Patricia Namutebi: Meet AWiM 22 Pitch Zone winner

Patricia Namutebi is one of the winners of the AWiM2022 Agenda 2063 Pitch Zone Awards.

Each year, during the annual African Women in Media Conference, female journalists drawn from the continent are allowed to pitch stories in the five categories to organisations that have partnered with AWIM to create a platform for female journalists and other media practitioners to engage and discuss key issues of the day.
The AWIM Pitch Zone is unique in that it provides journalists with a setting where they can showcase their creativity and ultimately be awarded the funding that will support their ambitions to see their stories come to life and give a voice to the communities represented in their final work.

Patricia won in the category of Africa’s Digital transformation Strategy – Positioning Africa for the 4th Industrial Revolution (related to Agenda 2063 Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa).

Bio

Patricia is a multi-media journalist based in Kampala. She holds a bachelor’s Degree in journalism and mass communication from Ndejje University. She is passionate about women’s empowerment. She is AWIM/UNESCO Peace and Security fellow. She has skills in reporting, research, public speaking, feature writing and video editing.

What difference will this award make in your career?

With this award, I am going to be able to influence gender policies as I am going to do a lot of research and relate a number of policies in African countries in relation to the African Union Agenda 2063.

Secondly, I am going to be equipped with a lot of knowledge and information through interviews and research. With this, I am going to use to empower African women using my communication skills.

Thirdly I am going to get exposure to a number of stakeholders including international organisations like UN Women and other leading African institutions. This is going to help me open doors for networking all over Africa and worldwide I am going to use these networks along with media and women’s organisations to create an impact.

What difference have you made as a journalist with respect to Africa’s Digital transformation Strategy?

I have changed a number of journalists’ perspectives in their ways of reporting. We are reporting for peace and security. We now ensure writing solution-based stories.

I am influencing national policies by interviewing a number of stakeholders inclusive of women leaders and activists and having their articles published inclusive of these are Femrite, voice media group, Voice for Peace, Ruhepai, and Uganda journalists Union among others.

I have familiarised my fellow journalists at workers Television, peace journalism Uganda, Uganda Broadcasting Corporation and my sources to use online platforms for information dissemination and a number of them are getting familiar with the online platforms.

What contribution have you made to the journalism profession that is most meaningful to you?

After my training with African women in media I have Introduced my fellow journalists to solution-based stories.

I have given a number of women in leadership a channel to the platform to tell their stories from different perspectives inclusive of peace and security, gender and community perspective. This is through interviewing them and writing their stories. The feedback after them reading their stories has been so amazing.

As a form of service for my community in Bwerenga in Entebbe Uganda I write and edit stories that influence people for my Rotary club annual magazine called ‘Ekyondo.’

I am encouraging book reading among the young generation at the community school in my area. I give free reading lessons to young people. Through this I am encouraging individuals’ early childhood information for information is power.

How would you use being the recipient of this award to influence others and how would it impact your career?

It takes a team to accomplish a goal. Having many women followers already, we will continue working and learning together.

I would call upon my fellow journalists to be resilient in the new digital era. Also to master the art of solution journalism while working on their stories is crucial. They should adapt, unlearn, relearn and learn new ways rather than resist.

I am going to influence other female journalists and in this way, I will be preparing them to change the way they live and work. This is through demonstrating to them on how I am using online platforms to accomplish a lot of work. This will bring about increased productivity among female journalists.

In addition to this, I am going to continue doing group trainings among female journalists and women organisations to help them with their communication strategies.

This is going to impact my career as a change-maker in women’s leadership in journalism.

What is your greatest career accomplishment?

My greatest career accomplishment is winning this award as it is a game-changer in my life. Am living my dream. As a six-year-old girl, I  always wondered what I would do for women in the Robotic era. I had always imagined that it would be sometime in the 2000s and here I am taking a lead by working on a documentary on Africa’s digitalisation Strategy. It is from here on that I am walking along in Africa’s journey to digitalisation until we get there. Special credit to African women in media, UNESCO has given me an opportunity for training and workshops and thus growing my journalism profession. This story is going to engage African women and the rest of the world for not only does Africa have the power to change its people but the world as well.

If you could do one thing, leave one mark on the journalism profession what would it be?

Leaving behind an empowered woman is my dream. I have started up my organisation Mpenzi media which I am going to use to empower women by equipping them with information and expressing their views on the impact and change in Africa.