Johannesburg, 30 July 2014 – South Africa’s Office of the National African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) and the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) hosted a regional workshop on Wednesday 30 July 2014 in Johannesburg.

The Focal Point of South Africa, Minister of Public Service and Administration, Honorable Collins Chabane, opened the workshop under the theme ‘Popularising the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) through the media’. The workshop was attended by representatives of the APRM Continental Secretariat, the National Governing Council of South Africa, government officials, media and members of civil society who discussed ways and means of increasing media coverage of the APRM in Southern Africa.

Speaking at the workshop the Minister said the media should not treat reporting about the APRM as an event but a continuous dynamic mechanism that seeks to change the lives of the people of the African Continent. He also advised that South Africa is gearing up to kick off its second review under the APRM.

During the workshop, Representatives of the APRM Secretariat shared with the participants an overview of the APRM and communication strategies to raise awareness about APRM and forge partnerships with the CSO and the media. The representatives of the Civil Society Organizations in Tanzania and Zambia also shared experiences from their respective countries. Workshop participants also discussed various ways of engaging the wider civil society and the media in the APRM process.

While closing the workshop, the head of SAIIA’s APRM programme, Mr. Steven Gruzd, thanked the APRM representatives, government representatives, the CSO and media across Southern Africa for participating in the workshop, and pledged further collaboration with the APRM in promoting its activities.