The International Labour Organization (ILO) has launched a new migration reporting guide aimed at helping journalists produce more accurate, ethical and inclusive coverage of migrants and refugees amid growing cross-border mobility across Africa and beyond.
The guide was unveiled on Friday during a regional workshop bringing together leaders of journalists’ unions and media organisations from East Africa in Mombasa, Kenya.
Speaking at the launch, ILO Senior Technical Adviser Charles Autheman said the publication serves as a practical resource for journalists covering migration-related issues, offering guidance on reporting standards, terminology and the responsible portrayal of migrants and displaced populations.
Autheman said the guide is currently available online in several languages, including English, French and Arabic, but has yet to be translated into Swahili.
He noted that migration reporting continues to face challenges, including the use of inaccurate or potentially stigmatising language, underscoring the need for a common framework to support balanced and fact-based journalism.
“The guide is intended to assist journalists in reporting migration issues professionally and responsibly, while ensuring that the language used does not contribute to discrimination or misunderstanding,” he said.
The launch prompted calls for the publication to be made available in Swahili, a language spoken by millions across East and Central Africa.
Tanzania Journalists and Media Workers Union (JOWUTA) chairman Mussa Juma said translating the guide into Swahili would significantly expand its reach and usefulness among journalists, media students and communication practitioners in the region.
He argued that the growing international recognition of Swahili makes it an important language for disseminating information on migration, labour mobility and refugee issues.
“Swahili has become a global language and continues to gain prominence internationally. Making this guide available in Swahili would enable a wider audience to benefit from its content,” Juma said.
Responding to the proposal, Autheman welcomed the suggestion and indicated that discussions on a Swahili version were ongoing.
“We are working on it. Tanzania can also play a role in translating the guide into Swahili,” he said.
The workshop was organised by the ILO in partnership with the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), the Federation of East Africa Journalists (FEAJ) and the Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ).
Participants include representatives from Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, reflecting growing regional efforts to strengthen journalism standards and improve media coverage of migration and labour-related issues.
