The  2011  World  Conference  of Science Journalists (WCSJ) took place in Doha, Qatar from June  T from 27 to 29. It attracted more than 700 registrants from over 90 countries, the biggest of its kind to have been held by  any  branch  of  the  journalistic profession.

AMMREN  Executive  Secretary,  Charity Binka, attended the conference. She was among  20 Wellcome  Trust  and  Scidev bursary award winners  from Africa.  In an  interview  she  asked  Justa Wawira,  Head  of  External  Relations,  KEMRI- Wellcome  Trust  Research  Programme, Kenya  her  views  on  the  need  to  train more science  journalists.

Q: What  exactly  do  you  think  is  the difference the science journalists are making  in our society?
A:  African  science  journalists  are making  a  very  big  impact  in  science communications  and  this  they  do  by communicating  scientific  information to  non-scientific  audiences.  For  a  long t i m e ,   s c i e n t i s t s   h a v e   b e e n   communicat ing  in  jargons.   But   journalists come in as a bridge between the  scientists  and  the public. They  are able  to  actually  communicate  in  a language  that  the  local  person  can understand.

Q: What do you think African science journalists can do to perform better?
A: I think for science  journalists  in Africa to be more effective they need to be very current  on  scientific  discoveries  and issues. They need to be very current on what  is happening  globally but  also  in Africa. They need to look at the science coming  out  of Africa.  In  addition,  they need  to  be  able  to  contextualise  the research  that  has  relevance  to  the person  in  the  village.   The  need  to  be able  to communicate  the research  that the person in the village can understand and  the  impact  it has on  their daily  lives.

Q:  Do  you  think  African  science journalists  are  equipped  enough  to face  out  the  challenge  that  you  are talking about?
A:  I  think  there  is a  challenge  there  in terms  of  capacity  building  for  African science  journal ists.   In  terms  of   knowledge  and  access  to  resources, African  science  journalists  need  to  be encouraged  to  source  for  information from global networks to actually be on top  of  things  so  that  they  can  remain relevant.

Q: How can we get African journalists to make scientific stories “the story of the day”?
A:  The  Journalists  do  not  find  science appealing.  They  think  science  is  not  a hot topic to cover and I want to tell them that science sells and it sells because is about life and about health. Everything about health affects your life.   People do not want  to  read  about  statistics  they want  to  read  about  Science. Stories must be of human interest to make them worth reading.   Journalists have to take up  the  challenge  to  write  powerful
human stories around science.

Q:  I  know  that  many  research organizations  are  not  paying  much attention to communication by giving it a budget. Why  is that?
A: Most organizations do not prioritize communications.  They  wait  until  they see a crisis before they react. I think all organizations in Africa should prioritise and budget  for communication.

Q:  Some  of  the  communication officers  at  research  sites  are  really junior  officers  who  are  not  at  the decision making table. How then can they  influence  policy  and  make  a meaningful  impact?
A:  It's  a  sad  affair  sometimes  when communication officers are not placed at  very  senior  levels  in  organisations. These  organisations  should  promote communication  officers  so  they  can occupy senior positions. However, if one finds  oneself  in  a  junior  position,  one way of  influencing  the seniors  is  to prove what  one  is  capable  of  doing  by developing  networks  and  showing  the impact  of  your work  and making  sure the senior management buys  into your work  so  that  they  can  support  you  to achieve more.