Unesco launches report on media development indicators

ISLAMABAD: The Unesco Pakistan and its research partner Media Matters for Democracy (MMD) have launched a report on the Pakistan National Assessment of Media Development Indicators (MDIs) and Media Viability Indicators (MVIs).

The research aims to strengthen media development, freedom and sustainability in Pakistan by developing a policy and practical recommendations for different stakeholders based on the findings of an in-depth assessment of the media landscape against a set of indicators.

The MDIs and MVIs are an analytic tool developed by the Unesco to help assess the state of media, measure the impact of media development and enable an environment of independent journalism.

They comprise over 50 key indicators and 190 sub-indicators including research into various aspects such as media regulation, pluralism, infrastructural capacity, among other indicators. The Unesco’s MDI framework has been applied to several countries, including Bhutan, Bolivia, Brazil, Croatia, Ecuador, Egypt, Maldives, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, Serbia, Jordan, Tunisia, and Venezuela, with assessments in other countries already under way.

The start of the research process was marked by the first multi-stakeholders advisory board meeting, a diverse group including representatives from academia, legal fraternity, civil society.