Global South Media, Think Tanks Unite for Stronger Voice

Photo : Collected

Around 500 journalists, scholars, government officials and entrepreneurs from 110 countries and international organizations gathered Friday in Yunnan Province, southwest China, for the Global South Media and Think Tank Forum 2025.

The forum aims to translate the Global South’s growing economic influence — representing 40 percent of global GDP and 80 percent of world growth — into a stronger voice in international discourse and communication.

Over five days, participants will explore practical solutions under the theme, “Empowering Global South, Navigating Global Changes.” Plenary sessions and focused workshops will cover peace-building narratives, AI-driven newsrooms, heritage preservation and other topics.

Two key outputs are expected: the Yunnan Consensus, a pledge to expand cooperative news and analysis production, and a research report on China’s contributions to global intellectual initiatives. The forum also launches the Global South Joint Communication Partnership Network, connecting more than 1,000 media outlets, think tanks and institutions across 95 countries.

Experts stressed the need for the Global South to break the existing international discourse monopoly and assert its own narrative. Professor Cheng Manli of Peking University noted the importance of establishing subject status and discourse advantage.

Aires Ali, former Prime Minister of Mozambique, said: “The fate of the Global South should not be determined by others but shaped by us. We need strategic unity, long-term vision and political courage.”

Khalid Mubarak Al-Shafi, editor-in-chief of Qatar’s Peninsula Newspaper, highlighted the need for unity, mutual understanding and respect to promote peace while rejecting violence and discrimination.

Participants emphasised building strong partnerships between media and think tanks, bridging knowledge and narratives to inform public dialogue. Narine Nazaryan, director of Armenia’s Armenpress, urged platforms that integrate academic insight with journalistic reach for meaningful civilizational dialogue.

Ambreen Jan, Pakistan’s federal secretary and vice minister of information and broadcasting, added: “The bridges we build today, with friends in China and across the Global South, can carry practical solutions to shared challenges.”