More than 4,000 journalists who are registered members of the National Union of Campus Journalists (NUCJ) have requested for collaboration with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) to improve the quality of journalism at Nigerian campuses.

Paying a courtesy visit to the ICIR in Abuja on Wednesday, Ibrahim Alawode, National President of the association, commended the media organisation for its efforts in raising the standard of journalism in the country.

He lamented the poor quality of journalism being practiced in higher institutions, saying his members require suitable training and mentoring to build capacity in investigative reporting and ethical practices.

“What we want from you is training and mentoring to improve the kind of journalism we do on our campuses. Many of our members engage in unethical practices and do not have skill in investigative reporting,” Alawode said.

“In the past, our members have been used by politicians in very unethical ways and we feel that if you can help to build capacity for them it would improve the quality of the journalism we currently practice.”

In his response, Dayo Aiyetan, Executive Director of ICIR, expressed delight at the request and offered to collaborate with NUCJ on training and mentorship.

He also spoke on ICIR’s collaboration with media houses to build the capacity of journalists for critical reporting

“We realise that many newsrooms in the country are in bad shape and most journalists lack capacity to do critical investigative reporting that could hold government accountable and promote transparency in government,” Aiyetan said.

“This is why we are working with journalists and newsrooms to build their capacities and support them to produce investigative contents that promote accountability, transparency and good governance.”

Aiyetan added that ICIR had offered a platform on its website for campus journalists to report critical issues that expose corruption and promote good governance on the campuses.

ICIR is an independent, non-profit news agency that seeks to promote transparency and accountability through robust and objective investigative reporting.