First MédiaLab pour Elles workshops begin

Both of these initial sessions mark the start of a series of workshops on and investigations into data journalism based on accessible open data concerning gender and gender inequality and the start of strong and sustainable collaborative investigations.
This training brought together 12 journalists – 6 in Douala, Cameroon, between 1 and 5 March with the assistance of ADISI Cameroun, followed by another 6 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, between 8 and 12 March.

Thanks to the trainers, Paul-Joël Kamtchang and Madeleine Ngeunga in Cameroon, and Satou Kane and Anderson Diedri in Côte d’Ivoire, these journalists were introduced to the techniques and issues of data journalism and worked on their shared topic of investigation.

Médialab pour Elles [MédiaLab for Women] aims to provide guidance and support for two collective investigations in each country, organised in groups of three. The projects were therefore redefined and given a fresh focus. In Cameroon, this focus was on education and literacy for young girls in rural areas as well as the role and position of women in the digital economy.
The investigations in Côte d’Ivoire delve into the impact of COVID-19 on the income-generating activities of women and girls in Greater Abidjan’s informal sector, as well as gender inequality among the migrant community.

Follow-up sessions are scheduled to be held in both countries in May and then July. In late March/early April, identical training sessions will also be organised in the other two countries involved in this project, Niger (Niamey) and Madagascar (Antananarivo) respectively, to strengthen the momentum of gender equality-related data journalism across the borders of French-speaking Sub-Saharan Africa.