Skip to main content

Cohort 3 AFF Fellows- DefyHateNow Set To Move Out of Comfort Zones.


Fellows of the Cohort 3 Africa Fact-checking Fellowship (AFF) Cameroon made up of journalists and bloggers have been challenged to move out of their comfort zones and be of veritable service towards a Hate-free Cameroon. This was at the end of a two-day “Discovery,” session in Douala November 20 -21, 2020. While baptizing the 3rd batch  at the end of the session, the Country Director of DefyHateNow, Desmond Ngala, remains hopeful that the media professionals will dare to be different after embracing professional skills  that will enhance their reporting and also ensure a hate-free society. 


Desmond Ngala went further to encourage the Fellows to work together on issues around fact-checking, misinformation, disinformation, mal-information and hate speech, concerns  which according to him, are timely especially with the effects they have had on the escalating nature of the crisis especially in the two English speaking regions of the country that has affected virtually all other parts of the country. “We are here to encourage you all to work together towards contributing to peace in the country through  reinforcing your capacity and how you can shift the narratives not only in your reporting but also online actions in the days ahead,” Desmond Ngala intimated. 

The discovery session was an opportunity for  the Fellows and the Association of Bloggers in Cameroon ABC  to  receive hands on introductory lessons on fact-checking, data journalism, fake news online and offline as well as various human and digital technical tools that can help the media professionals to come up with different social media health reports and data reporting articles with mission, to help communities take informed decisions for a Hate-Free-Cameroon.


The training was facilitated by the DefyHateNow team in Cameroon led by Desmond Ngala with main resource person, Paul J. Kamtnchang in collaboration with former AFFCameroon Fellows now Trainers and Experts.

According to one of the Cohort 3 Fellows, Shing Timothy, Journalist/Blogger from Buea South West Region of Cameroon, the session was quite challenging as it was encouraging. “ It challenged me to get more inquisitive by leaving my comfort zone and exploring new horizons. Going back, I have been prepared to face the new emerging challenges presented by fake news and hate speech in the country,” Shing noted with optimism.


To Wanchia Cynthia, Bamenda based Journalist, she remains grateful to have been selected as a fellow of #AFF Cohort 3, noting that the Discovery edition was an enriching session and challenges her to leave her comfort zone. To corroborate this,  Bambot Valentine Samgwa, Journalist and blogger, another Cohort 3 Fellow from Buea was positive and said he is now aware of his responsibility to combat fake news on social media and also will endeavour to think and check before sharing information circulating whether on or offline. 

Ndi Tsembom Elvis, Journalist/Blogger is presently bracing up for the challenge ahead. “I must confess is engaging. Together let's fight against hate,” Elvis Ndi on a positive note.

Doh Bertand Yaounde based journalist/blogger on this note promised to implement the skills and knowledge gained towards a hate-free society.

Fellows are expected to, in the days ahead get to work immediately, become more productive with the shared vision and mission of the Defy Hate Now family in mind.  It this expected that, Fellows will also put on the garment of transparency, responsibility, accuracy, credibility, professionalism while being proactive on the social media with publications, working to ensure, tolerance, mutual respect and community engagement towards a hate- free Cameroon and society. 

#defyhatenow is an initiative by rOg_agency for open culture and critical transformation, funded by the German Foreign Office in partnership with UNESCO.

By Rosaline Obah

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LES BRASSERIES DU CAMEROUN: Poised to revamp dying North West Economy.

As the crisis persists in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon, economic sabotage has been part of the modus operandi of the Separatists. One of the companies that have suffered from such sabotage is the Brewery company, Les Brasseries Du Cameroun. However in it’s new program as announced by the company Earlier this year, it seeks to revamp it’s commercial Centre in Bamenda and the 4 Depots of Kumbo, Nkambe, Wum and Fundong. This with a workforce of 400 workers, over 200 in Bamenda and about 50 in each of the 4 Depots, with a majority of the workers hailing from the North West Region. It is calculated that, over 30 Suppliers, two of whom supply the majority of the drinks sold in the Bamenda Commercial Centre, about 3000 regular retailers and over 2000 in the informal sector will get employed. They will be able to develop their families and improve on their livelihood by educating their children, building decent homes, and investing in diverse fields,...
Post a Comment
Read more

NORTH WEST PUBLIC INDEPENDENT CONCILIATOR

The PIC while addressing local masses in Wum Council area, Mr. Tamfu Fai, appealed to the government to create divisional representations.   In the Anglo-Saxon tradition, it is customary to set up independent authorities responsible for settling disputes between users and regional and council administration. In line with this logic, Law No.2019/24 of 24 December 2019 to institute the General Code of Regional and Local Authorities provides for an independent authority called the Public Independent Conciliator (PIC) in the North-West and South-West Regions. The office holder is by no means a legal authority or a judge, as the competences and powers entrusted to him are not of a legal nature. The PIC is responsible, inter alia, for amicably settling disputes between users and the regional and council administration, defending and protecting rights and freedoms with regard to the relationship between citizens and the region or the councils thereof, conducting any investigation on the f...
Post a Comment
Read more

FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, DISAVOWS DECENTRALIZATION AS SOLUTION TO ANGLOPHONE CONFLICT; OPTS FOR REGIONALISM.

  Image an elephant walked into the room. It's definitely something you would notice. It's also something people would describe in many different ways. Some might see it as a monster or a threat, while others (like The Colbert Factor) might think it's the greatest thing ever. It would ultimately mean something different to everyone, and that would influence the way each person understood it. The visit of the French President was the elephant walking into the Cameroon room.   Emmanuel Macron and Paul Biya in Yaoundé. July 25-27 2022 Last week's visit by recently re-elected French President, Emmanuel Macron, was too substantial to ignore. To most ordinary Cameroonians, his remarks after the close to two hours high-level talks with long-serving President Paul Biya, were great. To others, (especially those in government), they were a threat to what government had given a pat on its back for a fast-track of the decentralization process with a Special Status for the North Wes...
Post a Comment
Read more