The Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism on Saturday marked the beginning of a new decade of its Report Women! initiative by shortlisting 12 female journalists including Dana Zagi, for the sixth Female Reporters Leadership Programme (FRLP) Fellowship.
PERISCOPE NIGERIA reports that Zagi is the Gender Lead at Media Trust Group. She had a stint with Progress FM Gombe State as a continuity announcer and presenter.
This was contained in a press statement by Motunrayo Alaka, Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of WSCIJ, obtained by PERISCOPE NIGERIA in Gombe State.
Alaka disclosed that the 12 were carefully selected through an intensive training and mentoring programme, adding that the sixth edition of the FRLP Fellowship aims to equip participants with the skills to champion the cause of improved leadership status of women in the news, newsrooms, and society.
The statement partly read, “We are excited to launch this new decade of the Report Women! initiative, which has been instrumental in promoting gender-focused investigative journalism in Nigeria. This milestone marks our renewed commitment to strengthening women’s leadership in newsrooms and amplifying the voices of women in the media.”
The statement added that the 12 selected journalists were chosen from a competitive pool of 160 female applicants including Melony Ishola, Head of Programmes, Video Unit, PUNCH; Aisha Gambo, Senior Correspondent, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN); Jemilat Nasiru, Staff Writer, TheCable; Juliet Buna, reporter and editor, Crest 91.1FM; Bilkis Lawal, reporter and editor, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (Bond FM); Rasheedat Iliyas, Manager, News and Current Affairs, Radio Nigeria Harmony FM; Temitope Obayendo, Online Editor, Pharmanews; Mary Agidi, Features and Opinion Writer, The Hope; Dana Zagi, Gender Lead, Media Trust Group; Chigozie Victor, Senior Editor, Zikoko Citizen, Big Cabal Media; Christiana Alabi-Akande, Managing Editor, Development Reporting Service; and Gloria Attah, news anchor and reporter, Clearview Television.
“The fellowship is designed to empower female journalists with the skills and knowledge needed to take on leadership roles in their newsrooms and to produce high-quality, gender-focused investigative reports,” Alaka explained.
Our correspondent reports that the Report Women! initiative has been supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation since 2021. Over the past decade, WSCIJ has trained 537 journalists across Nigeria and Ghana, supported 136 stories and 138 leadership projects, and published six research reports on women’s representation in the media.
“We are proud of the impact we have made so far, and we look forward to continuing our work to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in the media,” Alaka said.
