Ouagadougou: Professor Serge Theophile Balima, a respected figure in journalism in Burkina Faso, called on Thursday for journalists and communicators to first develop their analytical and comprehension skills before being trained in the use of technical tools. 'Information and communication training must evolve. The challenge is not only the mastery of tools, but the ability to analyze, adapt and understand concrete situations. We must train people to think before we train them to use techniques,' said Professor Serge Theophile Balima on Thursday.

According to Burkina Information Agency, the teacher-researcher emphasized that a good professional is not one who merely handles a microphone or a camera, but one who understands what he is doing, why he is doing it, and for whom. He delivered this message at the opening of a symposium dedicated to him, recognizing his more than four decades of dedication to training media professionals.

"Today, educational content must aim to train individuals capable of understanding the link between information, society, and culture. The teacher must not be a mere technician transmitting knowledge, but a shaper of conscience, an awakener of minds," Professor Balima stated. He stressed the importance of maintaining moral, ethical, and social responsibilities within the information and communication professions.

Professor Balima asserted that one becomes a journalist or communicator through contact with reality, facing challenges, and confronting the truth. In what he termed his "final lesson," he encouraged his colleagues and students to be vigilant consciences, not just transmitters of messages.