Journalists in crisis-affected regions drilled on peace, conflict reporting.

Journalists who are members of the Cameroon Community Media Network (CCMN) drawn from the North West/West and South West/Littoral regions have been drilled on various ways of preventing and managing conflicts through crisis reporting.

Photo credit CMF/CWF study book.

During a three-day workshop organised by the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC),and Bread for the World Germany in Bafoussam, through its  Peace Journalism and Conflict Transformation Project, the journalists , mostly members of the Cameroon Community Media Network (CCMN) were schooled on handling the various stakeholders in a crisis situation.

The workshop which is a follow up of previous initiatives equally helped the journalists understand the types of crisis, persons affected during a conflict, understanding humanitarian response, data journalism as well as the role of the media in conflict situations.

Opening the workshop, the coordinator of the PCC  Peace journalism and conflict transformation project, Rev Mokoko Mbue Thomas told journalists to be cautious in conflict reporting be able to draw a line between eye witness account and getting information on the ground.

Rev Mokoko Mbue Thomas

"A good journalism story must be balanced and it is our prayer that all CCMN members and the journalism family in Cameroon embrace peace-oriented reports. Many IDPs have not been counted and need their stories to be heard and we are their mouth piece so should drum up support for them. Let our hearts be in what we do, so we can use our voices to help better the lives of IDPs in our communities” Rev. Moukoko Thomaas said.

The main facilitator, Omer Songwe urged the participants to strive for neutrality and balance especially in the present context in the North West and South West regions.

"The workshop is going to create a link between the affected communities, humanitarian response and the role journalists can play in reporting the conflict. If we do not understand the exact needs of the affected communities, then we would have failed," Mr. Songwe who bags decades of experience in journalism and conflict reporting said.

Cross section of participants

"If we don’t understand how humanitarian aid is delivered, the mechanism put in place, principles, then we would have also failed in reporting, we need to understand what conflict-sensitive reporting journalism is, if not, it will be very difficult for us to report from an angle that can promote peace," he added.

One of the participants, Yannick Fonki, journalists with HiTv in Buea, said the workshop would help him going forward in refining and gearing his works towards peace and development.e

There is a lot of hate speech being preached on media platforms but how can we convert all of these into peace and development? So through the network’s seminars and workshops I have attended, I have sharpened my skills towards peace building and it is making great strides,” Yannick said.

Yannick Fonki (participant)

According to Sally Mboumien, the CEO of Common Action for Gender Development and a communicator, challenges faced by journalists should not stop them from being solution orientated.


"Their reports should be impartial, neutral and credible so as to guide the people and help them think critically so that they can make informed decisions. This workshop has helped journalists realize the powerful role they have to play in conflict resolutions and the power their pens and voices have in their communities,” he said.






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