Consultation & adoption
This page records the development of the principles, their adoption, and milestones in their implementation.
The OECD Development Co-operation Principles for Relevant and Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment are a product of the Development Assistance Committee’s Network on Governance.
Why were the principles developed?
The 2014 OECD Principles on media assistance were no longer fit for purpose given:
Unprecedented challenges and existential threats to free and independent media and information integrity
Increasing disinformation, polarization, and autocratization undermining free media and public trust.
Growing threats to journalist safety and media capture escalating challenges to information integrity.
No new dynamic in ODA to media and free flow of information.
How were the principles developed?
The Principles are the successful culmination of more than two years of consultations and advocacy led by GFMD and the Centre for International Media Assistance (CIMA) in collaboration with:
Bilateral donor agencies (including Sweden, Switzerland, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States)
Intergovernmental institutions including the Media Freedom Coalition, through its Media Development Working Group and UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC)
Implementing organisations
Civil society representatives
and media development experts.
On 22 March 2024, the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) adopted the Development Cooperation Principles on Relevant and Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment.
This exciting milestone follows two years of consultations among more than 200 representatives from bilateral donor agencies, implementing organisations, civil society representatives, and media development experts.
2025
July 2025 - OECD DAC GovNet meeting.
2024
November 2024 - OECD DAC GovNet members discuss implementation, based on voluntary member reporting during the annual meeting.
21 – 22 November 2024: UNESCO Decisions taken at the 34th session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication
Looking ahead, the Council underscored the urgent need for increased support to locally driven media development. It welcomed the new voluntary “Development Cooperation Principles on Relevant and Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment” and encouraged Member States to review and implement their own policies.
The Council, having examined Document CI-24/COUNCIL.34/4
Recalling the Windhoek +30 Declaration and its call to action in countering “the severe economic crisis which is posing an existential threat to independent news media worldwide,”
Recalling also this Council’s welcoming of the possibility of a set of non-binding principles for effective support to journalism and media (CI-22/COUNCIL.33/Dec),
Recognizing the urgent need for increased support to the media development sector and locally-led interventions in support of free, independent, and pluralistic media, especially in light of rapid developments in the media sector related to digital transformation and innovation such as AI, and
Underlining the IPDC’s dual role as a grant-maker and as a platform for inclusive international discussion, standard-setting, and mobilization in support of information as a public good,
1 - Notes with appreciation and recognizes the merits of the new voluntary “Development Cooperation Principles on Relevant and Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment”;
2 - Welcomes UNESCO’s Secretariat’s contributions, including those of the IPDC Secretariat, to the process of developing these Principles and related multi-stakeholder consultations in sharing good practices as both a grant-maker and implementer;
3- Encourages Member States to consider these voluntary Principles in reviewing and implementing their own policies and contribute extrabudgetary support to UNESCO to enable its engagement and coordinating role in the implementation of the Principles;
4 - Requests the Secretariat to:
a) Continue to advocate for greater support to the media development sector, emphasizing a locally-led and holistic approach to that support;
b) Collaborate with multilateral partners and experts to highlight and extend its own good practices as a grant-maker and further engage with current and potential donors;
c) Provide further updates at the 35th Council session in 2026.
"Acknowledging the recently updated OECD Development Co-operation Principles for Relevant and Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment, Drawing specific focus on Section 3 of the ‘Principles’, outlining the need for a ‘whole of system approach’ for support to the media and information environment, Welcoming the inclusion of media representative bodies in this ‘whole of system approach"https://wan-ifra.org/news/greater-support-to-professional-representative-bodies-for-media/
May 2024 - GFMD regional meetings for the wider European region and Latin America and Caribbean focused on how to disseminate and implement the principles.
GFMD Latin America & Caribbean Summit (May 2024): This summit brought together key regional stakeholders to discuss tailored strategies for applying the Principles within the unique media landscapes of Latin America and the Caribbean.
GFMD Regional Meeting for the Wider European Region (May 2024): Participants from across Europe convened to explore regional challenges and opportunities for supporting media and information integrity, aligning their efforts with the newly adopted Principles.
March 26, 2024 - Media Freedom Coalition Statement on the OECD Development Assistance Committee’s Media and Information Principles
The members of the Media Freedom Coalition are in an excellent position to strongly support the implementation of these principles. Collective implementation of the principles offers the prospect that independent media will be safeguarded, and global information integrity preserved.
March 2024 - Media development community welcomes the adoption of principles
"A big thing just happened. The West’s major donor countries adopted principles for more and better support to journalism in developing countries.
