SPECIAL: 2023 Nigeria Media Capacity Development Report Out!

We are excited to finally have our 2023 Nigeria Media Capacity Development Report out for you to read about the various capacity development programmes done in Nigeria by different media institutions in the previous year.

This newly released report offers more than the usual documentation of programmes, as we went the extra mile to survey the thoughts of journalists who are beneficiaries of these programmes about the current state of media training and how it can be improved.

Since 2021 when the first edition of the Nigeria Media Capacity Development report was released, we have consistently published the report annually making this latest one the fourth edition in its history. As we noted in our Media Career Weekly newsletter, the report is part of our effort to encourage journalists to take advantage of available career development opportunities actively.?

By documenting who is doing what in the media industry we provide a valuable resource for media professionals to know where and when to look out for opportunities and how to get them. And journalists have been using this resource in various ways to give themselves an edge in maximising opportunities in the media sector.

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Highlights of Report.

• We have consistently documented the programmes done by various organisations to develop the capacity of Nigerian journalists so this year we set out to offer more insight into the media capacity development space by asking the beneficiaries of these programmes. Three key questions were important for us to answer: How equally distributed are these training opportunities to Nigerian journalists? What is the focus of the training and the training needs of the journalists? How can the training experience be improved for Nigerian journalists?

After getting responses from over 50 journalists across Nigeria, we found out that an average journalist attended 3 training in 2023, only 26% attended more than 5 training, 74% of the surveyed journalists attended less than 5 training and 11% did not even attend training at all throughout 2023.

Similar to the previous year, investigative, fact-checking and data journalism took the lead in the focus of training, and there were training on digital publishing, election reporting, multimedia reporting, environmental journalism and some other topics. However, only one respondent cited attending a health focus training.

There were many suggestions for improvement of the training programmes but the popular opinion includes, incorporating of practical hands-on sessions and field trips in training as it reinforces learning, trainers are also advised to take training beyond popular Lagos and Abuja, to more needing areas where journalists reporting from there rarely get training opportunities.?

• Expert views of media professionals are a core part of the annual report and this year, we interviewed the Programs Director of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) on emerging issues that Nigerian Media should pay attention to in 2024. Mr Akintunde Babatunde advises the Nigerian media to use it agenda-setting power to latch on to globally important matters, bringing them down to local realities and focusing on them in order to make an impact. He also advise media support organisations to not only support journalists but their editors and newsrooms with training and technical support in order to achieve more impact with their work on the sector.
• The training, fellowships and media support programmes for journalists by organisations like Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) , Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development , Media Development Investment Fund 's NAMIP, International Centre for Investigative Reporting (The ICIR) , INTERNATIONAL PRESS CENTRE , @AFYMP and many others are making a robust impact on the work of journalists and media houses in Nigeria. However, streamlined training, mentoring and support offered by organisations of seasoned journalists and mentors help consolidate learning and give needed platform and support for journalists. Organisations like @Step-Up for Women In Journalism Initiative of Ann Godwin , helping journalists in PortHarcourt and Southeast, Media Mentors Network of Justina Asishana in Niger State, LightRay Media and Foundation of Lady E Ejiro Umukoro , @Media Mentors Journalism Centre of Joke Kujenya and many more like that all contribute to the development of the Nigerian media ecosystem.
• There are also invaluable programmes of media support, activism and advocacy organisations like Media Rights Agenda (MRA), ActionAid , Human Rights Journalists Network Nigeria (HRJN), CEMESO NG , PAGED Initiative - Participatory Communication for Gender Development nitiative and others organising training, supporting and working with journalists to ensure an equitably developed Nigeria through the existence of a free, safe and vibrant press.
• Corporate organisations in Nigeria through their media engagement and CSR projects also periodically hold programs targeted at media professionals. We highlighted some notable ones, like the MTN Media Innovation Program (MTNMIP) a media fellowship program powered by MTN Nigeria and executed by the School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria , 雀巢 Nigeria’s? Media Sustainability training conducted in collaboration with Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University ’s Sustainability Centre, both annual flagship media engagement programmes of the business organisation. Other companies that conducted training include the Dangote Industries Limited and Polaris Bank Ltd. ?

The 2023 Nigeria Media Capacity Development Report offers more than just a compilation of programmes done by media and media support organisations last year but a valuable insight into the development of the Nigeria media ecosystem and how journalists and other stakeholders can key into these opportunity trends to achieve their personal goals.

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This report publication is one of the ways we support media professionals in the careers as we also have other resources on our website and offer training, mentoring, coaching, networking and support that journalists may need.

Thank you for reading this edition of MCDN Media Career Diaries (MC Diaries) a community-powered and community-focus publication for the Nigeria media professional community. Please ensure the success of this publication by engaging with it and sharing it with your colleagues.

As a community-powered publication, we need your input and feedback to keep it going, feel free to reach out to us with any information on X, LinkedIn or through Info@mediacareerng.org; mediacareerng@gmail.com +2348050498530.