Aden – January 25, 2019:
“The political news consumed our attention as journalists while covering the humanitarian suffering of Yemeni people remained out of our focus,” said Journalist Mohammed Amin at the end of a training session on writing human interest stories in Taiz. Mr. Amin outlined how the training workshop on writing human interest stories have changed his and his colleagues’ convictions towards the role of journalism in caring for people in need and providing solutions to their problems.
“The training workshop equipped us with profound knowledge and practical practices on writing and editing human interest stories, said journalist Badi Sultan at the conclusion of the training session which was concluded yesterday in Aden. The training workshop lasted for four days and was organized by the Studies & Economic Media Center (SEMC) in cooperation with the French Agency for Media Development (CFI).
This is the first time for Yemeni Journalists to be trained on writing human interest stories, where they received practical practices on this type of writing. Two training workshops were held, targeting 20 Yemeni male and female journalists in the city of Aden and Taiz.
The Executive Director of the Studies & Economic Media Center (SEMC)Mr. Mohammad Ismail said that the training program will not only qualify a number of Yemeni journalists to professionally write human interest stories but it will also lead into the formation of a network of humanitarian journalism in Yemen. The participants in the training will produce and publish human stories in the local media outlets to convey the suffering of the Yemeni people, added Mr. Ismail.
The two training workshops are part of a wider training program aimed at 120 journalists in five governorates: Sana’a, Taiz, Hodeidah, Aden and Hajjah. The aim of the training is to qualify Yemeni journalists for professional journalism and to shed light on the human interest stories objectively and in-depth.
The training program on writing human interest stories has been planned for a long time, said Ahmed Baider the National Coordinator of the French Agency for Media Development (CFI). Mr. Baider added that the agency aims to build the capacity of more Yemeni journalists during the next phase, considering it a valuable opportunity for Yemeni journalists to develop their capacities on this type of writing.
Mr. Baider also explained that the trainers were previously trained on writing human interest stories. He added that the training courses have so far targeted 40 journalists from four governorates while 80 journalists will be targeted at subsequent sessions.
SEMC is an NGO that works for Rehabilitation and awareness raising on economic and development issues, promoting transparency, good governance and citizen participation in decision-making, creating a free and professional media and Economic Empowerment for women and youth
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