The three-day training, now in its third edition and supported by the MacArthur Foundation, equipped the selected female journalists with tools to carry out investigative reports from a woman's perspective
To ensure that women can effectively tell their stories, especially from women's perspectives, the Women Radio Centre has trained 20 female journalists in investigative reporting.
The three-day training, now in its third edition and supported by the MacArthur Foundation, equipped the selected female journalists with tools to carry out investigative reports from the angle of the woman.
Convener and Chief Executive Officer of the centre, Toun Sonaiya, while speaking on the essence of the training, said it was important for women to tell their stories.
"If we do not build the capacity of female journalists to do their work well, our stories will not be reported properly. So, we came up with the Women Radio Centre strictly to train women in the media," she said.
Mrs Sonaiya noted that the training would also, among other objectives, ensure that the gap between young female journalists and the mature and experienced ones is bridged "so that we can continually tell the stories of women whether positive or negative."
"There are so many unreported stories of women. We found out that when we build the capacity of female journalists in their communities across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria, they will be able to tell the stories from their angle as it happens there.
"We think women in the profession need to be skilled to perform and compete with men. We are not saying men cannot tell our story, we are only saying that men can tell our story but a woman would tell it better," she added.
Building capacity
During the training, PREMIUM TIMES' Managing Editor, Idris Akinbajo, gave the participants a step-by-step guide on how to apply all investigative tools, including the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act.
Also, Maxine Danso from the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) taught the trainees how to detect digital manipulation using fact-checking and social media tools.
Participants learnt how to verify images and videos, and how to use Google advanced search, amongst others.
Charles Mbah taught the participants the practical tools required for sourcing credible data for investigative reporting.
Sulieman Yar'Adua, a Senior Lecturer at Bayero University, Kano and Busola Ajibola, Deputy Director at the CJID, harped on physical, digital and psycho-social safety.
Role of journalists in democracy
According to Dapo Olorunyomi, PREMIUM TIMES' Publisher, "Journalism serves as the accountability metrics."
He told participants that a free and independent press was a vital part of the institutional mix to play the three key roles of watchdog, agenda setting and gatekeeping.
"The watchdog or accountability role requires the press to provide oversight on powerful sectors," hence the need for the profession to be dominated by ethical people.
Mr Olorunyomi also taught the trainees the art of storytelling, the ethics of journalism and investigative tools for reporting women.
One of the trainees, Angel Nduka-Nwosu, a freelance journalist, said the initiative was a life-changing experience.
"To be very honest, this was a life-changing experience for me. The highlight of this training was the diversity of the participants involved. It was nice to have women from Northern Nigeria bring nuanced perspectives to issues such as teen marriage, period poverty and early pregnancy," Miss Nduka-Nwosu said.
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"I also particularly loved that we learned from established journalists and I loved how the sessions were interactive at the very core. Far more than that, I loved the sense of sisterhood and an urgency to tell women's stories that brought us all together."
Similarly, Sarah Agboola, one of the participants from LASU Radio, said going forward she would apply her newly acquired skills in her stories.
"I can confidently attest that this journalism training was a truly enriching experience that has significantly boosted my confidence and skills as a journalist," Miss Agboola said.
At the end of the training, all participants are expected to produce reports from the woman's angle using the investigative tools learnt at the training.
According to the organisers, the 20 participants were selected from 388 applications across Nigeria.
