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By Annonciata Byukusenge
It’s important to address these critical scientific issues within the Nile Basin countries. Encouraging science journalists to focus on topics such as water, the environment, climate change, food security, and agriculture can certainly help raise awareness and promote informed discussions on these vital matters. The 9th Nile Basin Sub Regional Media Training conducted by the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program Coordination Unit (NELSAP-CU) seems to be playing an important role in bringing attention to these topics.
The journalists who attended this training expressed their emotions about the skills gained in data journalism and how they are aware of how to use data in transforming scientific information into an understanding language.
Leonard Mubali is a journalist from Tanzania. She said that it was a pleasure to gain skills in science journalism especially the use of data in my daily work and information about the Nile River.
“Now, I am skilled in data journalism. More than ten years in journalism, not yet used data in my reporting. I think it’s a good time to use it to simplify scientific information into simple understanding. The special things as my takeaway are the tools I will use to analyze data and how I will get significant information.”
He added that he will share those skills with his colleagues’ journalists in the newsroom and inspire them to use data in their daily reporting.
Penina Malundo is a female journalist attended this training. She said that she is going to put into practice the skills gained in this training.
“I am a writer, but not yet use data in my articles because I don’t have skills in data journalism. Now I am skilled and I am going to use data in my articles.”
Why data journalism is important?
Data journalism is more important than ever, but what is data journalism and why has it come to the forefront of newsrooms throughout the globe?
Data journalism is the gathering and analysis of data, followed by presenting it within a compelling story that audiences can digest.
Some critics argue all modern journalism is data journalism. After all, when a news story is printed, it should contain facts and those facts can be quantified as ‘data’. However, the term ‘data journalism’ brings to mind something more than traditional reporting.
Miss Annika McGinnis is an environmental data journalist, data journalism trainer, and media development specialist from the U.S., based in Kampala, Uganda, with 10+ years’ experience, the co-founder of InfoNile was a trainer in this workshop.
She highlighted that in a digital world is necessary to use data in journalism rather than using traditional reporting.
“When you use data in your reporting, you publish strong information and more significant than to write a long text without data. I advise you to use data in your reporting.”
The key information on the Nile River and how it contributes to the improvement in economic cooperation between the countries
Eng. Sami Osman working with NELSAP at the Rusumo Hydropower Project, said that the Nile River contributes to the economy of Nile Basin countries because it helps to build falls, dams help in irrigation, especially in Egypt and other human activities.
The Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program Coordination Unit (NELSAP-CU) headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, is one of the two investment programs of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), the other being the Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Program (ENSAP) headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia known as Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO).
NELSAP-CU was established in December 1999 by the Council of Ministers for Water Affairs in the Nile River Basin, with a mission to “contribute to the eradication of poverty, promote economic growth, and reverse environmental degradation in the Nile Equatorial Lakes (NEL) region, within the overall NBI’s shared Vision of sustainable socioeconomic development and the equitable use of and benefit from Nile Basin water resources”.