In 2026, they will review any progress made.
After two years, civil society action by the Global Forum for Media Development built enough momentum to get 32 donor country reps to agree the principles. Kudos! It happened on 22 March at the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Fifty member countries of the Media Freedom Coalition have also since signed up.
The OECD principles follow research showing that total annual donor funding allocated to media and the information environment is only 0.5% of the total Official Development Assistance.
Germany and the UK claim higher fractions, but this is because they brazenly include as “development spending” allocations to the Deutsche Welle and the BBC World Service.
What actually goes towards media in developing countries is only 8% of the 0.5%. In a massive understatement, the OECD recognises that this is “insufficient to address the challenges...”.
Exactly. Where’s the logic of putting aid into health or schooling, yet ignoring support for journalism to monitor accountability for what happens on the ground?
The current proportions in funding need radical revision – especially when media is in crisis, and when developing countries have not just information deficits, but are facing floods of disinformation." - LinkedIn post by Guy Berger, Former Director for Freedom of Expression and Media Development at UNESCO
March 22 2024. - The Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) adopted the final principles.
March 2024 - Final principles presented to and approved by the OECD DAC GovNet.
Feb. 2024 - Principles draft finalised by OECD DAC GovNet drafting committee.
Dec. 2023 - Feb. 2024 - The OECD DAC Network on Governance organised public consultations on the principles, including opportunities to provide written feedback.
Jan. 2024 - As part of this process CIMA and GFMD hosted a virtual panel discussion on 16 January 2024.
2023
Dec. 2023 - OECD DAC GovNet launched a consultation process for all stakeholders to comment and make suggestions on the draft principles.
Sept. 2. 2023 - GFMD launches report on funding in the media development sector: “Transforming Media Development – Recommendations for Effective Funding and Collaboration“. This study is based on a body of desk research as well as a series of online interviews with GFMD members from Eastern Europe, Asia and South America. It documents the challenges that GFMD’s members face daily in their attempts to raise funds and meet donor expectations on reporting and accountability.
28 June 2023 - OECD DAC GovNet members at the annual plenary meeting welcomed and made constructive comments on a first draft of the Principles on Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment document. France offered to join Sweden, Switzerland, UK, and US as the drafting group for the next steps of the process.
16 June 2023 - The 67th meeting of the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Council of Unesco's International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) welcomes the OECD DAC GovNet process to Principles on Effective Support to Media and the Information Environment document.
7 June 2023 - A group of OECD donors, including Sweden, Switzerland, UK, and US take over the process of drafting the principles from GFMD and CIMA in order to present them to the OECD DAC GovNet plenary meeting on 28 June.
1 May 2023 - GFMD and CIMA convene a meeting of directors and CEOs of GFMD members attending UNESCO's World Press Freedom Day in New York to update them on the process and for further consultations.
28 April 2023 - GFMD co-organises with Philea (Philanthropy Europe Association) a briefing of European foundations on how best to support independent media and journalism in Ukraine.
30 March 2023 - GFMD & CIMA host a working meeting on how to operationalise the principles for effective media assistance on the sidelines of the Summit for Democracy in The Hague, The Netherlands.
27 March 2023 - As part of the process to gather commitments to the Summit for Democracy via the Media Freedom Cohort: The Media Freedom Coalition’s Media Development Working Group, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the United Kingdom, GFMD, and CIMA committed to advancing their engagement with the GovNet to update the existing media assistance principles,in line with a GovNet commitment in its programme of work 2023-2024.
To complement this commitment GFMD and CIMA issued a statement calling for engagement by the Summit for Democracy and the Media Freedom Coalition.
Feb. 3, 2023 - in partnership with UNESCO IPDC, the Namibia Media Trust, and the Editors' Forum of Namibia, GFMD organised a roundtable on media viability in Namibia. The roundtable was part of a series of national consultations that brought together key local and international stakeholders, including media support organisations, donors, big tech representatives, policymakers, and media professionals around the question of building resilience in the Namibian media sector.
Jan. 24, 2023 - in partnership with UNESCO IPDC, the Al Khatt Foundation, and the EU's Programme d'appui aux médias tunisiens, GFMD organised a roundtable on media viability in Tunisia. The roundtable was part of a series of national consultations that brought together key local and international stakeholders, including media support organisations, donors, big tech representatives, policymakers, and media professionals around the question of building resilience in the Tunisian media sector.
Jan. 18, 2023 - in partnership with UNESCO IPDC, the Samir Kassir Foundation, and the Maharat Foundation, GFMD organised a roundtable on media viability in Lebanon. The roundtable was part of that brought together key local and international stakeholders, including media support organisations, donors, big tech representatives, policymakers, and media professionals around the question of building resilience in the Lebanese media sector.
