A civil society organisation (CSO), Civil Society Network on Migration and Development, (CSOnetMADE), in collaboration with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and European Union, has held a two-day capacity-building workshop for journalists on proper migration reportage.
The training held in Abuja Monday and Tuesday, had in attendance more than twenty journalists drawn from print, electronic and online media organisations, including representatives of IOM and National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and IDPs (NCFRMI).
Addressing participants at the workshop, CSOnetMADE coordinator, Dr Emeka Xris Obiezu, said the training is to ensure that journalists would learn key technical terms needed for effective reportage on migration and to improve on the protection of migrants and their reintegration in Nigeria through strengthening of Nigeria’s migration governance.
He revealed that the media remains a critical factor in the dissemination of information about migration issues, especially as it concerns Nigeria, even as he said the organisation will ensure journalists key into migration governance actively.
He said: “This workshop is conceived to build the capacity of media agencies by training practitioners to better reportage of migration issues, knowing terms, dynamics and trends. Journalists should know what is the missing link between the Nigerian government and the media in migration reporting. From the perspective of someone who is part of migration management, you find out that there is insufficient participation of the media in migration governance.
“Journalists are not present at the technical working group, where most of these issues are dealt with conclusively and comprehensively, so what gets out to them are flashpoints. And sometimes, when you pick flashpoints, you may not know the details. So, government, in terms of its technical group, might be doing one thing and the media will be reporting another thing; because of not getting the whole picture of what they saw.”
Also speaking, one of the facilitators, Prof Okechukwu Anthony Kanu, who is also the President Association for the Promotion of African Studies, said he expects participants in the workshop to correct the negative perceptions people have about migration.
“This training is sponsored by the EU, in collaboration with IOM and journalists are expected to make use of data to correct manner wrong perceptions people have with regards to data. They should know, at the end of this two-day workshop, the difference between brain gain, brain drain, brain circulation, among others,” he said.
