By Alinafe Kaphaizi
The Network of Journalists Living with HIV (JONEHA) conducted its 2022 Annual General Meeting on 30th August, 2022 at Hill Side View in Mponela. The Annual General Meeting was preceded by the Board meeting on 29th August 2022 at the same venue. The two meetings were held under the theme “moving JONEHA forward”. Among others; the theme allowed both the Board and the Annual General Meeting to reflect on the past nine years since the organization attained its legal status in 2013 and envisioning its future.
Steered by the new Board of Trustees; the Annual General Meeting recommended that the organization should go through a strategic planning process. It was agreed that the strategic planning process should be guided by a theme “Living Our Vision”. The Annual General Meeting and the Board; being top governing structures of the organization advised management to identify a reputable consultant to facilitate the strategic planning process with full participation of membership. The two governing structures further recommended that a constitutional amendment be concurrently undertaken with the strategic planning process. This was to allow the two framework documents to align.
“As members and management; we are inspired by the Annual General Meeting and the new Board of Trustees to strategize our JONEHA journey that should cover years 2023 to 2027. So 2022 will go down in our history as a year of reflection, a year of re-envisioning. We are being challenged to think big and follow an inclusive approach in contributing towards sustaining the epidemic control. HIV infects and affects not only journalists but media practitioners and their audiences as well; irrespective of their social status; preoccupations and geographical location. There is therefore need to consider a more embracing definition of membership and consequently the name of the organization.
Thus; the Annual General Meeting and the Board of Trustees recommended identifying gaps in the constitution that would be talking to the strategic framework. For example; given global experiences with COVID19 and existing technologies; should the Board and Annual General Meetings be limited to in person? Is the constitution clear on member obligations and benefits? What are the penalties for members who don’t pay their annual subscription? Would creating a member data base not help reflect status of a member in terms of annual subscription?” rejuvenated David Kamkwamba; Executive Director for JONEHA.
Speaking during the opening of the Annual General Meeting the Chairperson of the JONEHA Board of Trustees Mr. David Mhango; who is an experienced and accomplished corporate manager pointed that as a Board they see the commencement of the strategic planning process in JONEHA as a tool to enable them illustrate their role and that of JONEHA as an organization. He said that their role as a Board of Trustees could only be demonstrated if all who are interested in ending AIDS by 2030 hold their hands in support.
Appealing to those interested in the cause of JONEHA; Mhango said
“We need you to join us in ensuring that JONEHA’s strategic planning process turns the current organizational situation into a model of viable learning, inclusivity, growth and sustainability from a governance, management, programmatic and financial viewpoints. Any moral, technical, material and financial contribution to this cause will be recorded as a legacy in supporting the media and their audiences in promoting quality health service delivery in Malawi”
