THE Africa Women Journalism Project(AWJP), an initiative supported by the International Centre for Journalists in partnership with the Ford Foundation West Africa, is inviting interested women applicants to apply for its West Africa gender-based violence (GBV) reporting fellowship.
The fellowship is slated for January 2022 to September 2022.
The GBV program aims to examine and expose under-reported topics of violence against women.
This initiative will target three countries: Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal. Applicants must be proficient in the English language and French.
According to the partners, participants that will meet all the requirements such as attending and actively engaging in all the information sessions, pitching, writing, and publishing an in-depth article on the subject matter within the stipulated deadline will be shortlisted.
Twelve shortlisted participants will be up for a 9-month fellowship that will include: on-the-job mentoring and editorial sessions to produce high-quality journalism; training sessions focused on gender-based violence; and financial support and assistance.
AWJP says West Africa has a long history of gender-based violence, perpetuating a culture of impunity and the underrepresentation of women in positions of influence and power.
The crisis is exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in a surge in cases of domestic and sexual violence as the victims are isolated with their aggressors. Women in the region today are facing “two pandemics, ” while at the same time carrying the burden of caring for their families.
All 12 fellows will also receive a stipend of USD$150 per month (dependent on producing a story a month) to support their reporting over the duration of the fellowship.
AWJP says that Story projects on an issue that transcends one or more countries in the region will be an advantage. Solutions-oriented story projects will also be favored.
The fellowship’s goal is to increase the capacity of women journalists to understand the complexity of gender-based violence, exploitation, and empower them to cover gender-related issues.
Through its program, the AWJP is looking for 60 women journalists interested in revealing the scale of gender-based violence in the target countries.
The deadline for the submission of this program is November 5, 2021. Interested applicants can fill the form here.
Blessing Otoibhi is a Multimedia Journalist and Anchor host for the News in 60 seconds at The International Center For Investigative Reporting. You can shoot her a mail via Botoibhi@icirnigeria.org or connect on Twitter @B_otoibhi