SoMaSHTe organized a three-day training for journalists to cover nutrition governance on October 11-13, 2022.
Twenty-one reporters from leading national dailies and televisions participated in the course held at the Daily Star Center in Dhaka.
Bangladesh National Nutrition Council (BNNC), a dedicated public think tank on public sector nutrition activities, provided technical support to develop the course. The training was held under the engaging media in nutrition governance initiative of the “Collective Responsibility, Action and Accountability for Improved Nutrition” project of Concern Worldwide. The European Union funds this consortium project.
Topics such as the concepts and elements of nutrition governance, the nutrition governance situation in Bangladesh, challenges and ways forward, the role of mass media in improving nutrition governance, etc., were covered in training. Interactive sessions with experts and public officials, field visits, and preparing future story plans were included in the training. Dr. Mohsin Ali, a public health expert and a consultant at BNNC, Dr. Nusrat Jahan, Deputy Director of BNNC, Mir Masrur Zaman, Director at SoMaSHTe, Rezaul Haque, Research Director at SoMaSHTe, Prof Dr. Mofizur Rahman, Professor Dr. SM Shamim Reza of Mass Communication & Journalism Department at the University of Dhaka, Consortium Program Manager of Concern Worldwide Emranul Hoque facilitated various training sessions.
The Director of BNNC, Dr. Zubaida Nasreen, spoke at the opening session as a guest. In a later session, participants interacted with experts in an interactive session to gain insights on newsworthy topics related to nutrition governance. The session was attended by Professor Dr. Kazi Maruful Islam of the Development Studies Department of Dhaka University and BNNC Deputy Director Dr. Nusrat Jahan.
Participating journalists interacted with Bangladesh National Nutrition Council (BNNC) officials as part of the field visit on the second day. Facilitated by Professor Dr. Mofizur Rahman, Dr. Hasan Shahriar Kabir, Director General of BNNC, spoke at the session. Besides, BNNC officials, including Dr. Zubaida Nasreen, Dr. Akter Imam, Dr. Nusrat Jahan. Dr. Taherul Islam Khan, Dr. Nazia Andalib, and Dr. Md. Fazle Rabbi talked with the journalists about the role and procedures of the concerned ministries and BNNC in nutrition interventions. On the closing day, journalists prepared and presented their story plans to report on various issues related to nutrition governance. Professor Dr. Shamim Reza facilitated the session. BNNC’s Deputy Director, Dr. Akter Imam, Concern Worldwide’s Communication Coordinator Afroza Sharmeen and others spoke at the closing session. Sajia Afrin of SoMaSHTe coordinated the training course.