The International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) has announced the successful candidates for its “Promoting Democratic Governance in Nigeria Project”.
The project aims to strengthen the capacity of the media to promote transparency, accountability and good governance in Nigeria, particularly in the Northwest and is supported by the United States (U.S) Embassy in Abuja under their “Public Diplomacy Small Grants Programme”.
Additionally, the project is set to allow Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to advocate with journalists in order to enable them to share information, data, and intelligence, which can be the basis for accountability and transparency reporting that both parties will work on in Northwest Nigeria.
The project also aims to boost capabilities and offer financial backing to chosen journalists collaborating. The focus will be on producing investigative and data-driven articles addressing transparency and accountability concerns in the North West region of Nigeria.
The centre plans to enhance its ongoing efforts for open contracting and procurement by empowering journalists and CSOs. This empowerment involves strengthening their abilities in real-time investigative reporting to ensure accountability and transparency, thereby keeping the government responsible.
A total of 20 journalists have been selected across the Northwest states of Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa and Zamfara from print, electronic and digital media. The list of successful candidates and their respective organisations are as follows:
| S/N | NAME | ORGANISATION |
| 1. | Musa Rabiu | HotPen Media |
| 2. | Idris Kamal Ibrahim | WikkiTimes |
| 3. | Abdulwaheed Sofiullahi | Freelancer |
| 4. | A’isha Ahmad Isma’il | AllnewsNG |
| 5. | Mohammed Bawa Abduljalil | Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) Birnin kebbi |
| 6. | Ahmad Shereefdeen | The News Digest Press |
| 7. | Abdulrasheed Hammad | Freelancer |
| 8. | Bello Bahara Hafsat | Premier Radio |
| 9. | Adamu Ibrahim | New Nigerian Newspaper |
| 10. | Sardauna Francis | ThisDay Newspapers |
| 11. | Annagu Francis | The Nigerian Voice |
| 12. | Muhammad Abubakar Tahir | Blueprint Manhaja Newspaper |
| 13. | Suleiman Shafa’atu | RMTimes Newspaper |
| 14. | Aminu Alhussaini | Vision FM Sokoto 92.5 |
| 15. | Ekwenugo Nonye Juliet | Leadership Newspaper |
| 16. | Bello Abdulrazak Kaura | Radio Nigeria (Pride FM Gusau) |
| 17. | Saidu Khadijat | The Nation Newspaper (Vintage Press Limited) |
| 18. | Andrew Sabatu Machika | Kebbi Broadcasting Corporation |
| 19. | Usman Salihu Danjuma Zulaiha | Kano Focus Newspaper |
| 20. | Adamu Mustapha Yauri | News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) |
Note: The list was updated to remove Shehu Muhammed Shehu and Adamu Sadiq while adding Andrew Sabatu Machika and Sardauna Francis.
Multimedia journalist covering Entertainment and Foreign news
Congratulations to you all, especially my my comrade Francis may you all succed in you chosen career.