Displacement and Dialogue Asia

Large-scale displacement and migration are serious challenges in Asia. Media freedom and freedom of expression are also restricted in countries most affected by (forced) migration, namely Bangladesh, Pakistan, Aghanistan and Myanmar. 

In most host countries, migrants and displaced people have little access to information about their situation, and balanced reporting is scarce. They also have no direct access to the media or journalistic platforms to make their voices heard. As a result, they are not part of the public discourse on displacement and migration although they are at the center of both. Host communities learn little about their hopes and concerns, and a direct exchange is rare. This results in stereotypical narratives and prejudice as well as rumors and misinformation, which can lead to increased hostility towards refugees and migrants. 

Our activities

In Asia, DW Akademie supports displaced people and migrants in exercising their rights to information and freedom of expression. It also promotes a dialogue between host communities and the displaced. In addition, we provide capacity-building to journalists for conflict-sensitive reporting about refugees and migration that extends beyond traditional stereotypes.

Download our latest evaluation report here.

Bangladesh

Rohingya and local Bangladeshis produce a radio program and organize events that promote dialogue

In Bangladesh, we support partners working with Rohingya and local Bangladeshi community volunteers. They are mentored to produce a weekly radio magazine program and visual formats as well as live dialogue events that focus on everyday matters in the Rohingya camps and surrounding villages. The volunteers are affected by displacement themselves and are thus seen as being credible by communities otherwise difficult to reach. DW Akademie also works with local journalists and media outlets to promote constructive and gender sensitive reporting on displacement.  

Pakistan

Afghan refugees are trained as community reporters, producing content for digital platforms and radio

Traditional media in Pakistan rarely cover stories about the large Afghan refugee community despite some members having been there for decades. They are not part of the media landscape – either as reporters or as the focus of reports – so our partners train members of both the settled Afghan community and new refugees to become community reporters. We began the project in 2021 together with a partner and were the first to do this in Pakistan. Participants learn skills and are mentored in producing content for digital platforms or radio. Another partner brings Afghan community reporters together with professional Pakistani journalists who then in pairs produce stories for national media outlets. 

Afghanistan

Critical voices are no longer tolerated in Afghanistan and thousands of journalists have left the country

The Taliban took power in Afghanistan in August 2021 and since then, only exiled media can provide critical reporting. DW Akademie therefore supports selected exiled Afghan media with media viability consulting for management and staff, and with customized training and financial support. A journalistic focus is on highlighting the perspectives of Afghan women. 

Despite major differences between their countries, conference participants from throughout Asia saw that the challenges of displacement are similar

At the regional level, we train media professionals from across Asia in accurate, conflict sensitive and informative reporting about ,and with, refugees and migrants so that they can take part in the public discourse. We promote dialogue and knowledge-sharing between refugees and host communities as well as between displaced communities, and between exiled media from several countries. At regional conferences, we bring together media practitioners, experts and, wherever possible, representatives from refugee and migrant communities to share best practices and collaborate across borders. 

Funding: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)  

Program Director: Andrea Marshall    

Locations: Cox’s Bazar and Dhaka (Bangladesh), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and Islamabad (Pakistan), Afghanistan and Afghan diaspora, Chiang Mai (Thailand) and other locations in the region

Focus: Social participation, qualification, civic society lobby for freedom of expression, participation of disadvantaged groups, conflict and media/ conflict-sensitive reporting, journalistic professionalism and networks, media viability