Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, THE GAMBIA) – Reporters Without Borders (RSF), in collaboration with The Gambia Press Union (GPU), on Sunday, October 26, began a three-day training for 25 journalists on election reporting, safety, disinformation and hate speech ahead of The Gambia’s December 5 presidential election.
Funded by the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI), the training aims to equip journalists with the skills to manage physical and digital risks, report elections accurately and fairly, and respond to challenges including censorship, disinformation and hate speech.
The training comes as The Gambia prepares for the presidential election and the subsequent electoral cycle, expected to conclude in May 2027.
Delivering the keynote address, Information Minister Dr Ismaila Ceesay described the initiative as timely, noting that election periods often bring heightened political tensions and increased risks to journalists.
“Journalists have to report elections, but during elections tensions are very high, and we have to ensure journalists are safe when they do the reporting during elections,” Dr Ceesay said.
He said disinformation and hate speech were global challenges, citing recent elections in Brazil and other countries. He commended RSF and GPU for organising the training, describing efforts to strengthen journalists’ capacity as an investment in democracy and the credibility of public institutions.
Dr Ceesay urged journalists to prioritise accuracy over speed, warning that fabricated political statements and misleading information about election results could spread rapidly, confuse voters and undermine public confidence.
He also advised journalists to rely on results officially announced by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), cautioning against the publication of unverified figures that could create confusion and potentially trigger violence.
The minister defended the media’s role in holding the government accountable, saying criticism of the authorities should not be interpreted as disloyalty and that asking difficult questions should not be viewed as hostility.
Describing journalists as a torch that guides the government, Dr Ceesay stressed that accurate reporting was essential to helping citizens make informed decisions about the country’s future.
GPU President Isatou Keita said the training was taking place at a critical time, as public demand for credible, accurate and responsible journalism was expected to increase ahead of the election.
“During elections, citizens rely on journalists not just for the information, but for clarity. They depend on us to separate facts from falsehood, to provide context rather than causing some sort of confusion,” she said.
Keita said disinformation, online abuse and pressure during election periods made it essential for journalists to have the tools, confidence and support systems needed to work safely, ethically and independently.
She reaffirmed the GPU’s commitment to advocating for a safer and more enabling environment for journalists in The Gambia.
Ndeye Diary Ba, RSF’s project officer for Sub-Saharan Africa, said the country had made progress in press freedom, rising to 46th out of 180 countries in the organisation’s 2026 World Press Freedom Index, from 58th place in both 2024 and 2025.
She said fair, balanced and independent media coverage was essential to political pluralism and credible elections, but warned that electoral periods remained challenging because of political tensions, safety risks, disinformation and hate speech.
“The safety of journalists is a shared responsibility. It involves the media themselves, the authorities, the security forces, and all the stakeholders of the electoral process,” Ba said.
Martin Babin, representing the Canadian Embassy, said Canada was proud to support the initiative through the CFLI, describing journalists as essential to democracy.
“Democracy cannot function without informed citizens, and informed citizens cannot exist without access to credible, independent, and professional journalism,” Babin said.
He added that 25 journalists had been killed worldwide since the beginning of the year, while 430 had been detained as of the previous week.
Leave a Reply