Legit.ng journalist wins top fellowship programme in Nigeria's capital city, Abuja

• After many years of hiatus, ImpactHouse and SSPL will host a journalism fellowship from Monday, June 2024 to March 2025, bringing together top journalists, civil society persons, and industry leaders
• For ten months, 27 journalists from nine states will track and report on state governments’ gender responsiveness in education planning to prompt attention and action from policymakers and decision-makers
• Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is one of the journalists selected to benefit from the programme

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering education in Nigeria and worldwide.

FCT, Abuja - A Current Affairs editor at the Current Affairs desk of Legit.ng and 26 others have been selected to participate in the second edition of the ‘Change Reporting Media Fellowship on Gender Responsive Education Sector Planning (GRESP)' in Nigeria.

The journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has written extensively about education in Nigeria.

A journalist with Legit.ng, Ridwan Yusuf, has been selected for the Change Reporting Media Fellowship on Gender-Responsive Education Planning. Photo credits: @ImpacthouseCfDC, @ridoradeola
Source: Twitter

First held in 2014, the 2024 edition of the fellowship on GRESP — according to the organisers — is designed to equip fellows with the advocacy skills to significantly amplify the importance of gender equality within education systems across states and demand action from concerned authorities.

Other fellows include Omoniyi Kolawole of Cool FM, The Guardian's Rauf Oyewole; Gombe Media Corporation's Rebecca Maina, and Jesse Tafida of TVC News, among others.

Legit.ng reports that the Change Reporting 2.0 fellows were selected from Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Oyo, and Sokoto states.

Idea behind the Change Reporting Fellowship

For the next 10 months, the fellows will be supported with capacity building and other resources to track and produce impactful journalistic work on state governments’ gender responsiveness in education planning.

The programme would integrate development project analytic skills, 'which create measurable impact and issue-based reports, and traditional journalism skills and ethics, which create compelling and credible stories'.

It would also offer a structured framework for fellows to deepen their knowledge about education policies and practices that are sensitive to gender issues, particularly explaining girls’ education outcomes and access to education.

According to a statement made available to Legit.ng on Sunday evening, June 23, Murtala Adogi Mohammed, the founder and executive director (ED) of SSPL, said:

"To enhance access, transition, completion, quality of education, and equity, education systems must be designed to be gender-responsive."The Education Sector Plan (ESP), as a country's blueprint for education reform, provides a crucial opportunity to integrate gender equality into every aspect of education. Additionally, provisions must be made in the state budget for the implementation of a gender-responsive sector plan."

On his part, John Andah, the ED of ImpactHouse, said:

"After a rigorous selection process, we are incredibly proud to welcome this group of journalists to the Change Reporting 2.0 Media Fellowship on GRESP judging by their expertise and interest in covering education issues."Their dedication to uncovering and telling important stories about education is truly inspiring, and along with our partners, SSPL, we look forward to supporting them in their efforts to trigger positive change in basic and senior secondary education in Nigeria, especially with respect to ensuring an inclusive and equitable educational environment."

Legit.ng reports that the fellowship officially begins on Monday, June 24, 2024, with a two-day capacity-building programme in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

Legit.ng journalist among delegates at journalism dialogue

In a piece of related news, the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) held a journalism in May in Abuja.

Nurudeen Lawal, the head of Politics and Current Affairs Desk at Legit.ng, was one of the journalists selected by the CJID as a media delegate to attend the event.

Source: Legit.ng