Upper East GJA Awards: Dr. Apaak urges journalists to report on human-centered issues

‎Deputy Minister for Education Dr. Clement Abas Apaak has encouraged the media to continue reporting on health, water and sanitation challenges until meaningful responses are achieved.
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‎Speaking at the 5th Upper East Regional GJA Awards on Saturday October 3, 2026,Dr Apaak said challenged to intensify reporting on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) conditions in health facilities, particularly because such basic services directly affect the safety and dignity of mothers and newborns.
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‎Dr. Apaak said clean water is essential to ensuring that new mothers can maintain hygiene after delivery and that health workers can provide proper care in a safe environment.
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‎He said journalists should investigate the realities facing women who use health facilities, including how long facilities have lacked water, how nurses are coping and what health authorities are doing to address the situation.
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‎“Those are the questions that turn a report about missing infrastructure into a real examination of how it affects people,” he said.
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‎Dr. Apaak said a report on a health facility without water should not end with the initial publication, but should prompt journalists to return and establish whether promised interventions were actually implemented.
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‎“If a borehole repair, a new toilet, or reliable water for a maternity ward was promised, go back. Is it working? Was it built? Is water flowing?” he asked.
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‎”Therefore, a news story should not end with the statement, “Hospital has no water.” Journalists must go further by asking: Who uses the facility? How long has it been without water? How are nurses and other health workers coping? What does the District Health Directorate say? And what practical measures can be taken to address the situation?” he added.
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‎The Deputy Minister also urged journalists to place the experiences of mothers, nurses and pregnant women at the centre of their reporting rather than reducing maternal health challenges to statistics.
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‎He noted that maternal deaths have consequences beyond figures in reports, affecting children, families and communities.