Restrictions on press freedoms shouldn't preclude the development of other media in Sudan, a forum in Khartoum on journalism's digital revolution heard on Saturday.

TEDx Khartoum founder Anwar Dafa-Alla speaks at a media forum in the capital on the weekend (MICT) The two-day conference was organised by German NGO Media in Cooperation and Transition (MICT) with a focus on media sustainability from a Sudanese point of view. It also examined different ways that Sudanese media could capitalise on the emergence of new technologies and social networks

The Media and Makers: Khartoum 2013 forum was attended by about 100 leading Sudanese journalists, bloggers, editors and publishers. Speaking during a discussion session, Sudanese publishers maintained that print media in Sudan is bucking the trend of worldwide decline, saying that as a developingcountry with limited access to new technologies, the medium still faced a long-term future.

However, founder of Khartoum-based lifestyle magazine In the City Mostafa Khoghali rejected this, saying Sudan's youthful population was embracing social media and new technologies at increasingly high rates.

He also disputed claims from publishers that economic disparities in Sudan restricted access to technology, telling participants that even tea ladies and rickshaw drivers are accessing Facebook and mobile internet.

He said despite Sudan's restrictive press environment, there were still niche opportunities in the market for media diversification in fields such as tourism, entertainment and lifestyle. Recent statistics show that close to one-fifth of Sudan's population has access to the internet, putting it at number 11 of Africa's top internet users.

The figures showed that Facebook, Google and YouTube are