10 Journalists bag FAO media fellowships

The media fellowship project, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency, (CIDA) is a global project of the Food and Agricultural Organisation, (FAO) and The Emergency Center for Tranboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) in its bid to impact rural communities and examine the cultural relationships between chicken farming and the disease especially as it affected communities […]

The media fellowship project, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency, (CIDA) is a global project of the Food and Agricultural Organisation, (FAO) and The Emergency Center for Tranboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) in its bid to impact rural communities and examine the cultural relationships between chicken farming and the disease especially as it affected communities who have developed entrepreneurship in chicken farming and poultry.

With funds provided by the CIDA, the FAO of the United Nations in collaboration with the Nigerian government in September, 2009, launched a media fellowship project to document the impact of the highly pathogenic Avian influenza (HPAI) in Nigeria aimed at promoting in-depth reporting on the major health issue, using innovative multimedia communication approach which focuses on those most affected by the disease.

The media fellows are; Ajibola Hamzat, a freelance journalist with The Guardian newspaper who investigated the post avian influenza experience of farmers in south west Nigeria, Orija Oladimeji, an independent television producer based in Ilorin, Kwara State whose television  documentary chronicles a family line of chicken vocation; selling and slaughtering and Zarah Sambo  Ozobia of Africa Independent Television,(AIT)  who produced a television documentary which centers on the role of women and children in poultry production focusing on Tahoss, a village in Plateau State.

Others are Soibifaa Dokubo, a photo journalist from Bayelsa state, Nzeh Chiedozie Izzics, a print media journalist who worked on “impact of Avian Influenza on lives in rural communities”, a series of feature articles focusing on Abuja including its suburban areas, Thomas Odemwingie, Nonye Maria Aghaji, a producer with Vision FM, an Abuja based radio station and Zacchaeus Babalola, a reporter with Radio Nigeria’s national station, Abuja.

While speaking on the challenges he encountered during the project, one of the media fellows, Orija Oladimeji, who spoke to Sunday Trust said, “The challenges I encountered during the projects were from the responses from those I featured in the documentary. It is not easy to convince the local folks to talk about their experiences with bird flu especially with a video documentary. Many of them believed I wanted to use the opportunity to make money for myself. So I had to convince them that it is for the good of everyone since we are talking about the avian influenza the human face, they all cooperated with me eventually and here we are being appreciated for the efforts. I feel great, I am so happy. When you have a work that is recognized at the international level like this, it means that you are at your best. So I am so happy.”

Zarah Sambo Ozobia of AIT told Sunday Trust that “The entire experience was very challenging because; we were running projects side by side with the daily routine in the office. Already, I had my hands full with works in the office, and with this additional responsibility, I really felt overwhelmed. The demands were herculean and the challenges were enormous. Infact, I almost gave up. My instructor, Eugenia Abu, called me and told me that it is not all about the monetary aspects. The money may not be much but I should focus on where the projects would take the international exposure and all of that. So eventually, I managed to scale through. The money was meager at first with severe criticisms. We had to go directly to the rural people who spoke about their experiences with the avian influenza. You hear people treating the ailment with panadol and will insist that it is not new. I feel happy, I feel elevated and rewarded because it is commensurable with the efforts we put in. we all know that generally, journalism is a thankless job but for people calling outside the media to appreciate  our job, it makes me very happy.”

Prominent television presenter, Eugenia Abu, who was also a member of the media advisory committee said that “The project has been very well received in the media circles, the media fellowships to see how avian influenza has impacted Nigerian communities and then the Canadian organization that gave some money also did a wonderful job. We are grateful to them and FAO for organizing it all. It has shown that Nigeria has such capacity in the media field and this would sharpen their ability to deliver at an international level. I am very proud of all the media fellows. They did an incredible job.”

Speaking further, she opined that “It is a project that FAO decided to put forward by using  media to impact communities and see how cultural relationships  between chicken farming and the disease as it affected communities who have developed entrepreneurship in chicken farming and poultry. Poultry is a very big business in Nigeria; we eat chicken a lot so FAO decided to use some African countries to showcase how the disease has affected entrepreneurship and the solutions for it and how we use chicken for various purposes. . I think it is an incredible project to show off Nigeria’s culture using chicken outside Nigeria.”

Speaking at the launch of the media products, the chief technical adviser, ECTAD-FAO, Dr. rural dwellers, to talk to the media on their experiences with birds and avian influenza. It is a good opportunity to show off Nigeria’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, it is also an opportunity to remind ourselves that avian influenza is not yet over finally in spite of the success we have recorded in bringing it under control.”

Also speaking on the main objective of the media fellowships project, country representative of the FAO in Nigeria, Dr. Helder  Muteia said that “the main objective of the media fellowships was to document the experiences of various individuals  and communities  that were affected by the Avian influenza and to also document various socio-cultural practices involving the use of birds in Nigeria.

Commenting on the documentaries that were showcased by the media fellows, Dr.Muteia explained that “the products that have come out are breath taking. They are documentaries that explore the complex strands of affinity between birds and their human neighbours; there are radio and television programmes that reveal the immense contribution of birds to the livelihood of Nigerians; there are photographs that that show how birds have contributed immensely to Nigeria rich socio cultural heritage and many others.”

The media fellowships for each of the journalists include a honorarium of US$1,000 in naira equivalent, support cost for compilation and production of final materials based upon actual production costs, fund to attend the inception and review workshops in Abuja and a FAO media fellowship certificate.