By: Rebecca Ekpe
The Ghana Journalists Association, GJA and the Danish Embassy in Accra say that they both share in the ideals that the Media represents an epitome of the heartbeat of every society, given its fundamental role of information dissemination. Therefore, the Media ought to be positioned in a way that would enable it to function ultimately for the greater good of society.
GJA President Albert Dwumfour and the Danish Ambassador to Ghana Tom Norring shared the view during a meeting in Accra that discussed and explored areas of partnerships for mutual benefit for the Ghana Journalists Association as well as for Denmark.
Mr. Dwumfour used the occasion to outline the vision of the new Executives for the GJA and in particular pointed out that capacity building is critical to the overall development and well-being of the Journalist. The GJA he said is also ”focusing on ensuring the safety and security of Journalists, so that they are able to discharge their duties as mandated in Article 12 of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution”.
In Mr. Dwumfour’s view, a Journalists Support Fund that would provide Legal assistance to ensure that, ‘’Press freedom is protected and safeguarded in the interest of Journalists is critical”.
He announced that the Journalists Support Fund would be launched in October, 2022 to give life to his vision that Journalists’ Life Matters.
Ambassador Tom Norring was happy that GJA is positioning itself to protect the rights of its members and also uphold free speech.
“It is a key issue to protect Journalists and their ability to say what is wrong as well as what is right’’.
Mr. Norring outlined the Danish Embassy’s vision and its partnerships with or entities in Ghana, and said it is ready to partner with the GJA, because it is essential for the media to focus on critical reportage of issues.
He suggested that the media should be mindful of issues relating to security and existential threats as well, but above all,
“Concentrate more on the solid reportage and presentation of issues as a Journalist’’, however, I must say that, ”I see a lot of good journalists in Ghana”.
Ambassador Norring noted that Exchange programs for Journalists are very necessary in building best practices, pointing out that he would like Danish Journalists to visit Ghana to exchange ideas, especially as Journalism metamorphoses globally.