Journalists and Media Practitioners in Ghana have been
charged to build lasting brands of themselves in order to offer quality
professional services and steer the path of Ghana’s progress.
Dr. Nana Oppong, President of Distinguish Scholars of Africa
(DINTSA), made the remarks when he led a training workshop for Journalists in the
International Standards Journalism (ISJ) Certification Programme at the Accra
International Conference.
The programme, the first of its kind in Ghana, seeks to
train Journalists in the country to become top-notch professional who would champion
excellence in Journalism and demand accountability and transparency in the socio-politico-
economic development of the country.
It was organised by the DINTSA and Data Link Institute.
With the phenomenon of having an NDC and NPP nations, and
several ethnic states in Ghana, Dr. Oppong bemoaned our weak allegiance to the country,
arguing that “we need people who love Ghana; we need dedicated people in Ghana.”
He observed that we have to change the way we conduct politics
in Ghana, and charged Journalist to be at the forefront to steer the path of new
progress in the country.
Describing the programme as signifying the Birth of a new
chapter in Ghana’s Journalism, Dr Oppong, tasked Journalists to do something new
and nationalistic that would rekindle the spirit of nationalism and patriotism
among Ghanaians, and inspire a new sense of ‘Ghanaianess’ among our people.
To effectively perform this role, he urged Journalists to
sharpen their skills, acquire requisite knowledge and build their competence in
order to deliver.
The main Facilitator, who took participants through five critical areas
of applied knowledge and democratic governance: economics, law, intelligence,
politics and society (E-LIPS), stated that understanding these basic areas was
vital to making them excel in their careers.
Dr. Opong, touched on the poor conditions of service of
journalists in the country, and observed that it was about time Media
Processionals in Ghana received good professional fees, adding that the ‘soli’
or honorarium paid them was woefully inadequate.
“Create a product or service, add a different touch to your
journalism and start charging for your services,” he noted, and advocated for
standard payment for journalists.
He advised media professional to build effective networks
that will help them champion their professional course.
Hon. David Yeboah, MP, said that people become remarkable
when they believe in themselves go far, adding that it takes courage for
someone to run this programme. He commended the good works and efforts of Dr.
Oppong.
Similarly, Hon. Owusu Boateng, MP for Akyem Akroso
Constituency, expressed worry about monetisation in politics and highlighted
the need for Ghanaians to be selfless and work for the common good. He said
education was key in the answer to the mired challenges in our country but
urged the educated to give back to the society.
He said “you need education and skills to rise,” entreating
media practitioners to keep on learning and use their intelligence to better
serve society.
The ISJ is informed by relevant competence in five critical areas
of applied knowledge and democratic governance in E-LIPS.
The
Distinguished Scholars of Africa and Data Link Institute have developed a
scientific, strategic, comprehensive and yet fast-tracked ISJ programme for
journalists and would-be-journalists, which promises to enhance competence leading to national, international competitiveness
and professionalism, prestige as well as employment and networking
opportunities for participants.
The certification in international
standards journalism is part of the learned heart programme of the
Distinguished Scholars of Africa and Data Link Institute for strategic
capacity-building of journalism and support for enhanced democracy in Ghana and
Sub-Saharan Africa.
Participants at the
programme, pledged to further the excellence in the profession and make
journalism the bastion of change in Ghana and Africa.
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