Women and Youth Voices

An increase in women’s participation in the media sector can lead to the improvement in healthcare awareness, prevention of sexual and gender based violence, an increase in job skills and in overall civil society engagement.

Read more: Women in Media: Diversifying Voices, Strengthening Coverage

To ensure that the media meet the needs of all audiences, Internews works to foster women’s leadership in the media industry so that issues of vital concern to women and girls are integrated across all programming and not relegated to a niche market. In communities where specific gender issues are under-reported, such as gender-based violence or women’s health, Internews has developed programs produced by and for women, and has worked to engage men in understanding and reporting on the issues as well. Internews’ work with women has involved training women media professionals, fostering their leadership skills, and supporting programming on women’s issues in Africa, Asia, Eurasia and the Middle East.

In Afghanistan, Internews supports a radio program that includes news, interviews and roundtables conducted by children with a focus on peace-building and other social issues. We have also implemented the Afghan Youth Voices Festival to provide an opportunity for the country’s youth to express their ideas and dreams about their future through the media. Internews also supports photo camps and a cross border project for youth in Eurasia.