The development of the Faculty of Media, at the University of Aden, certainly isn’t a mere task, but an investment in the future of the country. 

Reem Al-Fadhli (South24) 

The Faculty of Media, at the University of Aden, is facing many challenges that hinder its development and contribution to boosting the media sector in South Yemen. Amidst the deteriorating infrastructure and lack of capabilities, students and academics have to endure an improper educational environment that obstructs achievement of their goals.

Despite being autonomous, its faculty still operates from a small building affiliated with the Faculty of Arts in Khormaksar district in Aden. This reflects the challenges it continues to face in achieving a proper and independent educational environment. These challenges largely impact its ability to deliver high-quality education and prepare qualified media cadres.

In 1998, the Faculty of Media began its academic journey as part of the Faculty of Arts. In 2019, it was separated following a decision by the University of Aden. Despite the lack of facilities, the Faculty of Media succeeded in graduating 1,720 students, including 23 batches, to work in different media fields. This wasn’t achieved easily as the faculty is facing major challenges in providing the proper educational conditions and academic manpower.

A lecture being addressed to students of the Faculty of Media, University of Aden, September 29, 2024 (South24 Center)

Poor Infrastructure

During a field visit conducted by a delegation from ’South24 Center‘ to the Faculty of Media, we noted that the building lacks several necessary requirements amid the deteriorating state of some of the rooms allocated to it. Moreover, the faculty has to bear with acute shortage of infrastructure in a way that hinders its progress and development.

Dean of the Faculty of Media, Dr. Wahib Mahdi, told ’South24 Center‘: “The faculty faces big funding challenges due to the diminishing support by the Ministry of Finance to the University of Aden. The latter receives only 25-35% from its approved budget. This decline explains the difficult conditions being faced by the faculty.”

According to him, the faculty doesn’t only suffer from lack of funding but also of the basic elements of academic education, like lecture halls and administrative offices for the academic staff. This is in addition to the deteriorating state of some rooms allocated to the faculty. Thus, the educational process has taken a fall, and the faculty’s board of directors has been unable to carry out the necessary improvements to provide a proper education environment. 

Wahib Mahdi said that the students of the Faculty of Media also face a lack of basic educational resources such as equipment and tools required for practical education. He called for immediate measures to support the faculty and provide an educational environment tailored to the students’ needs.

 
A lecture hall in the Faculty of Media, University of Aden, September 29, 2024 (South24 Center)

Rana Al-Hatibi, Director of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the Faculty of Media, confirmed the big challenges that hinder its development. She expressed her dissatisfaction with the current situation, pointing to the urgent need for comprehensive reforms, particularly in infrastructure.

She told ’South24 Center‘: “The current building doesn’t keep pace with modern developments. The faculty suffers from the lack of large lecture halls that can absorb the increasing numbers of students. Furthermore, the shortage of halls equipped with electricity causes repeated problems, including having to cope to high temperatures that negatively affect the concentration of students.”

Despite the repeated visits by officials of Aden University, there have been so far no clear plans to improve the department’s conditions, according to her. She is concerned about the difficult circumstances being faced by students and lecturers alike. This directly affects the quality of education as many times the academic activities are cancelled due to the lack of capabilities. She stressed that students lack proper opportunities for practical training which hinders the process of preparing them for the job market.

Internal Voices

The lack of educational resources and basic equipment negatively impacts the level of academic learning and hampers improving the students’ practical skills. This is in addition to lowering the quality of practical education necessary for preparing students for the job market or helping them access competitive jobs in the future.

A radio studio project at the Faculty of Media, University of Aden, September 29, 2024 (South24 Center)

Dr. Nawal Makish, Head of Journalism and Publication Department, said the Faculty of Media is seeking to make amendments to some of its educational courses, especially in the Journalism Department, with an aim to improve the educational quality and meet the needs of the job market. However, she pointed out that the faculty is beset with many challenges, the most prominent of which is the lack of a specialized paper or digital library that impacts the quality of the educational and research process.

