THE International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) has announced the selected fellows for the second part of the Strengthening Public Accountability for Results and Knowledge Project.

According to a statement signed by her programme Officer, Ayisat Abiona, the project supported by the International Budget Partnerships (IBP), aims to examine factors contributing to the appalling state of maternal healthcare in Nigeria among others.

The project’s focal states are Oyo, Anambra, Niger, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Kano and Ogun states.

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Part of the statement reads, “For the agriculture sector reporting, our focus is on the daunting challenges that smallholder women farmers face in terms of lack of access to resources credit, grants, farm inputs, land and information needed for their agricultural business. They frequently lack the resources or capital to farm at a commercially viable scale and have little motivation to do more than is necessary for them to make a living.

“This is mostly due to their restricted access to farmlands, markets, loans, credit and grants, support services and inputs, all of which would have allowed them to boost their output and sales volumes.” 

“For the agric sector reporting, our focal states are Anambra, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Niger, and Oyo. For the health sector reporting, we are concentrating on the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF) and the Midwives Service Scheme (MSS) two key interventions of the government in the Nigerian health sector which have been confronted with numerous challenges, particularly because of inadequate budgetary allocations, misappropriation of funds and poor monitoring system. While the government has launched several reform measures to address various challenges in the health sector, basic healthcare services continue to elude ordinary Nigerians, particularly the most vulnerable people who live in rural areas.”

The project also aimed to address significant challenges, and power relations and provide system-level evidence across the two thematic areas on challenges in the delivery of BHCPF, MSS, and the Agriculture Development Projects across SPARK’s focal states – focusing on systemic, political, and economic issues such as inadequate budgetary support, the influence of party politics in policy, gender disparities as well as cultural and other nuanced influences that impact on outcomes.

The project will build the capacity of journalists to hold power bearers, policymakers, and implementers accountable by publishing focused special and investigative reports and documentaries on delivery end at Primary Health Care, Ward Development Committees, and across commodity groups within SWOFON networks in the focal states to report and investigate the health and agriculture sectors.

Twenty (20) journalists were selected from the states of Oyo, Anambra, Niger, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Kano, and Ogun across print, electronic and digital media.

The list of the successful candidates and their respective organisations is below:

1. Vincent Yusuf, Daily Trust
2. John Adams, The Sun Newspaper
3. Justina Asishana, Nation
4. Bawas khadija Ishaq, Liberty TV

5. Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim, Abubakar Rimi TV
6. Ibukun Emiola, NAN
7. Akinwale Aboluwade, Oyo Reporters
8. Emma Elekwa, The Nation
9. Ikenna Obianeri, Punch
10. Alfred Ajayi, FRCN
11. Nurudeen Akewushola, ICIR
12. Lawrence Nwimo, Ikenga Online
13. Dan Atori, New Telegraph
14. Ibrahim Hamzat Abaga, Transcontinental Times
15.Omoniyi Busuyi Kolawole, Cool Fm, Wazobia Fm, Arewa Radio, Kano
16. Stephen Enoch, Stallion Times
17.Oladejo Adebayo, Pharmanews
18. Royal Ibeh, Leadership Newspaper
19. Agboluaje Rotimi, The Guardian
20. Ojo Isaac Olufemi, Splash FM