Islamabad, 21 November 2015: A design workshop to help conceptualise Muhafiz, a digital solution for the protection of journalists was held at MMfD office on Saturday, 21st of November 2015. The workshop brought together a group of journalists and developers to brainstorm and design ideas.
Muhafiz is a digital safety net being developed by MMfD and Code for Pakistan to assist journalists document threats and connect journalists to national and international networks for support and assistance.
The workshop was held with support from United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, Pakistan. UNESCO is providing support for the development of the pilot phase of Muhafiz.
The design thinking workshop was aimed at developing an understanding between the journalists who will be the end users of this application and the developers who will code and design Muhafiz’s interface. The two stakeholders worked together to identify the key needs of journalists working in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA and identified the areas where technological solutions might be helpful.
“Solutions that do not involve direct input from the main stakeholders often run the risk of being removed from the ground realities. Through this design thinking workshop, we have tried to ensure that this solution, that is meant for journalists is able to truly cater to the needs, requirements, and priorities of the community”, said Asad Baig, Executive Director, Media Matters for Democracy.
The development of the application will be based on the findings of this workshop.