Journalists with UNDP team in Kumasi
Over thirty (30) journalists from the Upper East, Upper West, Northern, Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions have been trained by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on how to report on climate change and green economy issues.
The training was aimed at improving the understanding of journalists on the principles of climate change and green economy. It also focused on improving the skills of journalists on coverage of climate change and green economy related issues.
Communications Analyst for UNDP, Ms Praise Nutakor, took journalists through effective reporting on climate change and green economy issues.
She encouraged journalists to always focus on the main issues and ask the right questions which could lead to the achievement of results instead of focusing on many issues concerning the same story.
Mr. Peter Dery of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) said the current climate change situation the world is experiencing is mostly caused by human activities. He tasked journalists to educate the general public to help reduce the climate change menace.
He lamented that most projects implemented by various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) do not include Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
However, Mr. Dery was optimistic that with the continuous education and questions to various institutions by the media, they would integrate SDGs into their programmes.
Programme Co-ordinator for UNDP, Mr. Kingsley Bekoe, took journalists through mainstreaming climate change and green economy SDGs into the development plan of MMDAs and what is expected of them.
The training was sponsored by the United Nations Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI).
The SDGs are the action-oriented and universally applicable set of targets to be achieved by 2030. The SDGs aim to stimulate sustainable development in areas of critical importance for humanity.
Achieving the SDGs requires action by all stakeholders including governments, the private sector, local authorities, civil society and the media.
PAGE has supported the capability development of the MMDAs through series of pilot training to enhance the awareness of the MMDAs to mainstream the SDGs in development plans.
The participants were from Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions.
Human activities that result in the emission of Green House gases, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide among others dominated the discussions.
The lead facilitator from the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Peter Dery, implored the participants to push duty bearers especially those at the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to fully integrate the Sustainable Development Goals in their programmes.
Peter Dery said Ghana is a signatory to the SDGs treaty for which reason concerted efforts must be made by all stakeholders to achieve that goal by 2030.
He attributed the worsening situation of climate change to human activities and thereby urged the media to continually highlight its negative impact on human well-being.
The PAGE project Coordinator at the UNDP, Kingsley Bekoe, explained the key issues of Green Economy and Climate Change related SDGs to be considered at the local governance level.
A UNDP media expert, Praise Nutakor, led group discussions on how to formulate compelling story ideas on the two most critical issues.
She underscored the need for the media to ask critical questions that will compel the MMDAs to be mindful of the Green Economy during the implementation of programmes tailored towards achieving the SDGs.
Praise Nutakor further advised the participants to minimize comprehensive texts and consider using more pictures to embellish their write-ups.
The participants among several suggestions lauded the workshop and called for more of such engagements.
They promised to network for effective media coverage on Green Economy and Climate Change related SDG issues.
The training workshop sought to improve the understanding of the media on the principles of Green Economy and Climate Change, share experiences in covering the two major issues and other related stories.
It also aimed at creating a network or a pool of Journalists for effective coverage on Green Economy, Climate Change and related SDG issues.
PAGE is to contribute to Ghana’s efforts to fully integrate SDGs and internalize Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) commitments in development planning processes using the decentralized governance system in the country within the context of the Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda II (GSGDA II: 2014-2017).
FROM Eric Kombat, Kumasi