The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has sought the partnership of the media on the reportage of disaster and emergency in the country.
The Director-General of NEMA, Mustapha Ahmed stated this at a workshop for media practitioners on Saturday in Lagos.
The workshop is titled: “Disaster Resilience in Media: Sensitization Workshop on Promoting Ethical and Impactful Reporting for Media Practitioners.”
The aim of the workshop is to provide an opportunity for NEMA to interact with media practitioners, share learning and insights and equip media practitioners with knowledge that would help in their reportage as well as enabling them to mediate misinformation, disinformation and fake news while building resilience in the sector.
In his keynote address, Ahmed said that NEMA intends to foster collaboration and networking between itself and the media.
He said that the goal of NEMA is to facilitate effective information disemination during emergencies.
“By working together, we can ensure that timely and accurate information reaches the public, creating much needed awareness and enabling them to make informed decisions and take necessary precautions where applicable,” Ahmed said.
According to him, the objective of the workshop is to provide a clear understanding of NEMA’s remit, Nigeria’s triple response structure and NEMA’ s relationship with subnational actors.
He enjoined media practitioners to act as gatekeepers in this era of disinformation.
“We trust you to act as the bulwark against misinformation and fake news and the shenanigans of citizen journalists and fifth columnists,” Ahmed said.
Also, NEMA’s Director, Special Duties, Dr Onimode Abdullahi, in his technical presentation, explored the history of NEMA, the agency’s mandate and efforts in disaster management in Nigeria.
The first panel discussion focused on “Navigating Challenges in Disaster Reporting, Insights from Media Practitioners,”
The second technical presentation “Collaborative Approaches in Disaster Reporting, Strengthening Partnerships for Effective Communication was led by Communications Management Expert, Chido Nwakanma.
PR and Development expert, Toni Kan facilitated the third technical presentation on the theme: “Ethics in Disaster Reporting: Balancing Sensationalism and Responsible Journalism
