Freedom of the press was low on the agenda at a three-day African media conference this week in Ethiopia, where two journalists were detained last week for reporting on local corruption, according to VoiceOfAmerica.

Instead of press freedom, organizers of the African Media Leaders Forum said they focused on business development, technology innovation, leadership and ethics. Discussions on the business side of media will automatically result in debates on press freedom, organizers said, according to the report.

Many journalists in Africa face restrictions and repression.

More than 75 media publications have been closed in Ethiopia in the past 20 years and seven journalists are in prison on charges of terrorism.

Twenty-eight journalists died in Africa in 2012, with Somalia being the deadliest country in which to cover news. Twelve African countries have passed freedom of information bills including Ethiopia and Uganda. Both are regularly accused of cracking down on media practitioners.

The Doha Center for Media Freedom reported that more than 150 journalists from Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan and South Sudan have been forced into exile since 2008.

Alison Bethel of the International Press Institute is concerned that the African Media Leaders Forum did not prioritize press freedom.

“There needs to be more time dedicated to the issue,” she said, “because besides from business models and licensing and other things that are crucial to the media here, press freedom also is a very, very important part of doing business.”

There was a one-hour side event organized at the forum on the practices and challenges of press freedom in Africa. Journalists from different countries shared their experiences of being harassed, detained and threatened for trying to do their job.

The Committee to Protect Journalists urged the media leaders to address repression in Ethiopia, where the conference was held.