Communication officers in government institutions underwent training organized by the Ministry of Information in conjunction with the United Nations. This was in a bid to equip them with better communication skills.

During the three-day training that took place at La Pallise, Nyandungu, the officials were urged to use the information in their possession to bridge the communication gap between people and the government.

Gabrielle Uwimana, in charge of International Media Analysis in the Ministry of Information, explained that the training follows the decision to restructure communication offices making them key public offices to continue bridging the gap between people and government.

"Former personal assistants to the ministers will become advisers to the same ministers.

It is because communication is built around policy and implementation.”

"It is not just to inform, but to also get feedback from the people when they are not happy with the policies. It is a tool for good governance, bringing people closer to government,” Uwimana said.

Adeline Muhoza, from the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission [NURC], conceded that communication officers aren’t doing enough to ensure effective communication.
"We are still limited to press releases.

We also just talk about our institutions and their objectives,” she revealed.

One of the facilitators of the training, Paula Claycomb, senior adviser in the division of policy and practice in United Nations International Children’s Fund [UNICEF] said that in the case of illiterate audience, traditional techniques should be deployed.

"Instead of the informative technique of press releases, there can be usage of traditional methodologies like dance, song and mobile vans,” she said.

The training that concluded Thursday was carried out under the theme ‘Communication For Development’ (C4D).

Ends