The Afghan Journalists Safety Committee (AJSC) held consultative meetings in Herat, Kandahar, Balkh, Nangarhar, Khost, Parwan, Kunduz, and Ghazni provinces to examine the challenges journalists face in accessing information and identify ways to improve access.
The meetings brought together officials of the provincial directorates of information and culture, AJSC zone coordinators, spokespersons and representatives of several local government institutions, as well as active journalists from the respective provinces. Participants generally described the situation regarding access to information as improving.
However, participants identified several challenges, including difficulties accessing information in districts, the absence of spokespersons in some government institutions, limited capacity among some spokespersons, incomplete press releases, limited or late invitations to journalists to attend events, and unequal access to interviews with officials.
Journalists also highlighted difficulties in obtaining complete and timely responses, conducting interviews and fieldwork, accessing information for women journalists, obtaining immediate information during emergencies, and accessing first-hand information required for investigative reporting.
Government officials at the meetings emphasized the responsibility of media officials within government institutions to provide information to journalists and said efforts would be made to establish more effective mechanisms for facilitating journalists’ access to information.
AJSC has been consistently working to address challenges facing the work of journalists and facilitate a safe environment for them.