Dr. Makish told ’South24 Center‘ that her department in particular faces the problem of low number of students who opt for it. This heightens the challenges faced by the department. She called on the prominent media institutions in the country to play a bigger role in supporting journalism students through providing professional training and qualification opportunities that will help them to enter the job market efficiently.

Eman Rami Ahmed, a public relations master's student in the Faculty of Media, highlighted the challenges she is facing while pursuing her higher education, including the lack of laboratories and technical tools.

She pointed out to ’South24 Center‘ that the shortage of well-equipped laboratories and modern digital tools hinders the students’ application of theoretical learning and negatively affects their ability and practical skills to face the job market. Eman believes that improving the technical standards in the faculty, including improving the basic facilities and libraries, will enhance the quality level of the faculty and also the efficiency of its graduates.

Nasser Al-Zaydi, a student in the Journalism Department in the Faculty of Media, said the department is witnessing a remarkable improvement. He told ‘South24 Center’: “There is a need to develop the Journalism Department by tackling the problems that hamper its progress, especially related to upgrading the old curricula and replacing it with modern ones that contribute to boosting the required skills and abilities.”

A lecture hall in the Faculty of Media, University of Aden, September 29, 2024 (South24 Center).

Student Ruma Mokhtar said that power outage is a prominent challenge she faces during her study in the Faculty of Media. She told ’South24 Center‘: ‘Our lectures extend for six continuous hours, most of which are conducted during power outages. This largely affects the educational process as students find themselves unable to concentrate or understand the educational content due to the lack of electricity.”

Ruma indicated that the shortage of lecture halls is a major obstacle that leads to cancellation of lectures which in turn negatively affects the students’ schedule. She believes that providing proper infrastructure, including electricity and adequate lecture halls, is necessary to guarantee an effective and sustainable educational experience.

The Development of Educational Process

The university radio is scheduled to be inaugurated at the headquarters of the Faculty of Media during October 2024, thanks to self-efforts. The students will receive practical training under the supervision of some prominent announcers. According to the Dean of the Faculty of Media, Dr. Wahib Mahdi, the future plans include the establishment of a broadcast and TV studio in addition to a public relations laboratory. He indicated that the local authority in Aden has provided some tools to support the project, adding that he is hopeful of getting more aid. 

According to Mahdi, “The current educational program focuses on enhancing theoretical knowledge during the first university years and starting the practical application in the third year. This approach aims to provide practical training opportunities to the students, whether in the job market or inside the faculty by using the latest means and tools.”

A toilet in the Faculty of Media, University of Aden, September 29, 2024 (South24 Center)

Rana Al-Hatibi stressed that students and staff aspire for improving the faculty’s conditions in keeping with the digital advancements. She stressed the need for launching a media campaign to highlight the problems of the faculty and to motivate the administration to take tangible moves in that direction urgently. Al-Hatibi believes that the solution lies in developing infrastructure and providing the equipment needed for guaranteeing a proper educational environment.

Student Salah Saleh, from the Radio and TV Department, underscored the importance of improving the present conditions. According to him, there is a need for undertaking restoration works in the current headquarters or building a new independent structure which will largely contribute to improving the education quality. In case of the inability to construct a new building, Saleh proposed renovating the current one as well as expanding its lecture halls and laboratories to meet the growing needs.

It is worth mentioning that the last few weeks have seen discussion on a draft decision in the University of Aden to convert the accommodation building of female students in Madinat Al Shaab into headquarters for the Faculty of Media. However, this has stirred much controversy about its legality, impact, and ramifications on the female students.

The development of the Faculty of Media, the University of Aden, certainly isn’t a mere task, but will serve as an investment in the future of the country. This is because the media is an influential force in shaping public opinion and building society. It is the cornerstone of renaissance. To develop the media sector in South Yemen and enhance its role, investments should be directed toward improving the faculty and providing the support needed to graduate qualified media cadres.