ECOWAS, GIZ, MFWA SCHOOLED 45 JOURNALISTS TO COMBAT DIS/ MISINFORMATION AND PROMOTE INFORMATION INTEGRITY

ECOWAS, GIZ, MFWA SCHOOLED 45 JOURNALISTS TO COMBAT DIS/ MISINFORMATION AND PROMOTE INFORMATION INTEGRITY

The ECOWAS commission, in partnership with Media Foundation for West Africa MFWA) The GIZ organizational development OD program has organized a two-day training workshop for 45 journalists on media information integrity at the Marriott hotel in Accra.

The workshop, centered on countering misinformation, disinformation, and false narratives through fact-checking and media information literacy, is essential in promoting informed public discourse, fostering peace, security, and social inclusion, promoting regional integration, strengthening democratic governance, and achieving inclusive and sustainable development within the West African sub-region.

The training aims to equip journalists with the requisite skills and knowledge to promote information integrity, responsible journalism, and effectively and ethically counter misinformation, disinformation, and anti-democratic narratives.

Journalists present had the opportunity to be schooled on both practical and theoretical aspects of fact-checking, open-source intelligence OSINT, artificial intelligence applications, conflict-sensitivity reporting, media information literacy, and other topics. topics

In addition, these tools seek to equip participants with the skills to identify actors behind harmful narratives, investigate human rights violations, ensure digital security, and uphold the highest ethical and legal standards in their work.

Addressing the media at the opening ceremony, the ECOWAS resident representative in Ghana, H.E. Ambassador Mohammed Lawan, highlighted the critical role of the media in promoting peace, democracy, and regional cohesion, in line with ECOWAS Vision 2050.

According to him, journalists are not only informers of the public but also actors in shaping governance and security outcomes. He warned that misinformation, disinformation, and deliberate distortion of facts threaten democracy, social cohesion, and public confidence across West Africa.

Deputy Head of Cooperation of the German Embassy in Ghana, Daniel Boehme, admonished the importance of a free and sustainable media sector in combating misinformation and safeguarding public discourse, particularly in the context of the ECOWAS Vision 2050 for a peaceful and prosperous region.

He therefore reaffirmed the German Government’s commitment through the organizational development project to partnering with EECOWAS and the media sector to build strong institutions and ensure effective communication across the region.

At the end of the ttrainingjournalist were awarded with certificate of participation

Story by Anita Frimpong