The Minister of Information Designate, Hon. Fatimatu Abubakar has paid courtesy calls on some media houses as part of stakeholder engagements in the media sector.
The calls which started in Accra today are part of an exercise to continuously engage with the media as part of efforts to deal with emerging issues in the sector.
Hon. Fatimatu Abubakar and her team first visited the EIB Group which owns GhOne, Starr FM and Kasapa FM, as its flagship brands. The team also visited Kessben Media and Wontumi Radio and Movement Television. Other media houses are expected to be visited as part of the calls.
The Minister Designate commended management and staff of the media houses for championing professionalism and using their platforms to engage all stakeholders in national discourse.
She urged the workers to continue to engage the government and provide feedback on issues of national concern.
Hon. Abubakar stressed that the Government is commitment to ensure a conducive environment for free and responsible media while assisting the enhancement of the work of journalists through capacity building.
Interacting with management and staff at the media houses, Hon. Abubakar called for a greater collaboration between the media and all other stakeholders including the government in deepening the country’s democracy.
3rd Africa Media Convention
The Minister Designate called for media support and participation in the upcoming 3rd Africa Media Convention which is scheduled for May 15-17, 2024. The convention which is an annual media convention is a collaborative effort supported by African media stakeholders, to reflect on the fundamental role of journalism on the continent, celebrate fundamental principles of press freedom and deliberate on measures to safeguard media freedom, promote access to information, the safety of journalists and media visibility in Africa Union member states.
Global World Press Freedom
Hon. Abubakar reiterated Ghana’s significant improvement from 62nd out of 180 countries to 50th. She attributed the performance to Ghana Office of the Safety of Journalist and the Media Capacity Enhancement Programme which have contributed immensely to the quality of journalism in Ghana.
Combating Mis/Disinformation in the digital space
The Media owners bemoaned the increasing rate of mis/disinformation in the digital space and appealed to the Ministry to support sanitizing content online.
Media Capacity Enhancement Programme
Hon. Fatimatu Abubakar announced that the 3rd Cohort of the Media Capacity Enhancement Programme will commence soon and urged media owners to allow their media personnel to participate in the training.
International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM)
The Minister for Information Designate informed the media owners of the International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM), a media development fund targeted at independent media institutions.
She indicated that IFPIM’s interest is focused on the sustainability of media houses and urged all media houses to take advantage of the fund.
Source: MOI (PR Unit)
