As the month of July drew to a close, a large section of Nigeria’s media managers gathered in Abuja for a media sustainability conference on future-proofing Nigeria’s journalism.
The conference, which held over two days was jointly put together by the Media Development Investment Fund (MDIF), MacArthur Foundation, and the Dr Theophilus Abba-led Daily Trust Foundation.
Alongside the media managers in attendance were hundreds of journalists, media teachers and media NGOs from Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa that gathered under one roof, for vibrant and lively discussions of issues such as media sustainability and national accountability, support for independent media and lesson’s learnt, sustainable and thriving: the agile media organisation, habits of sustainable media organisations, maximising revenue in media operations, realities of doing journalism and running sustainable media business in Nigeria and tools and strategies for future-proofing media businesses, which were delivered as solo presentations and moderated discussions.
Under these themes, participants discussed how to build strong, profitable media businesses, as according to Harlan Mandel, managing director of the MDIF, good ideas and solid strategy will not save a newsroom without strong leadership, which could make or break the organisation’s journey of sustainability.
Dr. Kole Shettima, director of Nigeria’s office of the MacArthur Foundation, in his keynote address sought to proffer some thoughts on the question of the role of media in strengthening accountability.
Other key note speeches were given by Dapo Olorunyomi, publisher of Premium Times and CEO of Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, Bilal Randeree, Chief Program Officer of MDIF, Prof. Umaru Pate, Vice Chancellor, Federal University Kashere, Kabiru Yusuf, and Kabiru Yusuf, Chairman, Media Trust Group. Catherine Gicheru, NAMIP Advisory Chair led other members of the Board comprising Ruona Meyer, Motunrayo Alaka and Prof Suleiman Yar’adua in a discussion on the Lessons from NAMIP Advisory Committee.
In addition to the keynotes were more than ten presentations in the forms of of panel discussions, fireside chat and workshops by the NAMIP team.
Goodwill messages were delivered by the Minister for Information and National Orientation Muhammad Idris, representatives of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN, Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, Nigerian Guild of Editors, NGE and International Press Institute, IPI.
The Conference preceded the close-out event of the MDIF programme in Nigeria - the Nigerian Media Innovation Programme, NAMIP, which ran for 3 years.
Twenty-seven independent media organisations across the country formed the nucleus of the programme, which main objective was “working to increase capacity, generate sustainable and diverse revenue streams, and build audiences of independent media in Nigeria, particularly those reaching underserved communities”.
For the cohort members, NAMIP provided real opportunities for mentoring, through workshops and training on sales, marketing and leadership institutions.
