The Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) aims to link major international media development groups as well as regional and national media non-governmental organisations (NGOs) worldwide to leverage their ability to expand people’s access to information and foster local, independent media around the world. It seeks to do this through:

• Collaboration - creating a practitioner-led platform for the media development sector to advocate with donors, governments, opinion leaders and the wider public. This would include advocating for higher-level, strategic policy linkages between media support and existing human and economic development instruments and frameworks (i.e., Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs); Millennium Development Goals).
• Substantiation - promoting and disseminating research and analysis on the effects of media development assistance on governance, civic participation, poverty alleviation, emergent crises, and markets worldwide; making the case for media development as a primary pillar for advancing social, economic, and political development.
• Professionalisation - establishing agreed-upon standards and ethics for media development work that encourage cross-sector co-operation.
• Shared Learning - critiquing and evaluating the media development sector to identify and advance best practices, methods, and technology. Plans are to create a GFMD Secretariat to facilitate cooperative initiatives, organise joint lobbying for policy reforms, maintain databases of media laws and best practices, and design common systems for monitoring and evaluating media development work.

GFMD will provide an international forum for media assistance NGOs to share best practices in the areas of training journalists, supporting broadcast stations, newspapers, and magazines, working for open and accessible internet and telecommunications policies, and reforming media law. GFMD also aims to establish standards in areas such as monitoring and evaluation to guide media NGOs in their work, as well as improve the quality of technical assistance in the sector.

The GFMD website will also offer a web-based platform of resources for media professionals. Resources include manuals, information about training and media law, as well as lessons learned and the importance of media aid.

Media Development

GFMD's first activity was the organisation of the global conference of media aid organisations over the course of three days in Amman, Jordan in October 2005. Over 400 registered participants attended.