AMDISS Director Irene Aya address a conference in Juba. 2nd Nov. 2021. (File/Courtesy).

A media advocate is calling on the government and donors to support journalists through capacity building and access to information to enable the media to accurately inform the public.

Aya Irene, the Director of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan (AMDISS), said media is crucial in providing news and information to the public, adding that access to public data can be easily enhanced if journalists are well-trained and equipped with the necessary tools.

Speaking to Eye Radio’s Dawn Show, Irene encourages donors and well-wishers to proving financial assistance to media houses and journalists to allow them continue informing the public.

“Let us not just brag about having the law, access to the information in place, but let us implement it in letter and spirit. And this call for the effort of the stakeholders, it should not just left to the media,” she said.

“The donors should ensure that they support the access to information commission, they should support training of journalists, because those are ingrediencies that can lead to access to information. There is need to support the media houses to be able to do their work in a way that can serve the community.”

According to the Right of Access to Information Bill 2012, every South Sudanese citizen shall have the right to freedom of information, including the right to access information and Records held by Public or Private Bodies, including electronic Records in the possession of any level of government in South Sudan, any organ or agency.

The law indicates that an exception is only where release of such information is likely to cause serious prejudice to public security or the right to privacy of any person.