Photo: Participants at the training programme
Angela Atabo
Connected Development (CODE)has strengthened the Capacity of civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and media practitioners on how to enhance Nigeria’s civic space and save it from shrinking.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the training for journalists and CSOs, titled ‘Digital Media & Collaboration for Civic Inclusion (DMCCI),’ was organised CODE with support from Oxfam and the National Orientation Agency in Abuja.
Ms Msen Nabo, Digital Media Associate at CODE, said that civic space is created by a set of universally-accepted rules, which allows people to organise, participate and communicate with each other freely and without hindrance, and in doing so, influence the political and social structures around them.
Nabo however, said that space was shrinking for Nigerians especially in terms of press freedom and thus, needed to be revived for democracy to thrive.
She listed intimidation, harassment, violence, censorship laws, fines, lawsuits, cybercrime laws among others as some of the mediums used to suppress press freedom.
“Press freedom is a fundamental aspect of any democratic society, as it allows citizens to access information and holds those in power accountable, it serves as a check on government power ,exposes corruption and wrongdoing and promotes accountability .
“It is up to the media and CSOs to create a healthy civic space for Nigeria and improve press freedom,so I recommend engaging in citizen-led journalism to gather reports and share eye witness account of incidences , speaking against attempts to restrict press freedom through proposed legislations, and support media outlets by sharing their stories and donating to their cause are some ways to improve the civic space.’’
Nabo therefore, urged participants to unite and create awareness as agents against the shrinking civic space for a sustainable democracy.
Dr Augustine Okere, a Facilitator at the training, highlighted the challenges CSOs face in effectively influencing policy in Nigeria,in spite of a more favorable socio-political environment.
Okere said that while recent positive changes such as democratisation, freer markets, and globalisation have improved the climate for CSOs, their impact on policy worldwide remained comparatively low.
He called for the need for research-based evidence on development issues in CSOs’ work and urged them to scrutinise national policy processes and intervene strategically in every stage of the policy process.
“CSOs should present credible, practical, and relevant evidence which is most likely to have a policy impact,” Dr. Okere said, adding that greater networking among CSOs and other stakeholders can amplify policy-related evidence and mobilize resources, increasing their lobbying potential.
“Several barriers to CSOs’ engagement with government policy, includes hostile governments marginalising their research and service delivery, inadequate understanding of policymaking processes, and communication strategies that fail to present data accessibly.
“Additionally, technical and financial capacity constraints limit smaller CSOs’ ability to participate in policy discussions.’’
Okere therefore ,called on CSOs and media practitioners to be abreast with government policies and continue to engage them for a safe civic space for all citizens.(NAN)
