By Joyce Kantam Kolamong
Vice-President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Rebecca Ekpe, has called on journalists to report on sensitive social and health issues with responsibility, context and solutions-oriented approaches.
Speaking on the media’s role in grassroots awareness during the Merck Foundation Health Media Training held via Zoom, Ms Ekpe said coverage of gender-based violence (GBV) often reinforces stigma instead of promoting healing and understanding.
She urged journalists to move beyond labels when reporting on child marriage and teenage pregnancy, which she linked to poverty, cultural practices and abuse. According to her, reporters should focus on the underlying causes of such issues and how they can be addressed.
“People are listening, and change is possible,” she said. “When we speak, we need to speak responsibly.”
Ms Ekpe noted that Ghana records about 100,000 teenage pregnancies annually, with higher rates in northern parts of the country, yet media coverage often ends with official statements without deeper analysis or follow-up.
She also highlighted the persistence of female genital mutilation (FGM) despite the legal ban on the practice, as well as barriers to girls’ education, including poverty and early marriage. At the same time, she observed that many young boys are increasingly being left behind educationally, making community-wide support essential.
According to her, chiefs, churches, non-governmental organisations and faith-based groups should all feature in such reports, alongside success stories that can inspire positive change.
Ms Ekpe stressed the importance of local languages and radio broadcasting, describing radio as the most accessible medium in communities with limited internet connectivity or electricity. She said radio programmes and media campaigns have already contributed to increased reporting of GBV cases and improved girls’ school enrolment.
She acknowledged that journalists covering such issues often face cultural resistance, limited access to data and personal safety risks. Her advice to reporters was to prioritise their safety while finding secure ways to gather and share information.
The GJA Vice-President also challenged newsrooms to stop over-prioritising politics at the expense of health and social issues. She suggested that editors could improve coverage by using news aggregation during editorial meetings and establishing dedicated health desks.
The Merck Foundation training brought together medical experts and media professionals to strengthen reporting on infertility stigma, women’s empowerment, child marriage, FGM, GBV and diabetes prevention. It was attended by journalists from several African countries, as well as Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America.
Ms Ekpe concluded by reminding participants that the media has the power to drive change and save lives, but only if journalists report responsibly and place communities at the centre of their stories.
The training also highlighted the critical role journalists play in influencing communities, breaking silence around sensitive issues and raising awareness through media stories, articles, blogs, reports and television programmes.
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