US lays $50m on Nigeria’s table to help burnish democracy worldwide
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
America the bastion of democracy basking in its successful 2022 midterm elections has laid $50 million on Nigeria’s table to achieve the same feat in 2023, in a crunch vote on which way Africa’s largest democracy swings between old and new forces.
The money will cover the training of journalists and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), as well as technical assistance, among others, to ensure transparency and credibility, the twin election pillars that have eluded Nigeria since independence.
US Consul General Will Stevens announced both the initiative and the backup money in Ibadan at an election reporting workshop for journalists organised by West Africa Broadcast and Media Academy (WABMA).
He disclosed Washington has been working with partners through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to ensure every vote counts in Nigeria in 2023, and stressed the value of voting and protecting a free press.
“The US government has allocated over $50 million for technical assistance and support, trainings, for civil society organisations to support elections, transparency, elections processes, technical assistance, working on the IT systems among others.
“We’re committed to initiatives here in Nigeria to build needed capacity,” Stevens said.
“We funded training for hundreds of journalists on topics ranging from fact checking, health reporting, defense and national security reporting, investigative journalism, election reporting and media ethics.”
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Desire for credible, transparent, peaceful ballot
“We really want to see a credible, transparent, peaceful election, which represents our will for the Nigerian people. We are encouraging people by funding the ballot process to encouraging people to vote,” Stevens stressed, per The Nation.
“We want people to participate in democracy; they should feel like they have a stake in the democracy. That is why we are interested in training journalists so that when they read your reports, they should feel like they’re part of the Nigerian project.
“I’ll leave with the journalists with the words of one of my heroes, American investor and philanthropist, Warren Buffett, who said, the smarter the journalists are, the better is the society will become.”
The workshop was facilitated by Lai Oso, a Professor and former Dean of the School of Communication, Lagos State University (LASU).
“The training will provide journalists accurate information about the activities of all the political actors, parties, so that the average Nigerian can be well informed and be able to take the right decision when it comes to voting,” Oso said.