from the Continent.” This was the theme at the 13th
PAMRO All Africa Media Research Conference. Indeed, this is more than a theme – it goes to the heart
of what PAMRO does in Africa. A platform where people from across the vast African continent can
come together, network, pooling their knowledge, learning from each other, and harnessing the power
of collectivity, for the greater aim of spurring on development.

Held at the Le Meridien President Hotel in Dakar, Senegal, the 13th PAMRO conference was once again
an event which will no doubt lead to renewed research initiatives. Over 100 delegates from across
Africa and Europe attended, to hear papers delivered by experts from around the globe.

Lessons from Africa
PAMRO has always provided the opportunity to learn more about the countries of Africa. Every country
exists within a set of specific contexts, with varying conditions on the ground, all of which affect media
research. Country activity reports are a standard component of the PAMRO conferences, and provide
great insight into countries’ research and media context.

The 2011 conference also presented a number of papers on the research environment of specific
African countries. Fillipa Oliviera, the MD of Marktest, Angola, described the difficulties of doing
research in Angola. In this country, for instance, the oil companies have a lot of sway since oil is the
main export. It is difficult to employ educated, experienced researchers who prefer to work for the oil
companies because this is where the money is. It is also difficult to employ expatriates because work
visas are scarce. Traffic is another stumbling block, with congestion in Luanda sometimes adding hours
onto even short journeys to conduct interviews. Despite these challenges however, Angola conducts an
All Media and Products Survey (AMPS), based on the South African AMPS model which produces data
on the demographics, media consumption, and product and brand consumption of the South African
adult population.

Oliviera shared some of the latest results for the Luanda market from Angola AMPS. Even though
most of the population does not have electricity, 95% claimed to watch television on a regular basis,
with Brazilian soap operas being very popular. She told delegates that people use generators so that
they will not miss their favourite soap. Advertising recall is highest for television, with 92.2% of people
remembering ads they’d seen on TV, compared to only 7.8% for radio advertising. Oliviera pointed out
that most of the top brands are local, probably because it is too expensive to buy imported goods. Local
brands also advertise more and use local celebrities to endorse products.

But why, in the face of challenges such as those experienced by Angola, should Africa continue to
pursue the goal of producing media audience research, as encouraged by PAMRO? The keynote
address of the Honourable Moustapha Guirassy, the Senegalese Minister of Communication and
Telecommunication in Charge of New Technologies and Information touched on the answer.

The Minister was especially concerned about the importance of reliable and valid media research
and media currencies. Media research is critical in the maintenance of free societies, because a free
media is a cornerstone of democracy. If a free media is to survive and grow, objective and credible
measurement of the media is required. Independent media audience research thus plays an important
role as one of the pillars supporting free media and democracy.

Credible media measurement assists in economic growth as it informs marketers about advertising
opportunities to communicate their commercial message to consumers. More consumer advertising
means consumers are better informed about their own purchases. Huge investments will be made in

Africa over the next few years by international communications and media companies and they need
information to assist them in their decision making.

Overall, there was a sense of optimism amongst PAMRO conference speakers and delegates about
media research in Africa, despite the difficulties and challenges associated with it. This was best
expressed by Chris Maroleng of eNews Africa, in his inspiring look at the potential of the continent.
His stance against African exceptionalism was a refreshing call to develop the unique potentials of the
African continent.

Maroleng pointed out that despite past promises to cover Africa in a more balanced way, international
news agencies continue to provide stereotypical coverage of the continent, homing in on topics of war
or famine. Yet post colonialism and the Cold War, thanks in part to the efforts of international peace
keepers such as the UN, there has been more peace in Africa than ever before.

While the economies of the US and Europe are increasingly shaky, African countries have been able to
weather the recession better than most western ones. Africa’s economic growth from 2001 to 2008
has been increasing, and has out-performed developed economies with the exception of the East and
Southern Asia. On the down side, democratisation across the continent has now plateaued (although
democracy and political independence do not correlate with economic improvement). Most African
countries are over-populated, and populations will continue to grow. Although most CO2 emissions
come from the developed world, the developing world will suffer enormously from global warming
and climate change. There is still much work to be done in terms of education, and political leadership
needs to improve. Industry and entrepreneurship must be nurtured and developed, and globalisation
and free trade managed.

Yet Marolong left delegates with an overwhelmingly positive sense of the future for the continent,
saying that “Africa will develop, when Africans believe it will, and when we get away from our belief in
African exceptionalism”.

It is this development of the African continent, through the power of media audience research, that
PAMRO strives continually to promote. Knowledge is power and media audience research has the
power to reveal the day-to-day realities about the lives of Africa’s people.