The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) and the National Council for Population and Development (NCPD) have teamed up to utilise power of the media to create awareness on matters around population and development in Kenya.
The two institutions have today signed a pact to build capacity of journalists to boost reporting on population and development.
Chief Administrative Secretary, National Treasury and Planning Mr Eric Wafukho, applauded the strategic partnership, stating the media is critical in pushing the development agenda through enlightening the citizenry on the country’s demographics.
He said the media’s watchdog role has enabled it to hold both leaders and citizens accountable regarding population and development.
“The media plays a crucial role in building the nation and unearthing factors that impact our growth. Through the media we will be able to drive this narrative on development to the civic space”, Mr Wafukho said.
During the meeting, the two organisations also sensitised editors on areas including the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) commitments following the Nairobi Summit held in 2019, the demographic dividend and youth bulge in Kenya.
MCK CEO Mr David Omwoyo said the engagement sought to steer media focus towards issue-based journalism and to allow room for reflecting on thematic issues on population such as census, demographics and planning.
“Media professionals need to highlight and reflect on population demographics as this is an opportunity for them to capitalise on issue- based stories that have an impact on the population”, said Mr Omwoyo.
He affirmed the Council’s commitment to support professional coverage of population and development through trainings, mentorship and provision of travel grants to facilitate journalists to cover stories.
NCPD Director General Dr Mohamed Sheikh urged the media to continue advocating for human-interest journalism that creates awareness on the demographic dividends that will help in attaining development.
He added that the media is well placed to break down the technical terms around population, noting that population dynamics call for deeper understanding to enable planning.
“We are pleased with this partnership as the Media Council’s regular engagements with the media will empower journalists to digest information on population and development and share with the public”, said Dr Sheikh.
Under the partnership, NCPD will sponsor a category in MCK’s Annual Journalism Excellence Awards (AJEA) that will recognise journalists who have produced well researched stories on population issues including the burden of teen pregnancies, the elderly and ageing population, changing family structures and fertility, as well as migration and urbanisation.