The International Press Centre (IPC), the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria-Phase II (EUSDGN II) project’s lead partner for component 4 (Support to media), has started a four-series of specialized skill-enhancing sessions to prepare and enable female journalists to cover public interest stories surrounding the 2023 election from a more nuanced gender perspective and using data skills and investigative methods to combat stereotypical reporting practices.
The first leg of the training, organized in collaboration with the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), took place in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, on November 7, 2022, with 32 female journalists in attendance, primarily from the southern regions of the country. The second training, anticipated to draw 35 participants will be held in Abuja on 21 November 2022.
The specific objective of the media component is to ensure that, “The Media, including New and Social Media, provides fair, accurate, ethical and inclusive coverage of the Electoral Process”.
The overall goal is to “Support the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria with the media (broadcast, print, and online media) helping to facilitate the key ingredient of credible elections through engagement and professionalism in coverage and reportage of the electoral processes”.
By embracing data tools in reporting the electoral process and the elections, the IPC program hopes to position female journalists to offer impactful, investigative, and reporting of public interest on the political process. In order to create and publish special reports that are professional, inclusive, conflict-sensitive, fact-checked, and data-driven, the sessions are designed to put female journalists at the forefront of election reporting.
Participants in the workshop would be expected to present compelling story ideas, and the resource person would offer editorial guidance and mentorship.
According to Mr. Larne Arogundade, Executive Director of IPC, “within the framework of supporting the media by improving the gender stereotyped representations of women’s political participation, the skill-enhancing session for the journalists is imperative to re-direct and prospect opportunities for new impactful and professional reporting of the electoral process while empowering female journalists as agents of change”.
Mrs. Motunrayo Joel, Deputy Editor Africa- Check, Nigeria, Dr. Titi Osuagwu, University of Port- Harcourt, and Taiwo Obe, Founder Journalism Clinic, facilitated the first training in Port-Harcourt, incorporating the topics; “Factual accuracy and combating fake news: The place of fact-checking and data use in reporting of 2023 elections”, “Electoral Processes & 2023 Elections: According Priority to Issues of Women and other underrepresented groups” and “Impactful Reporting of Electoral Processes and 2023 Elections: Focusing on Issues & Telling Stories That Matter and Conflict-sensitivity and safety in election reporting.
Mrs. Moji Makanjuola, CEO, of the International Society of Media in Public Health, David Ajikobi, Nigeria Editor, Africa Check, and Taiwo Obe, Founder of Journalism Clinic, will facilitate the upcoming training in Abuja.
Throughout the pre-election and post-election cycles, IPC intends to mentor and teach a total of 140 female journalists from print, online, and broadcast media centers.