With support from the Royal Danish Embassy of Uganda, UMWA is yet again advancing the “Media for Gender Equality and Social Justice-leaving No One Behind” project. This is to address the poor portrayal of women in politics and women at large by the media. This challenge continues to undermine efforts towards growing and sustaining a people centred and inclusive democracy in Uganda.
Under a ten months supported period, the project activities, since March 2023, are being implemented in seven districts of: Masaka, Tororo, Kitgum, Kampala, Masindi, Hoima, and Mbarara.
Among the project activities are capacity strengthening of women politicians at district levels on strategic media use and, media to sensitively report and represent the latter. These would facilitate the promotion of gender responsive reporting and contributing to the elimination of stereotypes in Uganda’s media by December 2023.
Henceforth, UMWA is training at least 30 women politicians at each district level on effective media use as platform for participation in decision making processes and constituency representation.
Within the 2020-2022 “Media for Gender Equality and Social Justice, Leaving No One Behind” project undertaking supported the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF), the impact achieved by UMWA reflected that empowering aspiring women district leaders with media skills enabled them to competently campaign and communicate widely with their electorate.
Of the women aspiring leaders trained, 56% won the elections. These efforts contributed to an increase of women in politics at district level nationally during the 2021 elections.
Beyond which, at least 210 journalists from the seven districts are being trained on gender sensitive reporting and improved portrayal of the women leaders.
The poor representation /portrayal of women in politics and women at large by the media continues to undermine efforts towards growing and sustaining a people centered Democracy in Uganda. A 2022 media report by UMWA indicates that women are only at 28% visibility in media content. Therein, stereotypical portrayal continues to persist and be reinforced across all media about women.
This negativity is but a driver of further marginalization and silencing of women especially those in politics from public dialogue, decision making processes and fair representation.
While limited knowledge and skills in gender responsive and inclusive reporting among the media has been singled out as a major factor, the rights holders (women in politics and women at large) too, their capacity to articulate and engage with the media is highly lacking.
Other responsible factors include non-pro-activeness of the responsible Government Agencies towards gender mainstreaming and social inclusion within the media. Also, an existing women and gender founded media that is under-utilized by women politicians and women at large.
Therefore, UMWA through this project shall lead to: increased knowledge and skills in gender sensitive reporting of 210 media practitioners, increased generation of gender disaggregated data on portrayal of women politicians and women at large from 12 media houses (5 print, 4 Radio, 3 Television). Also, UMWA shall ensure increased knowledge in strategic engagement with the media by women in politics, increased media coverage of women in politics and women at large by a women gender equality and social inclusion founded media (Mama FM and The Other Voice). Therein, increased engagement of Government agencies towards mainstreaming gender in the media, the media related laws and policies, in particular.
