Community journalists drilled in Covid reporting

Save the Children operations manager (South) Thoko M’mbema has urged community radio journalists from the Southern Region to disseminate the right information on Covid-19 to address misconceptions on the pandemic.

He made the call yesterday in Zomba during the opening of a three-day training of the journalists.

He said: “Our organisation understands that children are the most affected with the pandemic.

“However, government’s efforts to vaccinate many people against the disease are undermined by misconceptions surrounding the vaccine.”

M’mbema said after the training it is expected that   community journalists will be able to influence people in their communities to accept reality and get their jabs.

On his part, Ministry of Health senior health operations officer Alick Phiri commended Save the Children and for the training and pledged the ministry’s support to other organisations that may wish to join the fight against Covid-19.

He said: “We believe that the reporters will disseminate the right information about the pandemic which will improve the uptake of the vaccine.

“We recommend that reporters put a human face to the Covid-19 news to make people interested to learn more about the disease.”

One of the participants, Mwayi Mateyu, a journalist from Ndirande Community Radio Station in Blantyre, said the training will equip her with skills to effectively report Covid-19 issues.

With funding from the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, Save the Children in partnership with Care International, Goal Malawi and Trocaire are implementing a Covid-19 project in  Mwanza, Blantyre, Mulanje and Mangochi districts.

According to reports, misconceptions surrounding Covid-19 vaccine have slowed the uptake in rural communities in the country.