The Women Radio Centre, supported by the MacArthur Foundation has again trained 20 journalists on investigative reporting making a total number of 63 journalists trained so far.
The training which is the third of its kind started on 13th May and ended on 15th May 2024, it was held at the Women Radio Centre Arepo, along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, in Ogun State.
Among 388 applicants for the Female Investigative Journalism Training 3.0, only 20 candidates were selected across the six geopolitical zones. WikkiTimes Journalist Salamatu Nuhu was among the selected participants.
The training objective is to address the gender gap in investigative journalism, ensuring that both men and women have equal opportunities to tell their stories.
The Chief Executive Officer of Women Radio Centre, Mrs. Toun Okewale Sonaiya motivates the fellows to soak in all the learning and become the voices of women in their communities. She said no one can tell a women related story better than a woman.
“It is very important for women to tell the story of women. If we do not empower and build the capacity of female journalists to do their work well, our stories will not be reported properly”
“There are so many unreported stories of women and we found out that when we build the capacity of female journalists in their communities across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria, they will be able to tell the stories from their angles
Mrs Sonaiya explained further that, the centre had received more than 2000 applications but could only take a few due to financial constraints.
“As of today, we have trained 63 female journalists, that’s the capacity we have. In the past three years, we have had over 2000 applicants. We would really love to train them all, but we can’t”
She urged fellows to make the centre proud by bringing out compelling stories about women that will influence policy changes in the country.
WikkiTimes’ Publisher, others Calls for Awareness on Journalists Mental Health
The lead Facilitator for the training, Mr Dapo Olorunyomi said having an institution like Women Radio Centre is a valuable asset for women’s progress.
“Increasingly, the society is witnessing greater odds, barriers and hedges against the progress of women. The truth is that the portrayal of women and their issues are not getting better in the media”
“For that reason, there is a need to have an institution that will give attention to these kinds of problems and it so happens that the Women Radio Centre is uniquely placed, and I know no other organisations of its type in the country that is available for its kind of mission. And you see that the challenge meets its full match in WFM”
He described the 2024 Female Investigative Journalist Training 3.0 fellows as a unique class.
“This class is a very unique class, Very smart people. I see their pitches too, and they have the best coaches as well.”
Highly experienced journalists and lecturers were carefully chosen as facilitators to mentor participants, equipping them with the skills to excel as top-tier investigative journalists nationwide.
The facilitators who imparted at the training were the publisher of Premium Times, Mr Dapo Olorunyomi, The Managing Editor at Premium Times Mr Idris Akinbajo; and the Deputy Director of CJID Mrs Busola Ajibola.
Others include Assistant Professor and Researcher at Bayero University Kano, Dr. Suleiman M Yar’adua; Senior Researcher at Dubawa Ghana, Maxine Danso; Program Manager at Dataphyte, Charles Mbah.
Also present at the training was Ramatu, the reporter of the “5000 Naira Abortion Doctor” story. She shared her experiences with the participants.
At the end of the training, certificates were awarded to the 2024 Female Investigative Journalist 3.0 Fellows, and mentors were assigned to guide them through their pitched stories for a period of three to four weeks.
