Innovative Ways to conduct MIL Training Sessions during the Pandemic in urban & rural Settings in Africa

In 2016, DW Akademie, in partnership with the Namibian College of the Arts (COTA), founded the Media and Information Literacy Learning Initiative (MiLLi*), with the aim of empowering young people to access, analyse, create, reflect, and act on media and information. During MiLLi* training courses, young people learn how to apply their new-found skills. The knowledge and skills they acquire over the course of the workshops is effective in changing preexisting attitudes towards media and information. The hope is that this process will eventually lead to changes in behavioural patterns.  

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Exploring new formats during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic struck the world in early 2020, with Namibia declaring a state of emergency on March 17 that same year. This brought the country to a standstill, and with it, all educational programs were halted. Living under restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of the virus, the country was on lockdown for six months.  

As in-person workshops were no longer possible, the DW Akademie Southern Africa Team had to find new ways to engage participants. In partnership with MiLLi* lecturers and facilitators, they developed an online training course using the video-conferencing platform, Zoom, and the learning platform, Google Classroom. Unfortunately, technical issues, such as limited access to devices and internet connection, as well as low bandwidth capabilities, meant that the course didn’t go as planned. Feedback also made it clear that the format and content were not considered engaging by the participants. The overall picture was one of general resistance towards the online workshop format. 

“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”– Thomas A. Edison

Despite this setback, the team remained motivated to engage young people affected by the pandemic. Learning from our previous mistakes, we set up a new plan to create a MIL training course conducted via the messenger platform, WhatsApp. This platform was selected due to its popularity in Namibia. It accounted for 98% of all instant messages sent on MTC's network last year, as reported in The Namibian. A group of MiLLi* facilitators were selected and equipped to co-create the training material. Each piloted a four-hour WhatsApp MIL training course, with each course having eight participants.

Conducting a MIL training course on a messenger platform was a new approach for DW Akademie. For this reason, entirely new training material needed to be created. 

The WhatsApp courses were designed to be participatory and short, with a focus on topics such as hate speech, content verification, digital safety, and digital security. We felt that this curriculum would provide young people in the region with a better understanding of the opportunities and risks of social media. A trainer matrix was developed to include guided input, group work, and fun elements that could enhance group dynamics. The training material consisted of digital flyers created on Jamboard or Google Slides, as well as audio recordings. Trainers shared the learning material with the participants on WhatsApp, which enabled them to access the flyers and audio recordings on their phone at any time. 

Looking ahead

The WhatsApp training course enabled the students to learn and practice MIL skills with a particular emphasis on analysing and reflecting on what is shared on social media. Young people from all 14 regions in Namibia participated online. Having completed 11 WhatsApp training pilots in Namibia and Lesotho, the team now plans to standardize the training procedure and look at monetization options. This would allow MiLLi* to generate the revenue necessary to ensure its sustainability.  

“I've learned that social media is not just about what you post, but about looking at the impact on society of what you've posted. We need to ask ourselves, ‘How will others receive it?’ Thank you for this course– it was really a good initiative. I just hope there will be more similar courses in the future. To all the participants, it was a pleasure to be part of the group.”- Natalia Iipumbu (student on the WhatsApp training course)

The WhatsApp training pilot was able to reach young people with access to mobile phones and internet data. However, due to the limited scope of interaction on WhatsApp, the trainers were forced to limit the depth of the training. 

MIL training courses on messenger apps can be a great tool for introducing MIL issues and competencies to a wider and more youthful audience. It fails, however, to reach older people and citizens who do not have access to a smartphone. Radio remains the medium that can be accessed by the highest percentage of the Namibian population (98%). WhatsApp, therefore, cannot be used in isolation. MIL training activities will require a combination of tools, formats, and channels if we want to reach the wider population of Namibia.

Finding a response to the infodemic in Côte d’Ivoire

In response to the global pandemic, DW Akademie developed the Global Crisis Initiative, a multifaceted intra-regional project. Côte d’Ivoire was chosen as the pilot country for the MIL project EMIdémie | MILdemic. As the title indicates, the project will take place in both French and English-speaking countries. Following its successful pilot in Côte d’Ivoire, the project will continue in Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Namibia.

As in Namibia, the population of Côte d’Ivoire is relatively young. Social media channels are often used by young people as their main source of information. Consequently, it is not uncommon for disinformation to spread across various platforms. The Ivorian media landscape can be characterized as a highly politically polarized environment. Consequently, being media literate is a key skill for young people in the county. 

What’s behind the project, EMIdémie | MILdemic? 

The project aims to adapt to the realities of the current worldwide health situation. Trainers cannot travel between different countries and the worldwide “infodemic” is growing. In response, the Côte d’Ivoire team, together with the MIL trainer, Sylvia Bräsel, have developed a digital manual which is easily accessible via smartphone. The team trains teachers and community leaders to become “MIL multipliers”, who then pass on MIL knowledge and skills to their communities, using the digital manual. The material contains three modules in the form of explanatory picture albums. The first album is titled, #MyStory, the second, #OurStory, and the last, #OurPower. Additionally, there are short videos that welcome and introduce the participants to each module, as well as more in-depth, detailed explanations. This is coupled with expert videos on the specifics of the media landscape in the different countries.

Multipliers sensitize their communities on the topic of disinformation

The multipliers from four different regions in Côte d’Ivoire participated in an online training course in which they received an introduction to the digital material, including a short explanation on how to conduct training courses. 

Project managers and trainers were delighted to be able to meet each other in digital format to support multipliers in sensitizing their communities to the topic of disinformation. As a next step, these multipliers will now conduct in-person MIL training courses in their communities. Some of the new multipliers were completely new to teaching, but the team has already received great feedback. The multipliers’ MIL knowledge was further strengthened through sharing and discussion with their course participants, most of whom were interested in learning more about MIL.