Fredrick Mugira, Coordinator and Editor Water Journalists Africa Network Http://Waterjournalistsafrica.Wordpress.Com/About/ / Editor with Vision Group, Uganda Http://Www.Visiongroup.Co.Ug/ , Uganda

What water-themed work have you been working on (reporting, editing research)?

• Integrity in the water sector
• Prioritization of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene issues in development agenda
• Effects of climate change on WASH sector
• Water, sanitation and hygiene governance

What areas of your work in water have generated the most significant public response?

• Effects of climate change on WASH sector
• Integrity in the WASH sector

What barriers are there to reporting on environment and sustainable development issues in your region (eg. lack of public interest, censorship, pressure from advertisers etc)?

• Lack of journalist’s exposure to concepts in environment and sustainable development issues.
• Misinformed and uninformed local communities that fail to demand their right to water.
• Corruption in WASH sector.
• Lack of time and money for mostly journalists in private media houses.
• Concentration on promoting consumption of products.
• Political interests of media coverage in Africa.
• Lack of interest amongst Africans journalists.
• The media’s short attention span.
• Complex, boring and hard to understand nature of environment and sustainable development issues.
• Competition from sensational stories which are cheap to cover and attract readers readily.

What is tough to sell to editors in water/sustainable development/environment? Why do you think this is the case? Please detail with specific examples from your experience

• Scientific research from experts in the water/sustainable development/environment areas. Whereas such researches are very important, it remains tough to sell them to editors because most researchers use jargons, complex, boring and hard to understand terms in their researches and/or press releases. If such terms are not simplified by an experienced reporter, the editor will ignore the story because it will certainly not sell; it will remain hard to understand and may not attract readers.

What do you feel has been successful and unsuccessful in your work in this area? Please detail with specific examples from your experience.

• Working through Water Journalists Africa Network http://waterjournalistsafrica.wordpress.com/about/ , I have, in the last three years, been able to establish a strong network of African journalists who produce and publish water and water related stories for sustainable water development on the continent.
• But even though these journalists are willing and enthusiastic about reporting water and water related issues, I have however not been successful in strengthening their capacities to report quantity and quality stories that invoke positive changes in the water sector across the continent due to various problems including lack of funds to facilitate their training and sponsoring them through grants to investigate and write about these issues.

Please present your proposals for communications and media projects. This is your chance to pitch the UN.

• I have attached to this mail a concept note for a Water Reporting Project titled: Africa Water Reporting Project to be implemented by Water Journalists Africa http://waterjournalistsafrica.wordpress.com/about/ in partnership with the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Tanzania Chapter

You are expected to produce some work at the conference. What do you plan to do?

• I plan to write news stories and features that will be published by different media houses including: Water Journalists Africa http://waterjournalistsafrica.wordpress.com/about/ , The Netherlands’ based- The WaterChannel http://www.thewaterchannel.tv/ and the media house I work with here in Uganda- Vision Group http://www.visiongroup.co.ug/