UMWA calls for more women representation in media

Women continue to receive disproportionately low representation in Uganda’s media despite making up more than half of the country’s population, the Uganda Media Women’s Association (UMWA) has said.
 
Speaking as part of the celebrations of 25 years of Mama FM, a woman voice centered radio station owned and run by UMWA, Ms Margaret Ssentamu, the UMWA executive director, said research conducted over the years shows that women constitute only between 20 and 24 per cent of voices quoted, seen or heard in the media, compared with men.
 
“When it comes to the voices of women in the media who get quoted, seen or heard, both global and national research has shown that women constitute between 20 and 24 per cent. The rest of the voices are representative of the male gender,” Ms Ssentamu said.
 
She questioned why women, who constitute the majority of Uganda’s population and contribute to national development, should be allocated less media space.
 
“We have done quite well for some time now to train the media on gender responsive reporting and also the women in how to speak and express themselves and also deal with the media that is usually a little bit more hostile to the women; why would it be that the media still gives them less space?” she said.
 
She, however, said achieving equal representation requires government intervention, arguing that existing media laws do not adequately respond to gender concerns.
 
“The government of Uganda has, within their own powers, to make this happen. But when you look at the media laws, they are also gender unresponsive,” Ms Ssentamu said.
 
She attributed the slow progress partly to inadequate implementation of gender policies and limited resources for institutions mandated to promote gender equality.
 
“You are very much aware that the government of Uganda, under the Ministry of Gender, they have the National Gender Policy, but it is never implemented,” she said.
 
Meanwhile, Ms Safia Nalule Juuko, the chairperson of the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), urged UMWA to strengthen collaboration with government institutions to advance gender equity.
 
She said UMWA could work with institutions such as the Uganda Communications Commission, the Ministry of Gender, the education and health ministries, as well as the Equal Opportunities Commission, to promote public participation in government programmes.
 
“As much as they are civil society, UMWA can team up with respective government ministries and institutions to ensure that there is gender equity compliance; that way, I hope women’s representation in the media will effectively increase,” she said.