2022
Nov. 25, 2022 - UNESCO's IPDC council welcomes the principles process.
Nov. 23, 2022 - GFMD co-organsied a seminar with the EU-funded Sahafa Med project on the challenges and perspectives for media support programs in the Southern Neighbourhood region. The meeting brought together 40+ donors, NGOs supporting media and journalists and implementing partners working with media outlets and journalists in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
21-22 Nov. 2022 -The process to develop principles for effective media development is adopted into the OECD DAC GovNet programme of work 2023-24.
Sept. 13, 2022 - The process to develop principles for effective media development is adopted into the OECD DAC GovNet programme of work 2023-24.
Aug. 4, 2022 - In partnership with Article 19 Tunisia & MENA, the CIMA organized a roundtable discussion in Arabic with media support organizations, media outlets, and civil society based in Tunisia. The 25 participants discussed how to make principles for effective media assistance more specific, actionable in Tunisia and the MENA region.
June 28, 2022 - GFMD Chair Zoe Titus presents the principles process at a joint GovNet-UNESCO event on ‘The economic Impact of Covid-19 on media and potential ODA responses’.
June 2022 - GFMD held a series of meetings for members (in English, French and Spanish) with members to discuss the structural, environmental, and administrative challenges they face when applying, implementing, and reporting on journalism support and media development projects and programmes.
June 15-16, 2022 - The principles process is accepted onto the official agenda of the annual meeting of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication(IDPC) in November 2022.
May 2-3, 2022 - With UNESCO and the Government of Uruguay, CIMA and GFMD hosted a roundtable discussion with participants at the UNESCO’s World Press Freedom Day Conference in Montevideo, Uruguay. CIMA and GFMD also hosted a panel discussion at UNESCO’s World Press Freedom Day Conference in Uruguay - “Developing Principles for Effective Media Assistance” - featuring Abraji, Sembra Media, and UNESCO.
April 14, 2022 - In partnership with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN), GFMD organised a roundtable discussion in Belgrade, Serbia. The 25 participants were asked to contribute ideas for how to make the general principles for effective media development more specific and actionable and to interpret how the principles might be actioned in specific contexts.
April 13, 2022 - GFMD's Executive Director presented the work on the principles to date to the OECD DAC's GovNet session on Overseas Development Aid (ODA), public interest media and information ecosystems. The objective of the session is to firm up interest among OECD member states and galvanise support for this area of ODA for GovNet's programme of work 2023-24.
Feb. 9, 2022 - CIMA and GFMD organised a session on renewing the principles for effective media support at the Global Conference for Media Freedom in Tallinn, Estonia. The session was co-convened by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), United Kingdom Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (UK FCDO), and UNESCO. As well as hearing from all co-conveners, the session also heard from the Council of Europe, as well as regional and international media development organisations.
Feb. 1, 2022 - After a review of the literature to identify the general principles and guidelines for effective support and engagement, GFMA launched a survey to gather perspectives from across the field. The survey was used to query donors, practitioners and other stakeholders on which of the general principles have seen the greatest progress, which the least, which should be prioritised and gaps.
Jan, 27, 2022 - CIMA and GFMD convened an invitation-only virtual roundtable to discuss principles for effective media assistance with 18 representatives of national and regional media development organisations, members of GFMD’s policy and learning committee, and GFMD IMPACT regional coordinators.
2021
Dec. 7, 2021 - CIMA and GFMD hosted a webinar on principles for effective media development, which was one of over 40 events held on 7 December as part of the Global Democracy Coalition Forum, a virtual 24-hour event convened to provide recommendations to the Summit for Democracy. The webinar, which heard from four civil society and media development stakeholders, as well as representatives from UK FCDO and UNESCO, distilled three recommendations to the Summit for Democracy.
Nov. 23, 2021 - A first draft of the concept note, developed by CIMA and the GFMD IMPACT help desk, was discussed at the Media Freedom Coalition’s Working Group on Media Development. After the meeting the roadmap and rationale were revised.
July 2021 - Recommendations from the submission were used as a basis for an options note presented by the UK FCDO to a meeting of the MFC Working Group on Media Development. The option to review and update the principles for effective media development was among the options that were received positively.
May 2021 - Responding to a request from the Media Freedom Coalition, the GFMD IMPACT help desk - in partnership with CIMA, produced a two-page briefing on ways MFC could work with members to improve media assistance, ODA data, and information sharing.
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