On 22nd March, JOICFP met with technical advisors of the UNFPA Country Technical Services Team for Southern Africa in Harare (UNFPA CST Harare), Zimbabwe, having been invited as a result of discussions that took place at a technical meeting held in Tokyo in December 2005 on BCC.

Advisers from UNFPA CST Harare listen to
JOICFP's presentation

A proposal had been submitted from UNFPA CST Harare on possible collaboration to take advantage of JOICFP expertise in the areas of BCC, media production, and knowledge sharing utilizing ICT technologies, and the visit was made to discuss concrete steps. UNFPA CST Harare indicated that UNFPA country programs in Southern Africa have expressed their need for 'action oriented', hands-on technical assistance to strengthen implementation of BCC interventions.

Atsushi Yoshino, Director, Media Communications,
JOICFP, observes the documentation system
of CST Harare

In order to facilitate technical transfer and sustainability, ideas were raised such as for JOICFP to support the development of a digital production and multimedia center in UNFPA CST Harare and provide training, both at CST Harare and in the field. This will contribute to building the capacity of UNFPA country programs in media production, documentation and information asset sharing. Both parties agreed to continue discussion to expand the possibilities of collaboration between the two agencies.