Students bemoan lack of media content on youth issues

Accra, March 24, GNA - Participants at a press interaction have bemoaned the lack of adequate content on youth issues in the media. They have therefore, called on the media to develop programmes that would address issues about children. The participants, including students from some Junior and Senior High Schools made the call at a press interaction in Accra on Thursday.

It was jointly organised by Curious Minds; Children and Youth in Broadcasting, an organisation aimed at creating a coalition of youth and media organisations to bring youth voices into the mainstream press.

The interaction marked the celebration of the International Children's Day of Broadcasting 2011 in Ghana, on the theme: 93Girls are=85Boys are=85Tools for Development."

The students said there was not enough programmes in the media (radio and television) that allowed young people to contribute to issues bordering on their welfare by expressing their opinions. They said existing programmes only focused on entertainment such as music and dance.

They said the youth could contribute significantly to national development when their views and opinions were taken seriously, and called on companies to support educative programmes for children and youth through sponsorships.

Master Gideon Amponsah Tuffour, a 14-year-old reporter with Curious Minds said although children had rights under the Constitution and the United Nations Convention on the rights of the child, those rights came with responsibilities and encouraged his colleagues to take their responsibilities as seriously as their rights. He called on the society to respect children's views adding that "children should be seen, heard and their opinions considered". Mr Kingsley Obeng-Kyereh, Co-ordinator of Curious Minds said the day was celebrated to give young people access to the media as ordinarily, they did not get much attention from the media. He called on the society and stakeholders to help break stereotypes on gender roles as this was a challenge that boys and girls faced in their quest to achieve their aspirations. "When a girl wants to become a doctor and excels in class, she is branded a witch and when a boy likes to cook, he is thought to be effeminate. Though a girl might be challenged in certain areas due to her biological make-up, it should not prevent her from doing so," he said.

Mrs Joana Wilhemina Mensah, Deputy Director, Child Rights Promotion and Protection, Department of Social Welfare, urged people in the media and leaders in society to endeavour to be good role models for the youth.

She urged parents to develop good relationships between them and their children especially through communication. Nii Akrofi Smart Abbey, a reporter with Joy FM, an Accra-based FM radio station, shared his experiences in the media with the students. He said although media work was difficult and took a lot of time, they should study hard to pursue their dreams and make contacts with people in the industry to learn from them.

Dr Michael Agyekum Addo, Chief Executive Officer of KAMA Group Limited advised the students to respect their parents and allow them to guide them in their decisions.

He urged parents to develop the creative abilities of their children by investing in activities that would develop the right side of their brains, which was responsible for creativity, entrepreneurship, colour and sound.

"Society is looking for people who are multi-skilled, the next revolution would not be an industrial one but an entrepreneurial one," he stated.