The Executive Secretary of the Media High Council, Peacemaker Mbungiramihigo has said that there is still a need to build the capacities of the media so that it plays a role in the development of the country, and the media itself. This, he said, requires that the media furthers professional reporting, through among other things, changing the mindset of media representatives and journalists in general so that they promote the culture of cooperation, scaling up long-term training which make them acquire special skills to produce articles – specialised reporting. Mbungiramihigo made the remarks in Kigali on Tuesday, October 27, 2020 during the opening of a 2-day training for journalists on parliamentary reporting aiming at equipping them with basic knowledge on the functioning of parliament and helping them to produce accurate news-stories on parliamentary activities. “Based on the five year action plan of the Media High Council 2019-2024, we realised that there is a need for training journalists so that they sharpen their skills in reporting on different issues including business, health, agriculture, science, ICT among others,” Mbungiramihigo. Commenting on the abovementioned training – organised by the parliament and the European Union Delegation in Rwanda, Mbungiramihigo said that it is relevant to the media development in that it is meant to hone its skills on parliamentary reporting. “We want that the journalists get skills that will help them to have a good reputation, produce stories that help Rwandans, understand how the parliament works and its importance to Rwandans for whom it was created, as well as how they can approach it for service,” he said. Mbungiramihigo commended the parliament for organising the workshop, saying the initiative proves its support for professional Media development that effectively inform and educate the public in reporting on parliamentary activities. He said that knowing how the parliament works should be crucial as it is the organ in charge of enacting laws and ensuring that they are complied with in the benefits of Rwandans. Senate President, Augustin Iyamuremye said that the media is considered the fourth power after the legislature, executive, and judiciary thanks to the role it plays in linking the wishes of the people with the leadership responsibility related to the development of the citizens “Media is therefore the pillar of citizen-centred development,” he said. “The parliament and media are two institutions with a close relationship. If the parliament is the eye, ear and heart of the people, the media – and the journalists – is their voice,” he said, citing the message of the President of the Republic. He said that the parliament and the media are partners whose converging goal is to raise the voice of the people. “It is in that framework that the parliament organised training for journalists so that we consider together the complementarity of the two entities in developing the citizens towards the vision of our country,” he observed.
