Mr Theophilus Abolga, Director of Justice, Peace and Humanitarian Response of the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Catholic Diocesan Development Organisation (NABOCADO), said the media had a critical responsibility to promote social cohesion and peace through conflict-sensitive reporting.

He said although the media had the power to expose conflicts and hold duty-bearers accountable, irresponsible reporting could deepen tensions, erode trust and potentially trigger further violence.

Mr Abolga made the call in Bolgatanga during a conflict-sensitive reporting training for journalists and other media practitioners in the Upper East Region.

The one-day training was organised by NABOCADO, with funding support from Misereor Germany, as part of the implementation of the Integrated Peacebuilding for Improved Food and Food Supply (INPEACE) project.

The project seeks to reduce violent conflicts and improve social cohesion within the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Catholic Diocese.

It is being implemented in 26 communities in four districts, including Bawku Municipal and Kassena-Nankana West District in the Upper East Region, as well as Bunkpurugu-Nakpanduri and Yunyoo-Nasuan Districts in the North East Region.

Mr Abolga said his outfit had mapped out 77 active conflicts within the Diocese, covering all 15 districts in the Upper East Region and five of the six districts in the North East Region.

He said the media could either “make or unmake” peacebuilding efforts depending on how issues were framed and presented to the public.

He urged journalists to use their platforms to highlight issues that united communities and promoted dialogue, rather than focusing solely on violence and narratives that could deepen divisions.

“Instead of escalating violence, our reports should rather build cohesiveness and give the necessary peace that is needed for coexistence, so that development and other social activities can take place,” he said.

Mr Abolga said the engagement was aimed at equipping journalists with the necessary tools to report conflicts in ways that promoted understanding, rebuilt trust and supported peaceful coexistence.

He said the region had over the years been associated with conflicts, particularly the Bawku conflict, which had contributed to a negative perception of the area.

He challenged journalists to help change that narrative by giving adequate attention to peacebuilding initiatives and positive developments taking place in conflict-affected communities.

Mr Ali Anankpieng, Peace and Security Consultant and former Upper East Regional Executive Secretary of the National Peace Council, who was the main facilitator, urged journalists to amplify peacebuilding efforts across the region.

He said although conflicts in areas such as Bolgatanga, Doba-Kandega and Bawku often received media attention, several initiatives aimed at preventing and resolving those conflicts were also taking place but remained underreported.

“Without the media, there is no way people really know what is happening, and everything else, all we hear is about violence,” he said.

Mr Anankpieng encouraged journalists to dig deeper into the underlying issues surrounding conflicts, interview stakeholders involved in peace promotion and give visibility to initiatives helping communities to return to normalcy.

“When we amplify only the conflict, then it will continue to scare people away. But when you begin to talk about peace, people will begin to have confidence to return to their place, and that is how communities are developed,” he said.

In a speech read on his behalf, Mr Albert Sore, Upper East Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association, commended NABOCADO and its partners for organising the refresher training.

He said the training had deepened journalists’ understanding of conflict-sensitive reporting and enabled them to report on conflicts more positively.

He urged journalists to focus on peacebuilding journalism to help promote peace and social cohesion.