Gov't spokespersons to undergo training

By Cecilia Okoth

Government has embarked on a training programme for spokespersons of Ministries and its departments in a bid to improve information flow in the fast changing media industry.

Rose Namayanja, the Minister of Information and National Guidance said the training is necessary given the technological changes in the industry and the need to keep the public informed, especially on government programmes.

“We need to give information more often and regularly even without people asking for it and this information should be readily available at all times,” said Namayanja.

She was addressing government spokespersons in a media partnership workshop in the main conference hall at the office of the president.

The minister said after a recent research was carried out in some Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA), they discovered that some of the MDAs did not have directly qualified communication specialists, hence the need for the training.

“We also realized that there was a skills gap because of the new many emerging communication platforms like twitter, facebook, whatsapp, among others,” Namayanja said, adding that these are new evolutions that call for thorough training.

The Training is a flagship event of the Ministry of Information and National Guidance in the Office of the Prime Minister which recognizes excellence in professional journalism in Uganda placing emphasis on public interest issues and responsible Journalism as Government begins to implement the Public Education Airtime that different media houses have allocated to Government.

“Government recognizes the Media as a major driver of change and reforms in the Ugandan society. It appreciates its role in socializing the communities especially the youth and inculcating positive attitudes and behavior among them,” the minister said.

Hellen Kawesa the parliament spokesperson raised a concern to the minister saying that information officers who have served in their positions for long do not get promotions.

“The young people come in from other professions and take over the juicy jobs yet the older ones are not recognized. Is there any hope of getting any promotion because the jobs we do are not easy?” Kawesa said.

In response, Namayanja said the Government Communication strategy clearly spells out what a communication officer should be.