Fuente : UNESCO
http://www.unesco.org/

UNESCO workshop on transparency and good governance generates new initiatives in Marshall Islands

/noticias.info/ The third in a series of UNESCO workshops in the Republic of the Marshall Islands dedicated to the principles of Good Governance and Transparency has seen the generation of two new initiatives by the staff of the government radio station, V7AB.

The workshops were held at the Marshall Islands Resort with trainer Peter May, a journalist with more than 30 years experience, working in conjunction with V7AB ‘s Manager, Antari Elbon.

One of the two initiatives concerns the need for establishing clear and concise freedom of news and information policy for government broadcaster. The other is a plan by V7AB to assist in raising public awareness of educational standards, especially in English communication, to meet the current educational crisis facing the island nation.

Establishment of a Written Cornerstone Statement for Freedom and Transparency in News Policy

Since it’s inception, the public broadcaster V7AB has operated without any written or clearly-defined news or information policy. Originally established under the office of the President of the Republic of Marshall Islands in the mid-1990’s, administration of the radio station was placed under the Ministry of the Interior and it has been the responsibility of that department of government ever since.

While the Republic of the Marshall Islands has several privately-licensed radio stations based in the capital on Majuro, the strong broadcasting power of V7AB generates the only radio signal which reaches the other 23 major atolls and the smaller islands, making V7AB the sole national source of news and information for much of the population.

During the workshop, a primary aim of the participants was to establish a concise and easy to understand cornerstone for a written news and information policy for the radio station which, following cabinet approval, could be instituted for the benefit of all. Since it’s inception, the government broadcaster has had no written policy for news and information.

Developing the draft policy involved wide-ranging discussions on transparency and how it links with good governance, including how the negative effects of control of information, corruption and cronyism at any level universally affect everyone in a society.

Also discussed was the news and information history of the radio station as well as instances of public criticism, and praise, of its news and information coverage.

It was agreed there was a need for a clear, concise, and transparent written news and information policy able to withstand public scrutiny which would eliminate the vagaries of operating under spoken directives and fulfill the right of the people of the RMI to freedom of information covering all points of view.

Participants noted as well that the new policy would have to cover traditional and cultural standards and how they might be protected from erosion by outside influences.

By the workshop’s end, all had agreed to the content and wording of a proposed basic cornerstone statement for news and information policy to be submitted to cabinet for approval. It was felt that this policy, if instituted, would improve the radio station’s coverage of news and events while at the same time eliminating much of the criticism which had been made in the past.

It is hoped the cornerstone policy statement will be presented to the cabinet at the first available opportunity.

Public Awareness of Education and its link to Governance and Transparency in a Democratic Society

The second initiative involved a crisis facing the nation’s youth in education, especially English language standards and the possible loss of accreditation by the College of the Marshall Islands (CMI) and recent evaluations which showed the English language skills of teachers in the nation were extremely low.

While many in the Marshall islands speak English and it the language of education, most spoken communication is in the Marshallese language.

Participants felt it was an issue important to transparency and governance, since at present and in the future better education and better understanding of national issues hinges on education, an immediate problem slowing the progress in their democratic society.

In the Marshall Islands, the school drop out rate is over 50%, youth unemployment above 80%, and the teenage pregnancy rate is the highest in the Pacific. Workshop participants decided that developing an educational awareness program designed to keep students in school and raise awareness of the need for higher English and educational standards would also help alleviate these problems.

They also recognised the accreditation crisis faced by the College of the Marshall Islands, which is threatened with loss of its accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in the United States. Without WASC accreditation, the CMI’s marks and diplomas would no validity outside the island nation leaving students and graduates without academic credentials for employment or further education abroad. Loss of accreditation would also mean the loss of millions in educational assistance grants.

Even as the workshop was winding up on June 10th, the College of the Marshall Islands was due once again to go before the WASC hoping for an extension of it’s accreditation.

The workshop participants agreed that they could assist the youth of the nation with an Educational Awareness Campaign, and at the workshop’s end were already in contact with some of the necessary officials in the aim of having the campaign on-the-air before the end of June.

(Article contributed by Peter May, Pacific Islands News Association (PINA)) notas_de_prensa_archivo