CJID Onboards THE WHISTLER Journalist, 20 Others For UDEME Social Accountability Fellowship

The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) has onboarded no fewer than twenty-one journalists for its 2024 UDEME Social Accountability Fellowship.

The journalists, including THE WHISTLER correspondent in Sokoto State, Shafa’atu Suleiman, were selected from various reputable media organizations across Nigeria and Ghana.

During the two-day virtual workshop, the Project Manager of the Fellowship, Ijeoma Okereke-Adagba, said the selected journalists have demonstrated dedication to investigative reporting and their potential to effect positive change through their journalistic works in the society.

She noted that the fellowship is aimed to equip journalists with the necessary skills to conduct in-depth investigations into issues related to good governance, transparency, and accountability.

“The Fellowship will also empower you to have common knowledge to identify red flags in budget line items and unique patterns in contract awards at the sub-national level,” said Okereke-Adagba.

The Chief Executive Officer of CJID, Dapo Olorunyomi, urged the fellows to uphold the ethics of journalism, which include truthfulness, accuracy, accountability, and dedication to public purpose

The CJID’s Director of Programmes, Akintunde Babatunde, who dwelled on using data for visualizing impactful stories, urged the participants to always inculcate data-driven stories for better impacts.

Other facilitators include Mr. Kenneth Kwujeli of the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning takes the participants through the Agenda 2050, stressing the roles of Civil society organizations and the media in Nigeria.

Others include Mr. Bisi Abidoye an Assistant Managing Editor at PREMIUM TIMES, Dubawa’s Editor, Kemi Busari, Silas Jonathan among others conducted various practical sessions with the participants where they enlightened them on how to produce impactful investigative stories.