PRNigeria Advocates Niche Network for Reporting Education Sector

PRNigeria Advocates Niche Network for Reporting Education Sector

PRNigeria, a renowned privately run news agency in the country, has called for the deliberate democratisation of media reporting on the education sector in the country by enabling niche networks focusing solely on educational policies and its implementation.

The Head of Investigation, Fact-check and Special Projects, Mr Mohammed Dahiru Lawal, stated this on Sunday at the Aminu Kano Center for Democratic Studies, Mambayya House , during a one-day parent/teachers seminar on implementing a standard of educational policies in Kano State organised by the Network for Youth Enlightenment and Development (N-YED).

Dahiru who spoke on the role of media in evaluating the efforts of good implementation of educational policies in Kano State, said that such niche network will allow for the total democratisation of the sector, enable all voices to be heard, hold people in power to account and enable the country’s challenges in education to inch gradually towards the desired solutions.

“Just like we have Network of Sustainable Development Journalists, Nigerian Journalists for Climate Action Network etc, beyond the Education Writers Association we must have the Journalists Network for Educational Development or something of that nature because the development partners like UNICEF, UN, EU etc need to understand that training and reporting grant intervention is needed in this niche area.

“Additionally, we must look for ways of absolving politics from education policies. Politicians cannot make policy pronouncements and paper works that are not being practised just to look good and ramp up electoral value while in reality the situation is dire and the people suffer the consequences. The mass media must understand that it has a role in reporting the gaps between policy pronouncements and reality while also proposing solutions,” Dahiru who is also the Executive Secretary of the Network of Advocates for Digital Reporting (NADIR), stated.

Also speaking, the Executive Director N-YED, Comrade Abdulsalam Sulaiman, said the programme which was organised with support from Hameer Investiment Nigeria Limited was targeted at sorting out ways forward in implementing the education policies of Kano State.

Other dignitaries at the event include Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, an Islamic Cleric; Honorable Umar Haruna Doguwa, Kano State Commissioner for Education; Alhaji Umar Ado Bayero, Yariman Masarautar Kano; and Ambassador Lami Bako Yakasai, National Coordinator of Enlightenment and Development of Northern Women Initiative among others.

By PRNigeria