By ELIAS HAKIZIMANA
Rwanda continues to take the lead in preventing and fighting Ebola Disease at all cost. The country has not registered any case.
The Ministry of Health has put in place tangible measures in preventing the scourge that ravaged the neighbouring DRC claiming thousands of lives.
The efforts that are being made include journalists’ training on professional guidelines to report on Ebola disease. The training that was organized by Rwanda Journalists’ Association (ARJ) started on January 16 to end on January 18, 2020.
The Ministry’s Spokesperson explained in details how the training is important and why the country is raising efforts to prevent and combat the disease.
3.406 people were found with Ebola symptoms in August 2018 since the disease was a burden in the Republic Democratic of Congo (DRC); 3.288 of the identified number of people were already sick while 2.236 of them died.
Since then the government of Rwanda started to make further efforts in preventing and combating the disease at all cost as the country is a neighbor to DRC.
By now, 3.000 Rwandans were vaccinated and around 6.793 more are soon to be vaccinated in four sites. The country targets t vaccinate 200.000 people. Further efforts were injected in building 18 isolation places for any Ebola case that can be found unexpectedly.
Speaking during the three-day journalists’ training, Aldo Havugimana, the chairman of ARJ said that the training aims at equipping 60 journalists with professional reporting skills on tangible diseases such as Ebola.
He said it is an opportunity to meet and get experience from Health experts and the acquired knowledge will help journalists to report accordingly.
Rajat Madhok, UNICEF communication focal person and expert in journalism reminded journalists that their publications must impact the communities in a way or another, calling them to raise professionalism.
“Whatever you write, you say or publish in another way has a negative or positive impact on audience, people trust us and our publications, let’s transfer right messages to our communities,” he said.
Malick Kayumba, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Health told trained journalist that the ministry will keep on updating the media about new information about diseases so that they report accurately to save lives.
Journalists raised a wish to be vaccinated as they make part of people who can be easily infected by diseases like Ebola while on the field.
The Express News
