About Us
IPO-EasternAfrica.Net is a news website focusing on community mobilsation and development by entrepreneurs, social transformers, media educators, and event organisers in the eastern African region.
The site is owned, updated and maintained by IPO-Eastern Africa Network for Independent Creative Content Producers–for TV and Audiovisual Media–in eastern Africa that was created with the support of UNESCO in the framework of the 4th annual Lola Kenya Screen movie platform for children and youth in eastern Africa in 2009. Its membership is drawn from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, eastern Congo-Kinshasa, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan and Egypt.
IPO-Eastern Africa Network brings together independent audiovisual media content producers, creative & cultural entrepreneurs, social transformers, media literacy educators, and festival organisers in eastern Africa (aka Great Lakes or Horn of Africa).
IPO-Eastern Africa promotes audiovisual media production as a tool for cultural expression, inter-cultural dialogue and socio-economic development.
IPO-Eastern Africa focuses on ‘developmental’ issues such as gender, gender-mainstreaming, agriculture, conservation and climate change without losing losing its target–children, youth and women–being a Lola Kenya Screen initiative that started in 2009.
Our mission: We are a regional network for independent development practitioners using multi (especially audiovisual) media to bring about socio-economic development across 13 eastern African countries: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, eastern Congo-Kinshasa, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and Egypt. Our membership is drawn from among movie content producers, media literacy educators, festival organisers, creative & cultural entrepreneurs and various other social transformers in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa.
Focusing on the vulnerable segments of society—children, youth and women—we use multi-media, especially movies, as a tool for cultural expression, inter-cultural dialogue and socio-economic development, highlighting issues such as gender, gender-mainstreaming, agriculture, conservation and climate change.
What we believe in: That there can be unity of purpose in diversity cannot be stressed enough. With coordinated focus, the media—especially motion pictures—can be harnessed to hasten the socio-economic development of the region under focus; but only if the region subscribes to a common media approach, vision and strategy. We are here to act as a catalyst towards this end.
Our solutions: We seek to bring together independent media content makers in 13 eastern African countries by streamlining activities aimed at developing the region’s movie sector; formulating strategies for key stakeholders, public sector organisations and Public-Private sector Partnerships (PPP) to complement and support their efforts in promoting the movie sector; providing services in the area of marketing, networking and information concerning potential opportunities; strengthening existing film festivals and forums as areas of movie promotion and distribution; increasing skills training, technological innovation, information technology, and infrastructure; and by helping improve coordination and efficient management of linkages and networks.
Our promise: we are committed to formulating, articulating, lobbying and pressing for issues that concern culturally-relevant and appropriate content-generation for socio-economic development in eastern Africa. We are charged with the mandate of encouraging co-production, creation of a well-equipped and comprehensive productions database in the region as well as setting up of the regional fund for independent television, video and film producers by governments with the support of development partners.