The Yaounde Advanced School of Mass Communication (ASMAC) is bracing up to introduce another new field of study in the institution on conflict resolution, hopefully at the Masters level, and could possibly twin with the University of Western Australia to enhance the training. Professors Jill Howieson of the University of Western Australia and Nadia Alexandra of the University of Hong-Kong last Friday July 5, 2013 gave a lecture on "Mediation as an alternative tool for conflict resolution in extractive industries" to set the pace for the new discipline.
Through the conference titled, "Mediation, What, when and why," the students of ASMAC and some staff were taken round the discipline, how it operates and its importance especially in a country like Cameroon en route to emergence with strong dependence on extractive industries to trigger growth. "Mediation consists in assisted negotiation, conflict coaching, case appraisal, natural evaluation, expert appraisal and arbitration," Prof. Nadia said. A lecture and idea which students of ASMAC like Ariane Cecile Mbock of Journalism level 2 lauded as innovative and necessary to diversify training in the institution.
Prior to the power-point presentation, the Director of ASMAC, Prof. Charles Boyomo Assala took time off to present the mutation the institution has gone through from creation in 1970 by seven African countries as a school of journalism to a school of communication in 1981 and then a school of mass communication in 1991 when several other fields of studies were added to the hitherto sole journalism training. "The school today counts seven fields with about a thousand students, about 50 full-time lecturers and about 50 part-timers. Graduates can move from bachelor degrees to PhDs," he said.
According to Professor Fabien Nkot, Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister and Head of Government who came along with the visiting university dons, communication on conflict resolution in extractive industries would be a welcome relief for Cameroon. "When you talk of mediation, you are talking of communication. When you have a country involved in giant projects, you need to train people who can address the issues appropriately and the Director of ASMAC is simply being foresighted," he said.
