THE International Centre for Investigative Reporting (The ICIR) has concluded a three-day training for select journalists on Tax Justice, Equity, and Transparency Project.
The training which had participants drawn from Lagos, Kano, Taraba, and Cross Rivers State across print, electronic and digital media, was held in Abuja between Tuesday, December 5, and Thursday, December 7.
The project supported by the International Budget Partnership aims to enlighten Nigerians and stimulate discussions around tax issues using investigative and data-driven journalism as a tool in a manner that would promote tax equity and justice.
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It was designed to build journalists’ capacity and enhance their skills in investigative reporting, using the Freedom of Information Act, reporting in hostile or unsafe environments, and sensitising journalists on safety and security, among others.
The Centre will also provide financial support for the selected journalists to undertake critical business investigative and data-driven reports on tax equity and multiplicity of taxation in the informal sector in Nigeria.
A participant interviewed by The ICIR, Busola Aro, who works with The Cable Newspapers in Lagos State, said the training would positively impact her future.
The Executive Director of The ICIR, Dayo Aiyetan, highlighted the importance of the training in his opening remarks and stressed its significance for journalists, stating that it provided them with the necessary skills to report on tax issues, tax equity and justice.
The organiser said in the last five years, the Centre had worked to build the journalists’ capacity to undertake investigative, data-driven reporting, thus strengthening accountability and engendering effective service delivery for citizens, particularly at the sub-regional level.
Olayinka works with The ICIR as the Social Media Manager, Reporter and Fact-checker. You can shoot him an email via shehuolayinka@gmail.com. You can as well follow him on Twitter via @BelloYinka72