On behalf of the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) and UNESCO, I welcome us to this capacity building workshop that seeks to promote social cohesion through Media and Information Literacy and Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue among Nigeria’s diverse youth groups.
AFRICMIL is a non-governmental organisation that focuses on media, information, research, advocacy, and training. It aims to promote media and information literacy as a key component in the enhancement of democracy and good governance, and the promotion of accountability and orderly society.
This event, organised to commemorate the UNESCO Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week scheduled for October 24-31, 2022, is actually an important one because it seeks to promote one of the most precious gifts that make a society to thrive: Peace.
To live in peace is to live in harmony and unity. Where there is unity of purpose, there is strength in action.
However, factors like inadequate information and the lack of proper communication about our cultures, religions, our diversity and our individual rights have become a major challenge in the quest for progress as a nation.
Political and religious actors and mischief makers who thrive on conflicts have continued to exploit the lack of MIL knowledge among a great majority of the citizens to deepen the fault-lines by propagating messages of hate, extremism, misinformation and fake news.
It is no longer news that ours is a multi-ethnic society that is also, unfortunately, dangerously polarised along ethnic and religious lines.
Therefore, more than ever before, we need now to quickly rouse from our slumber, so to speak, and address the situation before it gets out of hand. AFRICMIL recognizes that there is an urgent need for our people to be well informed, to communicate better and take seriously issues that will bring about peaceful co-existence.
This is the time to start the process of giving citizens, especially youths, a voice not only to hold leaders accountable irrespective of religion or ethnicity, but also to advocate harmonious co-existence of the people of Nigeria.
That is the purpose for our training today. AFRICMIL is keenly interested in empowering opinion leaders and young people in various communities with MIL competencies that will enhance their capacity to navigate the news media and the internet with a view to addressing misinformation or bias about their own beliefs or those of others.
We are certain that educating the youths properly by exposing them to Media and Information Literacy, which is mostly about the use of the media and the dynamics of information seeking, sharing and acceptance, will lead to increased awareness of the need to respect the rights of all humans as contained in the universal declaration of human rights act and the Nigerian constitution.
Consequently, through this we hope to bring about ethnic and religious tolerance and understanding, thus driving social cohesion and solidarity among citizens.
To this end, we are glad to point out that in this gathering today we have as participants very important drivers of social change whose properly harnessed influence can correct the situation for the collective good of all.
We have our resource persons, religious, youth and women leaders and leaders from Persons Living with Disabilities.
We thank you all for making out time to be at this important event. We look forward to an enriched knowledge from our resource persons as well as fruitful contributions from our participants.
This programme is being held as part of activities to mark the 2022 Global MIL Week that starts on Monday, October 24. Nigeria is hosting this important global event.
We urge us all to register and participate in the event.
Thank you all.
This is a welcome address by Dr Chido Onumah, Coordinator, African Centre for Media & Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), at the capacity-building workshop for citizens as part of the 2022 Global MIL Week on Wednesday, October 19, 2022.
