Search for Common Ground Nigeria has successfully concluded a curriculum development workshop for the training of journalists on a common ground approach to reporting issues on freedom of religion and belief in Nigeria.
The workshop, which spanned three days, brought together over 20 media executives from various editorial sections. The curriculum development workshop also focused on a comprehensive understanding of the different types of conflict, the causes of conflict, and the different ways that conflict can be resolved. Also discussed are the different ways that conflict can be transformed, the factors that influence conflict transformation, the skills and strategies that can be used to transform conflict, and learning a comprehensive understanding of the meaning of freedom of religion and belief and the different ways that freedom of religion and belief can be protected.
During the closing ceremony on Friday, Mr. Temisan Etietsola, the national media specialist at Search for Common Ground Nigeria, stated that the organization is currently implementing the Freedom for Religion and Belief (FORB) project aimed at addressing potential conflict issues related to religious tolerance and tensions in Nigeria.
Mr. Temisan Etietsola stated, “The curriculum development workshop is aimed at empowering actors to prevent and address conflicts along religious lines, establish effective Early Warning/Early Response (EWER) and referral mechanisms for addressing FORB violations and violence, strengthen support mechanisms for individuals at risk of FORB violations, and enhance public understanding of interfaith conflict and the importance of religious freedom.
Recognizing the pivotal role journalists play in shaping narratives and influencing public opinion, SFCGN sought to empower them by providing the necessary skills to change their own stories and, consequently, shape the nation’s stories.
The curriculum development, which will serve as the benchmark for media practitioners to utilize while reporting sensitive issues, will be used to train journalists on sensitive reporting and the application of the common ground approach to journalism.
To deliver this curriculum development workshop, SFCGN collaborated with renowned experts who shared their wealth of knowledge and experience and guided participants through the intricacies of reporting issues on freedom of religion and belief in Nigeria. The project PP-FoRB was funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Nigeria.
