The educational problems in developing countries are immense. Not least is the shortage of teachers. This shortage is felt—in Africa certainly—not only in the schools but also in the adult education field. Can the developing countries afford to wait wishfully, in the belief that out of the womb of time a natural solution will one day emerge in the shape of enough teachers to satisfy the enormous demand?

From the very outset, the Lusaka conference on mass media was convinced that the answer to this question is an emphatic no; that the problem of adult education must be solved, not shelved—and that a serious beginning must be made now. The task of the conference was to see how the resources of the mass media could be harnessed in an all-out effort to wipe out ignorance and illiteracy. The conference was short and fruitful, its recommendations practical and to the point.