Ghana, China to exchange journalists

A COLLABORATION between the National Media Commission (NMC) and the Chinese Embassy to establish ties between journalists of the two countries has been sealed with an arrangement to establish exchange programmes.
The purpose is to help deepen the bilateral relations between Ghana and China and to create the platform for journalists of the two countries to enrich their skills and professional knowledge by drawing lessons and experiences from each other.
The Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Gong Jian Zhong, expressed these sentiments when he paid a courtesy call on the Chairman and members of the NMC on Tuesday as part of a familiarisation visit to institutions since his appointment as ambassador three months ago.
His visit to the NMC was to reinforce the relationship between the two organisations, especially in the areas where Ghana and China shared common interest, and to continue from where his predecessor left off.
The ambassador said the world had become a global village as a result of news transmission, noting that the media could be seen as performing their roles responsibly if their mediums were used to effect changes that impacted positively on society.
He stated, for instance, that the media could be seen to be engaged in responsible journalism if it directed its energies towards creating awareness on environmental sanitation and other areas that enhanced national development.
Mr Zhong, who traced Ghana’s 60-year bilateral relationship with China, described diplomatic ties between the two countries as historic and recalled the support Ghana gave to China when the former was canvassing for support to obtain a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
To that end, he said, he was proud to be an ambassador of his country to Ghana at this particular point in time, adding that the Ghanaian media had contributed enormously in exposing China to the outside world in relation to its fast pace of development.
Mr Zhong, who started his career as a press officer, appreciated the difficulties journalists often faced in the pursuit of their work and urged them not to compromise their integrity but rather use their tools to promote the positive development of Ghana.
Accompanied by the Third Secretary at the Chinese Embassy, Zhang Qian, the ambassador said China was committed to partnering Africa in its development agenda, hence the decision of the Chinese government to focus its investment drive on Africa, hoping that Ghana could draw useful lessons from his country by cutting its dependence on foreign donors.
The Chairman of the NMC, Mr Kabral Blay-Amihere, commended the Chinese government for its continued support for Ghana, particularly in the area of media development in Ghana, recalling the support the embassy provided the Ghana News Agency.
He told the ambassador that the NMC had been the only constitutionally mandated body for the promotion of media and journalistic standards in the sustenance of good governance following the introduction of multi-party democracy in Ghana.
He said a strong and vibrant media was a prerequisite for attracting foreign direct investments and as such the President, Prof. J.E.A Mills, in an encounter with members of the NMC recently, made a strong commitment to ensure a free and responsible press.
Mr Blay-Amihere, who is a former Ambassador to Sierra Leon and Cote d’Ivoire, however, indicated that the NMC was confronted with hordes of newspapers and radio stations, which brings in its wake irresponsible journalism.
He said the collaboration of journalists from the two countries was a further step to promoting South-South co-operation between Ghana and China.