GJA outlines 100 days achievements
Stakeholders engagements, review of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Awards and the rehabilitation of the Press Centre have been listed as some of the achievements of the current leadership of the GJA within its first 100 days in office.
Others are the organisation of retreats, digitalisation of the GJA awards programme, welfare support, scholarship, training packages and an increased social media presence in the activities of the association.
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The President of the GJA, Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, who made this known at a media briefing in Accra last Thursday, said: "Since June 30, 2022, we promised to hit the ground running to demonstrate that this current crop of executives mean business".
Present at the event were the Vice-President of the GJA, Linda Asante-Agyei; the General-Secretary, Edmund Kofi Yeboah; the Public Relations Officer, Rebecca Ekpe; Treasurer, Audrey Dekalu; Organising Secretary, Dominic Hlordzi, as well as GJA members on the National Media Commission (NMC), Kobby Asmah, who is also the Editor, Graphic, and Gabriel Bosompem.
Also in attendance were the acting Editor, Graphic Business, who is also the Greater Accra GJA Regional Chairman, Charles Benoni Okine, and Founder and President of Worldwide Miracle Outreach, Reverend Dr Lawrence Tetteh.
Activities
The GJA President said his outfit began their tenure with a three-day retreat to discuss policies and programmes which he said was a novelty.
"The retreat, themed: Building legacies in welfare, professionalism and rebranding to reposition GJA for a better future”, addressed some critical issues such as journalists’ welfare.
"And as part of our stakeholder engagements, we toured some corporate institutions such as the ADB Bank, National Lotteries Authority (NLA), Ghana Gas, the Tobinco Group, as well as some foreign missions and religious organisations in the country.
“Through these visits, we have secured partnership deals that will strengthen the capacity of journalists in the country," Mr Dwumfuor added.
He further said that the association recently met with some retired members, including veterans and senior journalists to find ways to incorporate them into its activities and programmes.
Review of awards
The president also said that a seven-member GJA Media Awards Committee had been established to review and revamp the awards system, adding that the mode of application had also been digitised.
According to him, the association was keen on improving upon its digitalisation agenda and, therefore, had decided to go paperless for the 2022 GJA Awards.
Mr Dwumfour also said that a Journalists Support Fund had been established to cater for the well-being of journalists.
"One of the goals is to ensure justice for journalists who are attacked while on the job. This takes the form of both legal and financial assistance.
“Through this initiative, the GJA recently was able to extend support to one of our colleagues who was severely injured in a gas explosion in the Volta Region,” he said.
Mr Dwumfuor further said that the training and upgrading of the professional skills of members were a priority area of the association.
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