The ‘Internet4Good’ (I4G), a project being funded by the Bosch Alumni Network (BAC), a German organisation, is to hold a Pan-African media dialogue on cybercrime and internet fraud in Africa.

The free webinar-dialogue targets professionals and the youth in Africa and scheduled for November 12, this year.

It would expose Journalists, media practitioners and internet users to ethical and available internet opportunities as well as address the ‘African scammer’ stereotype in the digital space.

“This is particularly important in the wake of the digital economy, which is being accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent events in countries like the ‘EndSARS’ movement in Nigeria show there are still misconceptions about how the digital economy works”, says Oyindamola Adegboye, the team leader of the I4G in a press statement.

A copy of the statement made available to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said the dialogue opened to all internet users across Africa would bring a panel of media professionals to discuss the role the media could play in fostering a more positive narrative for and about young Africans using the internet.

“The Internet4Good project seeks to engage media practitioners on how they report and set agenda on internet use among young Africans, especially in light of increasing media attention on “African internet scammers,” the statement indicated.

Moreover, there is an underreporting of not just the social, economic and cultural drivers of internet scam in Africa, but even the numerous positive ways young Africans can use and are using the internet.

The statement said the dialogue would further sensitise participants on the implications of the singular negative framing of internet use in Africa and how the media could shape a positive, pro-internet message on the African continent.

David Hundeyin, a Journalist and writer of the Africa Report, CNN Africa, would moderate the dialogue, while panellists would include Mayowa Tijani, Fact-Checking Journalist, AFP, Nuong Faalong, Journalist, Bloomberg Media Fellow, Dr Wunpini Mohammed, Associate Professor, University of Georgia, and Aisha Dabo, Journalist and Internet Activist.