Women push for gender integration into media training curricula

The Uganda Media Women Association (UMWA) executive director Margaret Sentamu Masagazi, has said it is important to integrate gender in media training institutions to find a lasting solution to women marginalisation in media fraternity across the country.

Addressing a media training workshop, Masagazi said: “Integrating gender into media training will breach the gap of imbalance in women representation in media and will pave way to empowerment of women journalists across the country”, she said, adding that women marginalisation has been characterised by traditional cultural beliefs, where society expects too much from a man. “These negative beliefs against women have ended up cropping into media and a quick remedy should be found”, she said.

Islamic University in Uganda (IUIU) Head of Social Sciences Faculty, Usama Kasagga said a course on gender and human rights is offered at the university and called upon other tertiary institutions to emulate IUIU.

Dick Nvule, a senior editor at Radio Simba cited one of the challenges facing women journalists: negative attitude on the part of women where some of them are reluctant to take up certain media assignments that go beyond official working hours.

Participants resolved to bring on board the ministries of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Education and Sports, media training institutions and other stakeholders to find a lasting solution to gender integration in media training.