The African Media Development Foundation (AMDF), has opined that development communication is the linchpin for achieving the objectives set by the United Nations (UN) through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This was contained in a communique issued to newsmen by Mr Sekyen Dadik, the Executive Director of AMDF on Sunday in Kaduna.
BRANDPOWER reports that the communique was the outcome of the 2023 2-day annual Africa Conference on Development Journalism (ACDJ2023), organised by the AMDF with the theme “Sustainable Development, Media as a Catalyst”.
Dadik said that the media serves as a catalyst by raising awareness, fostering dialogue and inspiring action.
According to him, there is a need to collaborate and promote inclusive behavior that enhances sustainability to create a more promising future.
Dadik said that development communication does not only cultivate a shared understanding among diverse stakeholders but acts as a beacon that guides individuals, communities, and nations together toward a common vision and sustainable future.
While calling for forging partnerships between researchers, institutions, and communities, he advocated integration of scientific evidence into policy formulation, having communicated the research output to policymakers and the public.
“This will contribute to the creation of policies that are not only well-informed but also aligned with the aspirations of the SDGs,”he said.
Speaking further, Dadik called for collaborative efforts to be geared by the media, CSOs, and educational Institutions towards promoting civic education, public awareness, and participatory process in nurturing the culture of good governance and achieving UN SDGs’ objectives.
The executive director stressed the need for African media practitioners to play the role of drawing attention to the issues of malnutrition and complex agricultural phenomena, like price volatility, post-harvest losses, and food safety, among others on the continent.
“It is strongly believed that a State can only claim food security and sustainable development when it has enough available food and agricultural products to provide nutrition for its inhabitants,” Dadik added.
He, therefore, said the conference identified limited research on climate change in the media which has affected their crucial role in awareness creation to mitigate it.
While identifying some causes of climate change, such as livestock ranching and illegal logging, Dadik said the conference advocated banning clearing/cutting down of trees as well as amplifying policies that influence the need to protect the environment.
BRANDPOWER reports that the conference witnessed an assemblage of media professionals, CSOs, and NGOs from across Nigeria featuring keynotes, paper presentations, panel discussions, and networking.
As part of its commitment to promote the culture of in-depth development Journalism in the African media space, the AMDF presented the 2023 Journalist of the year award to Odeniyi Oluwatosin, Defence and Crime Correspondent of the Punch Newspaper.
The AMDF also awarded winners in various categories of print, online, radio, TV, and photography.
The winners were Jaiyeola Omolaja (Punch), photo category;
Chenemi Bamaiyi (TVC), TV category,
Shindong Bala (Radio Nigeria), radio category, while online category had Martha Agas (NAN) was the winner,
Phillip Yatai (NAN) 1st runner up and
Christian Njoku (NAN) as 2nd runner up.
BRANDPOWER also reports that, in print category,
Odeniyi Solomon (Punch) was the winner,
Chima Azubuike (Punch) 1st runner up, and
Ojoma Akor (Daily Trust) 2nd runner up.
Also, honorary lifetime achievement award for journalistic excellence was presented to a veteran broadcast Journalist, Hajiya Hauwa Saulawa, former General Manager of FRCN Companion FM Katsina, in recognition of her uncommon and immeasurable contributions to Development Journalism.
