The Women Radio Centre has commenced the training of 21 female journalists on investigative reporting from the woman angle.
Its communications officer, Elizabeth Aboh made the disclosure in a statement.
She said the centre has selected 21 journalists and journos for the 2023 female investigative reporting training from the woman angle to address under-representation and under-reported issues surrounding women with support from MacArthur Foundation.
Aboh said the 21 journalists from Nigeria’s six Geo-political zones were shortlisted from 1,552 applications and will be tutored and coached by industry experts, adding that successful participants who satisfactorily complete the training will receive accredited professional certificates from Nigeria’s top-ranking institution in journalism.
She said, “The 2023 faculty includes Dr. Dapo Olorunyomi – publisher Premium Times, Dr Suleiman Yar’Adua – lecturer and researcher at Bayero University Kano (BUK), Busola Ajibola – deputy director of the journalism programme at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Charles Mbah – program manager at Dataphyte, Silas Jonathan – researcher at DUBAWA Nigeria and Toun Okewale Sonaiya, MD Women Radio 91.7.
“It is imperative that we commit to unearth and uncover those stories that affect women and girls, with the overall goal of amplifying the voices of women,” said Toun Okewale Sonaiya of the Women Radio Centre. Our goal is to raise the next generation of female investigative journalists and create a balance in the investigative gender gap”, she stated.
The Women Radio Centre, which is the first female academy in Nigeria, was established to train women in media. It is expected that the Female Investigative Reporting Training will directly and positively impact society, expose and proffer solutions to issues that affect women and give the participants the opportunity to produce compelling stories that would amplify the voices of Nigerian women.
The centre (first female academy) is an initiative of Women Radio 91.7, Nigeria’s only radio station for women and their families.