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Curaçao is the first country in the Caribbean to utilize UNESCO’s Media Development Indicators (MDIs) to assess its media landscape. The purpose of the study is to analyze the situation of the media in Curaçao, and the progress that has been achieved as the country moves towards more intercultural dialogue using the media. The MDI reports allow for the pursuit of peacebuilding and dialogue through freedom of expression and a free, independent, and pluralistic media landscape. The main part of this study was conducted in 2013 and 2014 and provides a broad view of the country’s media landscape. Its findings can positively contribute to future discussions on legal reform and media self-regulation. It also provides the base for ongoing detailed study by local stakeholders in the MDI categories such as through more in-depth research on media self-regulation; plurality and diversity of media; media as a platform for democratic discourse; professional capacity building; and infrastructural capacity. The UNESCO MDI assessment of Curaçao not only maps the gaps in the media landscape but also makes recommendations as to the way forward. 

The assessment is divided into five principal media development categories and considers the roles of media workers, media managers and media owners as well as other relevant stakeholders, including media users, Government, regulators, advertisers, politicians, educational institutions, and civil society organisations. The assessment aims to provide all the involved stakeholders with a set of evidence-based recommendations that will help address identified shortcomings and strengthen the development of free, independent, and pluralistic media in Curaçao.

Curaçao’s media landscape is characterised by a substantial number of media outlets. There are at least 28 licensed radio stations, eight newspapers and at least three television stations for the island's population of just over 150,000 inhabitants. Together, these outlets facilitate a culture of lively debate. However, the media are unable to adequately fulfil their role as a watchdog over the authorities and the other powerful stakeholders in society. Because of a number of significant weaknesses, identified in all categories and across all the involved stakeholders, Curaçao’s media do not take full advantage of their democratic potential.