Journalists Gain Skills to Advance Climate Action in Africa

Finalists of the Fifth African Climate Change and Environmental Reports (ACCER) Awards have completed a one-day training intended to build the capacity of African journalists to increase the coverage of African perspectives of the climate crisis.

Fifteen Journalists from across Africa attended the training in Addis Aba Ethiopia on Tuesday 23rd March 2021.

“Mass media can drive adequate responses to the climate crisis by supplying the critical information needed for informed decision-making, introducing and sustaining climate change on the policy agenda, and holding major public and private actors accountable for their actions, inactions and national or international commitments,” said Eugene N Nforngwa, PACJA Head of Communications and Knowledge Management.

“More so, local coverage helps in mapping impacts and vulnerabilities, fostering local solutions and connecting the voices and concerns of marginalized groups to major policy processes. And, on the flip side, poor media coverage can hamper progress, promote false solutions, dissuade people from acting and shift debates in the wrong direction.”

Climate change reporting has improved in African thanks in part to support from PACJA through initiatives such as the ACCER Awards, the ACCER Awards Finalists Academy (TAAFA) and the Pan-African Media Alliance for Climate Change (PAMACC). However, coverage of the climate crisis in Africa remains strongly influenced by dominant narratives created by the western media.

“Journalists should be playing an important role in relaying the needs and concerns of African communities at the frontlines of climate change,” said Dr Mithika Mwenda, the Executive Director of PACJA. “We challenge you to put African perspectives forward and ensure that the media plays its critical role of mobilizing action and increasing awareness.”

The training focused on strengthening journalists’ understanding of the critical issues and debates surrounding the climate crisis, particularly the connections between climate change and other challenges facing African societies.