On Friday, September 8, 2023, a team of twelve students from Institut Catholique de Kabgayi (ICK) completed a five-day intensive training on Investigative Journalism held at ICK’s Campus.
Organized and sponsored by Fojo Media Institute through the Rwanda Media Program, the training was led by Swede Mr. Arash Mokhtari.
The training focused on best practices in news gathering and reporting. Some of the participants told ICK News that the training was useful to them.
Solange Uwamahoro, a year-one journalism student, explained how productive the training was.
“What I can say is that this mentorship equipped me with knowledge, especially in Investigative journalism. I thank those who prepared it because it helped us upgrade our skills in In-Depth Journalism,” she stated.
This sentiment was echoed by Obed Muhire, a year-two Journalism student, who highlighted how he benefited greatly from this mentorship, especially in terms of conducting interviews and meeting deadlines.
“I attended last year’s training, which was somewhat similar to this, and I think I gained more experience in conducting interviews, meeting deadlines, and socializing with my fellow trainees,” he said.
He also added, “Being selected for this training means that you’re doing great because they have selected the ICK News reporters.”
In addition to expressing their appreciation to the organizers, Muhire expressed his hope for the next training to be even more productive.
“I would say that so far, they are doing a great job, but I wish that next time our travels to gather information could be financially sponsored,” he added.
Mr. Arash Mokhtari, who trained the students, shared his observations about the trainees.
“I have learned that you have learned a lot during this week, and it is interesting to see your struggles and help you overcome obstacles, witnessing you all do very good work in a very short amount of time,” he said. He added, “Well, obviously, people who were a part of the program last time were much more confident; they knew what they needed to do, and the results of their work were really good.”
He also urged the trainees not to let their newly acquired skills go to waste but to use them in their daily activities, especially in their journalism careers.
“I just want them to continue to find stories that are relevant to the people here and to continue to go in-depth and learn more and more through research.”
This training took place a few days after the delegation from Fojo Media Institute ‘Lars Tallert the Senior Advisor Policy & Development and Maya Verma Alm, Communications Officer at Fojo Media institute’ visited Institut Catholique de Kabgayi (ICK) to observe the impact of the partnership between ICK and Fojo Media Institute.
During the visit, Tallet expressed his gratefulness to the partnership between Fojo and ICK
“It’s a great thing that the students are benefiting from the partnership of Fojo Media Institute and ICK,” said Tallet.
Two years ago, Fojo Media Institute began sponsoring a program to assist media students in four universities in Rwanda through the Rwanda Media Program.
