Data journalism in the service of citizens
The renowned coffee production of the Ecuadorian city of Jipijapa has earned it the nickname of "The Sultan of Coffee." However, its population is still deprived of an even more basic beverage: water.
Although there is enough potable water available to meet the needs of the population, the lack of distribution pipes forces citizens to buy it at high prices. In an investigation using data journalism, journalist Galo Mero determined that families in Jipijapa spend up to $60 (€53) per month to get water from tankers.
Following Mero's publications, the local authorities and those responsible for water supply promised to sanction those who sell at more than $30 (€27) per tank load. In addition, the president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, visited Jipijapa and delivered $10.6 million (€10.3 million) to the mayor's office to upgrade the potable water system.
Mero carried out his research and reportage during the DesenreDatos II training program, an initiative of Universidad de las Américas Ecuador. The project is supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and GIZ Ecuador and is implemented by DW Akademie.
Improving lives with data
Journalists and communicators from Ecuador participated in training and editorial mentoring workshops, developing skills to investigate the basic public services in their localities.
Through virtual meetings and hands-on workshops, the 42 participants learned to research and analyze the quality of life in their communities, from sanitation and nutrition to waste management and access to clean water.
"In DesenreDatos II I learned how to use data for my reporting," said Mero. "It allowed me to see how I can transform my journalism to better serve my audience."
Mero and his colleagues were accompanied by professionals from Latin America on topics such as access to open data, visual narratives with data, constructive journalism and media and information literacy.
"One of the biggest lessons I learned through this process was getting involved in data journalism," said Ruth Angamarca, a journalist with the community media outlet Radio El Buen Pastor in Saraguro, southern Ecuador. "I was really inspired to use all this public information to support the things we can transmit to our audience."
From journalistic theory to practice
After the training, 23 journalists published their work in national, local and community media. Among the topics covered were the vulnerability of young people to recruitment by criminal gangs, exposure to disease due to the lack of drinking water and the difficulty of access to public health care for elderly Kichwa people due to language barriers.
Those who made the most outstanding publications won a scholarship to deepen their research for an additional two months with the accompaniment of two editorial and data mentors. These investigations were supported by fact-checking by Ecuador Chequea and the security guidance of Fundación Periodistas Sin Cadenas.
"Investigative journalism with the use of data with a constructive approach strengthens the media's ties with its audiences and fosters social cohesion in the face of polarization," said Patricia Noboa Armendáriz, project manager with DW Akademie.
The scholarship recipients traveled to Germany for a knowledge exchange with professionals working on transparency, public services, investigative journalism with data analysis and constructive narratives. Over 10 days, they visited 16 civil society organizations and media, along with other public and private institutions.
"One of the experiences that stays with me the most was visiting the Bonn Institute, where they advocate for a solutions journalism approach," said Naomi Mosquera, a journalist and recipient of the scholarship. "[The approach] goes deeper than the issues that exist, to presenting viable answers and, above all, charting that path to solutions for more constructive conversations with audiences."
DesenreDatos is an awareness and training project focusing on journalism, transparency and open data in Ecuador. It has two editions. DesenreDatos II is an initiative of UDLA Ecuador with the support of the SinCero II Program of the German Cooperation GIZ Ecuador, implemented by DW Akademie and supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
