Female Journalists Urged To Be Versatile, Creative

Women are under-represented in the media in Ghana: A cursory look at the media landscape particularly on radio, shows men dominate many of the programmes as hosts.

Some veteran media professionals believe the reason for this is that many women especially, upcoming female journalists, are not adequately preparing themselves to take up the roles their male colleagues get so easily.

The solution? Versatility and creativity according to speakers at the maiden summit organised by the Alliance for Women in Media Africa (AWMA) on the subject.

The speakers, most of them veteran journalists, made a case for women empowerment in the media landscape.

Former Information Minister, Elizabeth Ohene and veteran journalist Nana Yaa Ofori Atta discussed the issue with Joy FM’s Head of Talk, Nhyira Addo at the summit held in Accra.

“Learn, Learn, Learn every day. There is somebody near you who knows how to do something. Learn and tomorrow you will be different,” the former Information Minister advised.

Nana Yaa Ofori Atta also urged young ladies to challenge themselves to achieve more in life. “Don’t be in a straight jacket,” she stressed.

The maiden AWMA summit was organised to highlight the challenges and opportunities that exist for female media personnel in Ghana.

Convener of the group Shamima Muslim Alhassan said the summit is the first step toward shaping the future of Ghanaian women in media.

“We need to be deserving about whatever progress we seek but we need to also be intentional about it. We can’t always just sit and expect things to fall into our laps.

“We are just saying that be conscious of what you want and then work towards achieving what you want given the opportunity available to you,” she urged.