The Head of Plans and Project department at the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economy Planning, Kenneth Kwujeli, has urged media practitioners nationwide to join hands with Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) to ensure the effective execution of the Nigerian Agenda 2050.
The call for collaboration was made during the inaugural Social Accountability Fellowship organized by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) in partnership with the Udeme Foundation.
At the two-day fellowship, attended by selected fellows from Nigeria and Ghana, the focus was on enhancing the capacity of journalists in West Africa to identify discrepancies in budget allocations and discern patterns in contract awards at the sub-national level.
Nigerian Agenda 2050 serves as a long-term economic transformation blueprint aimed at addressing the country’s challenges and elevating it to an upper-middle-income status with substantial economic growth.
Kwujeli expressed confidence in the achievability of the agenda and urged journalists to collaborate with NGOs to propel this ambitious vision forward.
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He emphasized the importance of fostering public awareness through engaging discussions that spur government action, while also urging the media to act as watchdogs in overseeing the plan’s implementation.
During the fellowship, Bisi Abidoye conducted sessions on investigative reporting, stressing the pivotal role of journalists in uncovering concealed information through legitimate means, thus serving the public interest.
Abidoye highlighted the necessity for comprehensive coverage that delves beyond surface-level reporting.
Ijeoma Okereke, and another resource persons at the event, encouraged fellows to produce reports that demand accountability from government officials regarding project execution and budget utilization.
The unanimous belief among participants was that the call for collaboration between media and NGOs underscores the imperative of transparency and accountability in realizing Nigeria’s long-term development goals outlined in Agenda 2050.
